Customer Reviews

Island of Terror [VHS]

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

In the late 60's, my mom packed the four of us kids into the station wagon and took us to the drive in theater to see a showing of four horror movies. Island of Terror was the third...and the best! I still remember being afraid to get up to go to the bathroom at night because I was SURE that the silicates were on the hallway ceiling waiting for me!

Of course, this is a low-budget horror flick made by a Hammer rival, but for what it is, it's still pretty darned good. The special effects aren't bad for the period, with unique and interesting creature design, sound effects and blatant rubber bodies... But a decent script, capable actors and the cold damp atmosphere of an Irish island directed by Hammer veteran Terence Fisher result in a memorable fun-filled and sometings even genuinely creepy good time. Cushing and Judd move things along nicely, and the supporting cast of does a nice job of adding local color.

I saw this movie as a child and couldn't sleep for a week. It wasn't uncommon to catch this movie during the evening or late show in the late 60s and early 70s. Unfortunately, the versions I'd watched as a child wre often brutally edited by the local television station. I'd searched - since the arrival of videocassettes - for a copy of this movie. When I finally tracked down a copy a few years ago, I was almost reluctant to watch it. I'd enjoyed the feature so much as a child, I was afraid - as an adult - I'd find it silly and contrived. Not at all. I enjoyed it just as much as I had all those years ago. Watching the video provided me with the first opportunity to view the film in its entirety. It was great! The video release also features the original trailer. Island Of Terror is a tale set on a remote Irish isle in which experimentation into a cure for cancer results in a deadly new organism which feeds on bone. Peter Cushing and Edward Judd deliver believable performances and the writing is better - certainly no worse - than similar movies of its era. I have read criticism of the special effects. Indeed, they pale in comparison to effects we see today, but considering when the feature was made, I think they hold up well. In a shocking scene, one of the "Silicates" grabs Cushing by the wrist and Judd must choose between the limb and his friend's life. The result is bloody and spectacular. Okay - I will concede that the sound of a straw rattling in a milkshake cup when the creatures are "sucking" the bones from their latest victim is cheesy, but that's a minor flaw. This is a fun and fast paced thriller and while the special effects may not always be spectacular, the acting and storyline make this a terrific film.

Neat little monster flick even if it did miss the Fifties by a few years. Good locations and color photography (filmed in 1:85 ratio) adds to the effect and the monsters are adequate for a film of this type.

Beware that the UK DVD release has the 'hand amputation/blood squirting scene' completely edited out, but I do hear that the German DVD release has the scene still fully intact.

All in all, a fun fifties style 'monster on the loose/trapped on an island' story with a tinge of British flavor which always adds some intelligence to these type of sci-fi flicks.

I saw this movie as a child and couldn't sleep for a week. It wasn't uncommon to catch this movie during the evening or late show in the late 60s and early 70s. Unfortunately, the versions I'd watched as a child were often brutally edited by the local television station. I'd searched - since the arrival of videocassettes - for a copy of this movie. When I finally tracked down a copy a few years ago, I was almost reluctant to watch it. I'd enjoyed the feature so much as a child, I was afraid - as an adult - I'd find it silly and contrived. Not at all. I enjoyed it just as much as I had all those years ago. Watching the video provided me with the first opportunity to view the film in its entirety. It was great! The video release also features the original movie trailer (The trailer IS silly and contrived). Island of Terror is a tale set on a remote Irish isle in which experimentation into a cure for cancer results in a deadly new organism which feeds on bone. Unlike the hackneyed "mad scientist creates a monster" storyline, in Island of Terror we have a group of scientists with the highest regard for life and best intentions accidently creating terrifying creatures. Peter Cushing and Edward Judd deliver believable performances and the writing is better than similar movies of its era. I have read criticism of the special effects. Indeed, they pale in comparison to effects we see today, but considering when the feature was made, I think they hold up well. In a shocking scene, one of the "Silicates" grabs Cushing by the wrist. Judd grabs an ax and must choose between the limb and his friend's life. The result is bloody and spectacular. Okay - I will concede that the sound of a straw rattling in a milkshake cup when the creatures are "sucking" the bones from their latest victim is cheesy, but that's a minor flaw. This isn't a Hammer film, but has the feel of one. This is a fast paced thriller and while the special effects may not always be incredible, the acting and story line make this a terrific film.

I couldn't sleep alone for half a year after seeing this when I was about 8. This movie scared me out of my mind. But I loved it anyway! I was a Saturday afternoon Creature Double Feature veteran, and this was by far the scariest movie I had ever seen.

I first saw this movie as a kid and it scared the hell out of me -- in that fun sort of way. It is truly a classic. Show it to your grandkids -- they will never forget it.

They dont make them like this any more.

Scientist conducting experiments to attack cancer cells instead create living organisms that attack and eat bone. After a badly misshapen body appears the locals call on medical experts to diagnose the threat and soon discover the monsters are everywhere as they divide (like cells) and multiply. Squemish scenes of monsters sucking the bones out of hapless victims makes for great saturday entertainment!

Island of Terror stars Peter Cushing one of the greatest actors of all time.
He's mostly known for Hammer Horror movies but he played many other roles.
Here he is a professor/scientist call in to help find out about mysterious
killings where bodies of humans and animals are killed by having all the
bone removed. It's classic sci-fi horror. Kind of a cheap Hammer movie
but very well written and acted with great atmosphere. The ending is the
only part I am not crazy about but other than that highly recommended.
Where is the dvd? All the crap they release why not this? Ridiculous.

Whats special about this movie is, THAT IT IS SCARY... which is a bit unusaul for now-days because what we have now is computerized effects. 1966 didn't have all this technology. Plus, it stars the legendary "Peter Cushing!" Buy this movie... its pretty much worth it.

A very entertaining and atmospheric film chock-full of that "je ne sais quoi" that's almost totally lacking in today's special-effects monstrosities pretending to be movies. My only criticism pertains to the rather awkward editing that evidences itself in extremely abrupt scene changes. Well, small price to pay for a film that can (and should) be watched numerous times over the years.