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15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
SPIT TAKE
Before VHS, before DVD, syndication was the only place to watch DOCTOR WHO and for years (decades even) INFERNO was in black and white. The color masters had either been wiped or lost, leaving us with a complete story - but sans the rainbow - and until a complete color copy had been found in Canada - it looked as if either the story would have to be colorized or remain...
Published on September 9, 2006 by Thomas E. O'Sullivan
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2 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
Ridiculous..
Not exactly sure why so many rate this as a "classic" or "one of the best Dr. Who's ever". The whole green ooze turning people into green skinned werewolves who like heat and can be repeled with fire extinguishers, has got to be one of the dumbest plot devices ever thought up for Dr. Who. And while interesting, what the heck does a parallel universe have to do with the...
Published on January 14, 2007 by TheMachine
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15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
SPIT TAKE, September 9, 2006
This review is from: Doctor Who: Inferno (Story 54) (DVD)
Before VHS, before DVD, syndication was the only place to watch DOCTOR WHO and for years (decades even) INFERNO was in black and white. The color masters had either been wiped or lost, leaving us with a complete story - but sans the rainbow - and until a complete color copy had been found in Canada - it looked as if either the story would have to be colorized or remain forever in black and white.
When I picked up INFERNO on DVD I wasn't sure which version I was getting. I knew that a color version had been found, but wasn't positive what condition it would be in - so when I looked at the back of the box for more detail I was surprised to find that all the images from the story were in black and white, while the details listed it as being in color. Curious... but not to worry, INFERNO has been restored and returned to its original broadcast glory... better in fact. This new reworking of this "lost" color print snaps, crackles and pops on screen. The colors are vibrant, the image clean and clear - it looks fantastic, and yet I can't help but miss the old black and white version now.
INFERNO is a great story drawn out just a touch too long. But only just... the story is all countdown, beat the clock, capture and escape and battle against the monsters - add in a dash of romance, scientific hubris (both the Doctor and Professor Stahlman are guilty here - Stahlman with his quest for personal glory, and the Doctor in his quest to escape - both risk all at any cost and both pay a terrible price in the end), and order above reason and you have so much that even at seven episodes it never fits the format, yet leaves you wanting an eighth to complete some of the plots. It's a great story well told, packed with good characters and actors and everyone is having a ball.
As with all these releases they have gone the extra mile in packing it with extras - and again, they are all very good. It's a minor complaint that some of these extras are almost exact copies of other extras also on the disc - the difference between the commentary track and the CAN YOU HEAR THE EARTH SCREAM? MAKING OF... is very narrow. A lot of what you hear there is heard on the commentary track... save for Caroline John, who could make it for the MAKING OF..., but sadly, not for the commentary. Which is a crime, as this was her final full story with DOCTOR WHO (she would cameo in THE FIVE DOCTORS) and from the MAKING OF... it's clear that she still has a wealth of untold tales from her time on DOCTOR WHO (her comments about the quality of location shooting, toilets and rats is hands down one of the best behind the scenes lines from the series ever put to DVD).
Commentary is included - and like the Doctor, it switches between one reality to the other with somewhat more mixed results. WARP 1 contains Nick Courtney, Barry Letts and Terrance Dicks and is very good. Nice background on production, insights and memories - they are having a good time watching INFERNO and remember it fondly. WARP 2 features John Levene all alone - and, while he is vibrant, happy and excited to be talking about his time served on DOCTOR WHO he falls into the old trap of not wanting to talk about something until it appears on screen, name dropping (yes - it's true, he used to live right next door to Anthony Hopkins), and repeating what has already been said in WARP 1 - so, at times it becomes a grind. I'm not sure who or why decided this was the way to go with this commentary - but it must all come down to ego and politics. It should be clear which applies to which when you listen for yourself. Overall though - a better commentary than most. Both Courtney and Dicks shine here. Text commentary is tight and heavily detailed and worth your time.
