Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great movie all around, September 10, 2001
I have a thing for Horror, especially for the 60's, 70's stuff. This here is a truely great one, one of the best Hammer films I've ever seen. It's like a much better version of "The Golem" which exposes similar themes. A man moves with his wife to the village where his Brother lived and died ( he died mysteriously ). They inherit his House and soon enough, People start dying. The Townsfolk is scared and bullies the couple, exept for the Barkeeper, who is trying to help them solve the mystery. Could it be that Dr. Franklin has a secret? And who is that creepy servant in his house? And why does he do anything to keep his Daughter at Home?
Everything you want is there : Moors, Spooky Graveyards, A really cool looking Creature ( It would be way cooler if it wasn't on the Box ). The Acting by everybody is great, nobody hams it up here, which is a good thing. Especially Jacqueline Pearce, I wonder what she's doing now. Her performance shines all around she really makes you feel for her. Hail Jacqueline! Her performance alone makes this movie worth watching. Her performance would make "Grim" worth watching. One Thing most Monster Movies try but horribly fail is to make us feel for the Monster. This movie doesn't try and I nearly cried at The Reptile's final words. The "Mad Peter" Character was funny, his line "I don't take part in some things that people take so serious these days, for example..." is hiliarous. If you're in the Mood for some good ol'fashion Horror, check out the Reptile, it's perfect stuff. Sure there are a lot of plot holes and the suspense doesn't always hold up but still, this is one great movie and shouldn't be forgotten.
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
beatiful minor hammer has compensations, March 17, 2001
By A Customer
so it doesn't have lee, cushing or morrel. But, it has beautiful photography, skillful direction, fine characterisation and classy supporting actors inhabiting those charasters, John Laurie and Michael Ripper put in some of their best work on film. It also has a very good score, sorry, composers name excapes me at the moment but its very subtle compared to the usual james Bernards rising chords (don't get me wrong though, i like them too). Make up for once is excellent, good comparing with that in the gorgon which is not so good. The victims die in convincing and fairly horrible fashion, and even the creature itself is better than usual for hammer. A quiet classic for hammer fans and fans of movies that achieve alot on a small budget and little time
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
overlooked Hammer delight, October 6, 2004
Hammer was a class act. They gave us great films, with lush attention to settings, costumes and location shooting. They gave you incisive writing, witty dialog (well, most of the time) and they are unsurpassed for creating atmosphere. They made screen legends out of Lee and Cushing, and brought old horror tells into vivid color, with plenty of sexy-babes around to please the lads. For some reason, The Reptile, one of their better efforts works, tends to go unnoticed or dismissed. Could it be because of the "creature" was a mere female instead of the tall dashing Lee?
Well, now that time has passed, people can rediscover this classy Hammer tale. The Reptile (like the old grade C class The Alligator People) rather lets the cat out of the bag as soon as the title is flashed. However, stick with the tale and enjoy
Hammer's gorgeous lensing, and excellent location work. Directed by John Gilling (who directed Lee in Hammer's Pirated of Blood River and a pairing of Lee and Cushing in The Gorgon - two other overlook great films) and written by Anthony Hinds, who pens such other stylish Hammer classics (The Brides of Dracula, the Curse of the Werewolf, Kiss of the Vampire), The Reptile is a moody film. Ray Barrett and Jennifer Daniel play Harry George Spalding and his wife Valerie, a young couple who inherits the husband's cottage in Cornwall, England after his uncle's mysterious death. Michael Ripper, the perpetual also ran of Horror, does a fine character role as the tavern owner who helps them. No sooner than they unpack, they learn a serial killer has been murdering villagers and likely killed Harry's uncle. The film suffers from the obvious, we know there is a Reptile, so the impact is blunted from the start.
Shot back-to-back with the Plague of the Zombies, if you are familiar with one film, and watch the other, you will recognize the same village for the shoot. It builds suspense in an understated fashion, creating really spooky atmosphere. I think this leisurely pace causing some to dismiss this worthwhile film, while those with a more discerning taste will enjoy the non-hysterical approach.
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