In the end INFERNO was a groundbreaking piece of work on DOCTOR WHO. While the concept may have been getting old even back then of ANOTHER EARTH it was still fresh enough for DOCTOR WHO to have some fun with it - in fact, it's still fresh enough to be used even now in the new series (Rose - we miss you! We will not stop looking for a way to bring you home!), so we may just see it again... and in fact, we have... a sequel was written to INFERNO by David McIntee.
THE FACE OF THE ENEMY is a DOCTOR WHO story without the Doctor - but instead features The Master, UNIT and Ian and Barbara in a quest to stop some castaways from INFERNO Earth now living on ours. Danger... perils... The Master, a hero? The plot thickens.
I'm happy the color version has been found - it's keen to see it as it was meant to be seen - but at the same time I mourn the loss of the WARP 2 version of INFERNO. While in black and white failed to energize the main story (set in WARP 1), it packs a punch in WARP 2. It matches the hard edges, rough talk and black hearts found on the Brutal Earth - it's like looking into Orwell's 1984 set in the DOCTOR WHO universe - where you could easily see the Doctor as BIG BROTHER.
You won't go wrong in picking up INFERNO - it's top notch and full bore. A must have for any DOCTOR WHO fan.
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19 of 21 people found the following review helpful:
So, free will is not an illusion after all., October 20, 2001
The last story of the Doctor's seventh season is the 7-part Inferno, one the best in the show's history. At a research facility, the Doctor is observing the efforts of the arrogant and unpleasant Professor Stahlman as he attempts to penetrate the Earth's crust in order to gain alternative energy source known as Stahlman's gas. The problem is, his efforts might lead to the destruction of the Earth, but it's all about him and forget the others, including Sir Keith Gold, the administrator in charge. Then there's a greenish ooze that when touched, causes people to turn green and into murderous ape-like Primords, and radiate such intense heat that whatever they touch feels as if it came from a furnace. That is what the Brigadier and UNIT are here for. All this time, penetration zero is hours away from happening, and to make matters worse, Stahlman is infected with the ooze and also sabotages the computer so he cannot be opposed by the Doctor, UNIT, or Sir Keith.During an experiment, the Doctor is propelled into a parallel Earth where Britain is ruled by a bureaucratic and fascist dictatorship: "Proper bureaucrat, aren't you? Can't shoot me unless you fill in all the forms?" He is horrified to see his friends Liz, Benton, and the Brigadier in Nazi-type uniforms, and far from the pleasant people he knew on his Earth. The most striking effect is the Brigadier, here the Brigade Leader, sans mustache, with a black patch over his left eye, a scar running down his left cheek. The Stahlman of that world succeeds in penetrating the Earth's crust, which eventually causes the planet's destruction. It is up to the Doctor to return to his Earth to avert such a disaster from happening. As he tells the parallel Earthlings, "compared to the forces that you've unleashed, an atomic blast would be like a summer breeze." Episode 5 is the most sobering one. The facility starts blowing up, green stuff oozes from the output pipe like a sore, and the fully metamorphosed Primords appear. They are frightening at times, goofy-looking the next, but when they touch someone, that someone becomes one of them, like the parallel Benton The chaos near the end of Episode 6 are also sobering. The atmosphere is tinted red, people are fleeing in terror or are dazed. And the rivers of molten lava starts flowing. Inferno indeed! Some of the cliffhangers are effective here. The one for Episode 4 has Stahlman pointing a gun at the Doctor while the countdown voice goes "5, 4, 3, 2, 1..." and then, end credits. The music is eerie and weirdly space-like, and that gives the story its ominous and gripping edge. All the regulars are terrific here, but Nicholas Courtney gets extra applause for playing the level-headed Brigadier and the vicious and cowardly Brigade Leader. Derek Newark as the authority-flouting Aussie consultant Sutton is particularly splendid, and Olaf Pooley pulls an extra-effective effort at making Professor Stahlman so petty, crazed, and dangerous. Incidentally, Sheila Dunn, who plays Petra Williams, is the wife of Douglas Camfield, who directed this masterpiece. 7-part episodes were abandoned because of their overlength, but it works for Inferno, mainly because of the story. Inferno warns of the dangerously obsessive egomaniacs like Stahlman and also of the terror of nuclear power, of abusing Mother Earth itself. But the story brings hope. When the Doctor learns that Sir Keith survived an auto crash instead of being killed like he was in the fascist Earth, he realizes, "so not everything runs parallel. An infinity of universes, ergo an infinite number of choices. So, free will is not an illusion after all. The pattern can be changed." I'm hoping that's what Nostradamus' prophecies of World War III are-a prediction for a parallel Earth that foolishly and tragically destroyed itself. Well, I hope it's not the fate of this Earth. With our free will, we can prevent that from happening.
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
"Free will is not an illusion after all!", January 13, 2000
This could possibly be the best Dr Who story ever made. It's a compelling, disturbing and very human tale that, although 7 episodes long, never drags (in fact, it seems very rushed). The performances are all topline, the direction by Douglas Camfield superb and the music and sound effects very jarring. The parallel Earth scenes, in which England is run by a fascist government (a "what if the Nazis won" scenario), have a depressing, sterile, Orwellian feel; all the central characters have two roles, their "normal" selves and their parallel personas give them all added depth. Top marks to the Nicholas Courtney as the Brigade Leader. Small touches, such as certain pieces of conversational dialogue played out twice, once in the normal Earth and once in the parallel world, make a substantial impact on the viewer. The Doctor being placed in a situation where he cannot save the Earth (or one Earth) is quite haunting when you consider that "saving the day" becomes predictable to the point of cliche. At the end of the story you can't help feeling emotionally drained; the deaths of well defined characters and their parallel selves surviving plays with your feelings, making you both mourn and rejoice. Like the case with much of Dr Who, the monsters are not often well realised. The Primords have their moments, but just try not to think of the Bee Gees when they start rampaging in the later episodes! Best moments - the cliff hanger to episode 4 and the "doomsday" sequences at the end of episode 6. This is must own Dr Who!
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11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
YOU REALLY DO LOOK BETTER WITH YOUR MOUSTACHE!!!, June 18, 2006
This review is from: Doctor Who: Inferno (Story 54) (DVD)
UNLESS WE ACT NOW THERE'S GOING TO BE THE MOST TERRIBLE DISASTER IMAGINABLE...I'VE SEEN IT HAPPEN!
JUMPING JEHOSOPHAT! Imagine a sci-fi story with twice the potential for world armageddon, and that's what you have in INFERNO, a 7 part Dr. Who serial from Jon Pertwee's run as the interfering Timelord. Usually the story arcs longer than 4 parts, suffer from attempts to stretch out the episodes with padding and material that neither advances the story nor does it serve any real purpose. INFERNO, I'm happy to say is not one of those stories.
The top-secret drilling project called "Inferno", is intended to penetrate the Earth's crust and release limitless energy for the world. Hungry for success the "powers that be " ignore warnings about the possible dangers of the project, some warnings coming from the Doctor, currently in his 3rd incarnation and exiled by his people, the Timelords,to Earth of the 20th century. While the Doctor still hopes to escape the confines of one planet, one time, by borrowing some of the power from the "Inferno" project. As unpaid scientific adviser to the paramilitary organization UNIT, or the United Nations Intelligence Taskforce, he is frequently in the position to help them save the human race, most often from themselves. Although this is one time he only half-succeeds in averting world destruction. While the project proceeds in its attempt to drill over 20 miles through the Earth's crust, to tap the gas beneath it, a series of events begin leading to the end of the world, maybe two. A technician's contact with an enigmatic subterranean ooze, followed by a motiveless murder and a madman on the loose are mere opening clues for the Doctor, his brilliant assistant Liz Shaw and the project's head of security and UNIT's CO the Brigadier, to solve the unfolding mystery. But the Doctor's own agenda has him distracted: he is testing the console from the TARDIS (his immobilized time/space ship).
More attacks occur involving the altered technician, through some "retrogressive mutation" he and anyone he's touched suffer a transformation into animal-things. More of the ooze is discovered from the drilling outpipe, at first the substance defies analysis, while the project head, Prof. Stahlman conceals that he has touched it. He continues to ignore all warnings to stop drilling, those from both the Doctor and the computer, the later which he sabotages himself. Becoming increasingly obsessive as he regresses further, he orders the Doctor's power supply cut-off at a critical juncture in his experiments with the TARDIS console. This caused the Doctor to travel "sideways in the time/space continuum" to a parallel universe. He's on earth right when and where he was but things are a bit askew, UNIT is not longer managing security, replaced by RSF (the Republican Security Forces), the Brigadier is now the eye-patched and mustacheless Brigade-Leader (scars and facial hair are always major factors in reality shifts), Liz is now Section Leader Shaw. As it happens the project is marginally more advanced than the Doctor's universe, Prof. Stalman is just as dangerously obsessed and infected, but the Doctor never existed, so he is promptly thought a spy, a saboteur, arrested and tossed in a cell with an infected technician. After the Doctor escapes, he tries again to stop the countdown, but it is too late Prof. Stalman is to far gone and others don't believe him until it is too late, as the Doctor puts it, "Listen to that, it's the sound of this planet screaming out its rage!...Compared to the forces you've unleashed, an Atomic blast would be like a summer breeze!"
What is always Dr. Who at it's most frightening is when the Doctor, the ever-present voice of optimism and internal hope ...when the Doctor gives up. That is when Dr. Who is just plain spooky. The Doctor says: "Sorry, we're past the point of no return, you've uncorked the genie from the bottle and there's nothing I can do." The parallel players consign themselves to try to help the Doctor to escape. Seriously, that's it, they begin hoping against hope that they just might be able to send him off alone on the off chance that his Earth might avoid the same catastrophic blunder (except for the Brigadier's counterpart, who hopes to force the Doctor into using the TARDIS as a interdimensional lifeboat).
INFERNO really is one of the best that Jon Pertwee's era has to offer. Thankfully BBC video has taken this opportunity to really clean up the footage (most color originals of Inferno were listed among the BBC fire causualties, the American reruns most of us saw in the 80's were all shaky BLACK & WHITE back-up reels, AND WE WERE THANKFUL FOR IT!).
INFERNO'S length allow for a greater development of character and relationships that serve the dual roles of the major and minor players, while confirming their natures by contrasting them (like the hot/cold between the crass but brave, in any universe, Drilling Consultant SUTTON and the all-business Assistant Director Dr. PETRA WILLIAMS.
Like the Doctor says, "Fascinating, so many similarities, yet so many differences."
The Liz Shaw and the Brigadier of "Universe B" are really just versions of themselves behaving as they would in a world dominated by fascism, but no one is "evil" in this story. Even Project Director Prof. Stahlman, the man whom which this disaster(s) would not be possible without, is merely obsessive and arrogant, then out of his mind, but even the monsters aren't evil, just kind of "hot & bothered."
Robert A. Heinlein author of "STRANGER in a STRANGE LAND" and the universe-shifting novel "JOB: A COMEDY OF JUSTICE" cites H.G. WELLS as having invented all of the basic fantasy themes, including the parallel universe, specifically: MEN LIKE GODS. Of course, the Sci-Fi channels loaded with them, including spoofs in Futurama, and just this year (probably the BBC's real motivation behind this release) the brilliant second season of the new Dr. Who features the 2 parter "AGE of STEEL/RISE of the CYBERMEN" in which the Cybermen are reborn (or rebuilt) on an alternate Earth. My point is INFERNO is a good story in good company, but not without it's clichés & faults.
The monsters in this one are alittle on the poor side of Lon Chaney and the Doctor, literially defeats the same ones over and over again, but I recommend adding this DVD to your Dr. Who collection.
One of my favorite experiences linked w/ DW is gathering w/ friends to watch, debate & other nefarious purposes.... So here is some INFERNO clichés for drinking games. Drink when:
--Someone is accused of traitorous talk/ behavior or sabotage
--The Doctor drives "Bessie" seemingly w/out purpose
--You see possible stock footage (of molten materials)
--The universe changes P.O.V. to an alternate one
--The Doctor calls authoritarian figures rude names
--You experience any feeling of Déjà vu (in any universe)
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
Move aside Dante, this is Pertwee's Inferno, July 3, 2006
This review is from: Doctor Who: Inferno (Story 54) (DVD)
Season 7 of Doctor Who was a an important one for the future of the programme. Not only had the new production team got the task of introducing a new actor as the Doctor, but also the task of improving a programme whose ratings had steadily declined throughout Patrick Troughton's tenure as the Doctor. The addition of colour improved their chances, as did the novelty of having the Doctor exiled to Earth and seconded as UNIT's scientific advisor. As the Pertwee era wore on these narrative restrictions would become a burden, as writers strived with mixed results to squeeze originality out of the format. But in Season 7, it works perfectly. In fact this remains one of the programmes best sequence of episodes. INFERNO was a fitting finale to an extremely pessimistic and dark season in which mankind was as villainous as any alien invader.
INFERNO has more substance than most Doctor Who stories. Surprisingly this is the first time the narrative device of a parallel Earth has been used in the programme, undoubtedly the reason was to pad out what was essentially a 4 part story to 7 episodes. But the result is an intelligently handled fascist allegory in which the regulars other than Pertwee get to play their villainous and evil counterparts. Buckled onto this is a tale of an environmental catastrophe of epochal proportions. Natures reaction to meddling in the world of Doctor who is often destructive, this is a somewhat conservative stance for a programme advocating scientific practice and reasoning. But this is one of the many contradictions that make Doctor who such interesting viewing in the modern age. The story also has a wonderful sense of claustrophobia, but this is somewhat undermined by the inclusion of a rather pointless monster in the shape of the Primord. Doctor Who's willingness to take risks and innovate could only go so far and the inclusion of a monster in INFERNO does detract somewhat from a tale in which the curiosity and ego of man is the most damaging and monstrous enemy the planet faces.
This 2 disc DVD is impressive and of special note is the picture restoration. Although still a little blotchy and fuzzy in places, generally the story looks great. The supplementary documentaries are likewise good value for money, the standard for Doctor Who DVD's continues to increase as the months go by.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
Classic Pertwee era Doctor Who - a sad goodbye to Liz Shaw, November 3, 2000
Jon Pertwee's first season as the Doctor harked back to older days. After a brief four parter (Spearhead from Space), there were three seven part stories. Inferno concluded the season, and is one of the, if not the, best Pertwee stories.In this season the Doctor was earth-bound, exiled by the Time Lords. Working as a special adviser for the United Nations Intelligence Taskforce (UNIT) Pertwee's Doctor was presented with a wonderful cast of support characters - from Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart, very much a military man, to loyal Sergeant Benton. His principal companion of the season was Dr Liz Shaw, a scientist - intended to portray a wiser, more emancipated companion. Despite, Caroline Shaw's subtle portrayal scriptwriters had little idea what to do with the character, and Liz Shaw, appearing in only four stories, is very much a footnote in Doctor Who history. This is Liz Shaw's final story, and while - unlike other companions - she is not given a farewell, the story gives Caroline John more to do than other stories in the season, and lets fans wonder how the character could be developed. The plot is set in a refinery around a project to drill to the core of the earth, and release untold energy. However, some disappearances and murders are taking place in the drilling works around the refinery - and UNIT's involvement coincides with the appearance of mutants (primords). Despite the Doctor's concerns the work progresses, the earth-bound Doctor making use of some of the energy from the project for experiments with his TARDIS (time and space travelling machine). The Doctor is flung into a parallel Earth where work on the project is also progressing. However, despite the appearance of some familiar faces, this is a fascist regime. The Doctor is left watching two worlds race towards disaster. Can he save either, or both? Inferno is scripted by Don Houghton, later to write the engaging Mind of Evil. Houghton's scipt is probably one episode too long (there are several unnecessary sequences). It also relies on several cliches of the genre, e.g. the mad scientist, the practical man pointing out the inadequacies of the project. But, Pertwee's cynical Doctor (more downbeat here than in some of his more hystrionic eye-rolling performances) counterbalances some of the worst excesses. The story is well-directed, and despite some longeurs, is generally fast paced. It is good low budget television, where the script makes up for a paucity of special effects. Acting is generally of a good quality - although there is some overacting from those condemned to life as "primords". The central cast members, Nicholas Courtney (the Brigadier); Caroline John (Liz); and John Levene (Benton) are given more to do than normal - and their performances in the parallel Earth scenes justify acquisition of the story for Doctor Who fans. Doctor Who obsessives will note two footnotes to the story. Firstly, the opening credits to each episode are unusual in that they run over scenes of fire and furnace. Secondly, this is the last appearance for the original TARDIS console, first created for the story "100,000BC" (aka An Unearthly Child) in 1963. This is a good introduction to Doctor Who for non-fans, but the impact of the story is all the greater if the viewer has some familiarity with previous UNIT stories from the first Pertwee season (at least Spearhead from Space, and arguably The Silurians). If you enjoy this you might want to try Mind of Evil, or The Daemons.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
"Listen to that! It's the sound of the planet screaming out its rage!", February 14, 2007
This review is from: Doctor Who: Inferno (Story 54) (DVD)
No Daleks, no Cybermen, and "Inferno" is still a prime example of "Doctor Who" at its best, combining an intelligently speculative science-fiction storyline with suspense, action, and a bit of horror. The storyline itself succeeds admirably at the daunting task of interweaving three rather different concepts: the drilling deep through the Earth's crust in search of cheap energy sources, driven by shortsightedness and scientific hubris and ultimately threatening the stability of the planet; accidental displacement into an alternate, parallel timeline, one in which history has run along a recognizably similar but ultimately different track (one in which England is a fascist, 1984-like society); and the retrogressive mutation of people into green, super-strong, savage monsters (admittedly the weakest link of the three, but serving a role to the story as a tangible threat, in any case). And underlying these disparate strands and unifying them is a timely ecological theme handled with judicious, understated subtlety.
Everything else falls into place, too. There are some thrilling action sequences (something we hadn't seen a lot of in "Doctor Who" before), with Jon Pertwee doing many of his own stunts a la Jackie Chan and a fine, professional stunt team handling much of the rough stuff. Jon Pertwee is in top form anyway as the swashbuckling, anti-authoritarian third Doctor, and the acting by the rest of the cast is absolutely top-notch--with some of the series regulars playing their alternate, fascist selves very convincingly. There are inspired bits of dialogue throughout, too. The Primords look a bit funny in their wolfish final form, but the special effects have for the most part held up pretty well (which is saying a lot for a 1970 BBC production). Plus we're treated to fine demonstrations of Venusian karate. What more could you ask for from an earth-shattering classic?
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
(very likely) the Best Doctor Who story ever! It doesn't get any better than this!!!!, November 6, 2005
It's been a while since I saw this, but I thought it would be blasphemous if I didn't have a review on this amazing story!!!
It's such a chilling story about an insane (not mad!) scientest at a lab drilling the earths crust to supply more energy resources for the country. And something starts going horribly wrong when the green slime reaches the surface in one of the rooms of the lab headquarters when one of the easy-going technicians touches (yuck!) the green slime -- and turn into a extremely vicious and wild creature -- very similar in appearnace to the Incredible Hulk -- except in this story this heaps of them!
While, in a shed at the complex, the doctor experiments with his tardis consul, and in he experiments and then instructs Liz to put the power on, gets zapped and has quite a mind-splitting experience until Liz turns the power off! To cut it short, he ends up in the parrallel universe where they encounter similar problems with men also turning into "hulk men" and bad tempered pompous, stuburn (to say the least) scientest like Stahlman -- I am happy I still remember his name. :) But it's all quite scary as Britain is a republic and is controlled in a nazi-style resume much similar to the 3rd Reich! I can't tell you much more because it would spoil this quite superb story that is so original, inspiring, scary to watch! I was at the end of my seat with this story, with a great cast of actors. The Brigadier did a marvellous job as pseudo-Hitler, Olaf Pooley (Stahlman) is so hated in this real -- you really want to punch him in the face, but is very realistic quite reminiscent of real life with how demanding bosses are in the workplace getting you to do impossible things -- even if what you are doing is destroying the earth! Caroline John (Liz Shaw) was great -- she should have won the award for her 2 part role. Very likely actor as she has to put with everybody and won't listen to her because of her association with the so-called insane "Doctor." She really does look quite an intelligent woman and this is her best story. This would more than likely be the best Doctor Who story I've seen!
I would recommend this story to anyone who loves the show. Even to Tom Baker-only people as well and beg and plead to them to watch this insanely brillant 7-part epic! If you could tell those people to watch one story that's not Tom's -- this is the way to go. But in reality, Tom Baker was somewhat similar to Jon. The only major difference was Tom was brought the jokey, humorous role to the show.
IT MUST COME ON DVD SOON!!!!!!!!! HURRY UP PEOPLE!!!!!!!!
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
No, John, he doesn't look like a chauffeur, January 8, 2007
This review is from: Doctor Who: Inferno (Story 54) (DVD)
"Inferno" has always been one of my top ten "Doctor Who" stories. It's got UNIT and Jon Pertwee. It's got primordial green slime that turns scientists into screeching ape-men. And it's got the end of the world. It's got a funny script punctuated by moments of Pertwee's righteous outrage, a guest cast without any misfires (a very rare thing for any "Doctor Who" story), and it's long. All right, I'm admitting my bias for long stories here, but if you've got a good setup going, why not run it out for seven weeks?
Which is why it's astounding to learn, on the DVD release, that the alternate-Earth scenario dominating the middle four episodes of "Inferno", wasn't even part of the original story outline! The script works so perfectly with the parallel world that it's hard to imagine how empty this story would be without it. Think of all of the seemingly standard lines of dialogue that only pay off because all of our main characters have evil counterparts in the mirror universe. When Professor Stahlman, the repressed mad scientist trying to drill through the Earth's core, calls our friend Sergeant Benton an "ape-like minion", it works because we've just seen alternate Benton turn into an ape a few minutes ago. When mutinous oil rig foreman Greg Sutton says an idea's so crazy that it might actually work, we laugh because that same idea did work -- when he thought of it in the other universe three episodes ago. And, of course, the Doctor's joke about the Brigadier's mustache pays off when we finally meet the alternate Brigadier without one -- and he's a cold, evil bully.
Where would this story be if the Earth itself (the alternate one, that is), didn't actually perish at the conclusion of Episode 6? The long montage of earthquakes, volcanoes, and cliffhanger-inducing lava flows is meant to be the end of a planet. After seven seasons of menacing Earth, the "Doctor Who" production team was actually able to destroy it. Compare that with the pair of 2006 Cybermen two-parters, which used an alternate earth as a vehicle for a mix of bittersweet and happy endings. This is pretty daring stuff for 1970!
As always, the deluxe Restoration Team treatment adds much to this release. As much as I'd always loved Episodes 5 and 6, showing how alternate Stahlman's penetration of the Earth's crust dooms the planet, the DVD text commentary tells us how much better it could have been. Had the director not fallen ill, and had producer Barry Letts (a relative novice behind the camera) not stepped in, we'd have had reduced lighting and more shadows in those scenes. The unleashing of the inferno might have been more terrifying than 2006's "The Impossible Planet", which recently surpassed "Inferno" as DW's best story-set-in-hell.
There's a rule that three-man audio commentary booths usually don't work, because you'll have two geezers talking to each other and the third one left out in the cold. The "Inferno" commentary solves that problem by putting Letts, script editor Terrance Dicks, and Nicholas "The Brigadier" Courtney all together. The three veterans discuss the flaws of the story at hand, praise Christopher Eccleston's turn as the Doctor in the 2005 season, and relate some good anecdotes from the set (even though anyone who's ever been to a DW convention does not need to hear the eyepatch story again). Their stories only rarely diverge from what the text commentary tells us underneath. I also loved learning that director Douglas Camfield cast his wife in a pivotal role, but not as his first choice!
Unfortunately, there was a fourth man in the booth and that's what detracts from the set: John "Sergeant Benton" Levene somehow got two episodes' worth of commentary almost entirely to himself. Thus, rote descriptions of what we're watching ("It looks as if the Doctor's going to open that door now, and wasn't Jon Pertwee so wonderful at turning door handles?") are alternated with pointless anecdotes about the cast and crew ("Doesn't he look like a chauffeur?", Levene coos endlessly about a small role in Episode 5). To be fair, it was interesting to hear more about Camfield and how he motivated Levene's acting career... then again, had Camfield survived to hear this commentary track, he might not have bothered in the first place.
The twin documentaries on the extra disc are, as always, worth a look. The making-of feature is a bit more standard than we've seen lately -- lots of call sheets superimposed over still photographs, and lots of dates we really don't need to know ("And then it was April 23 so time for the mounting of Episodes 3, 4 and half of 6"). Better is "The UNIT Family", a look at the making of the first six UNIT stories. Here we see a face new to DW DVDs, former producer Derrick Sherwin, who expounds upon how UNIT came to be in 1968. Good heavens, he must have been young back then, because he looks barely 60 now. Also a nice touch is composer Mark Ayres' take on the harpsichord-heavy UNIT theme, which added a touch of class to all those filmed inserts of soldier-laden convoys back in 1971.
A great story, a great DVD presentation. The worst thing you can say about the disc is that, if there are any easter eggs, they're harder to find than usual... and that, please, please, please don't let John Levene back in the booth by himself!
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
My favorite Pertwee serial...., September 8, 2006
This review is from: Doctor Who: Inferno (Story 54) (DVD)
I saw this a long time ago, and it always has been a favorite. It has some of the greatest dialogue ever in a Doctor Who adventure, and it has great, intense performances as well. Keep in mind, everyone (except the Doctor) is playing a dual role here. The TARDIS slipped sideways in time, and the Doctor ended up in a parallel world ruled by a totalitarian government. It's fascinating to see the same characters play evil versions of themselves (especially Sgt. Benton, who was always kind of a dullard, and the Brigadeer). The other performances are superb, especially the character of Sutton, portrayed brilliantly by Derek Newark (who was in the first ever Doctor Who episode An Unearthly Child) who is especially powerful as the drilling expert that thinks the project is going to lead to disaster (which it does, at least in one of the worlds). Pertwee is superb as well, and has some of the best one liners in Doctor Who history. A note...I actually saw this in colour on WTTW, Channel 11 in Chicago. I actually have a VHS copy of it. Unfortunately, VHS is not known for its high quality, so it's a little worn. It is possible that WTTW might still have a colour version of it lying around somewhere. Thankfully, the BBC did transfer this to black and white film, or no one would ever see it again.
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