Symptoms

First of all I love pretty explicit and audacious lesbian vampire flick "Vampyres"(1974),but more rare and obscure "Symptoms" is even better and certainly different in tone.It's a very subtle,calm and restrained horror film with plenty of mysterious atmosphere.Helen Ramsey arrives back from Switzerland to her old-fashioned family home,accompanied by a friend Ann West.It quickly becomes clear that Helen suffers from a nervous disposition.At night both Helen and Ann hear voices in the house and Helen seems convinced that there is something in the attic,a trap door to which is in the ceiling in a corner of her room."Symptoms" is a genuinely frightening horror film about a woman slowly slipping completely into madness.The cinematography is striking,the interior sets are terrifyingly dark and the acting by Angela Pleasence is fantastic.I fell in love with this film and can't praise it enough.

This was the third Larraz title I've watched after VAMPYRES (1974) and THE COMING OF SIN (1978) – and will be promptly followed by another, THE HOUSE THAT VANISHED aka SCREAM…AND DIE! (1973); it's his second best-regarded effort after VAMPYRES itself and, in retrospect, a reputation that's fully deserved.

Even so, the film is hardly the heady brew of erotica and visceral thrills that was the latter (though it contains similar lesbian undertones and the occasional outburst of shocking violence) but rather a deliberately-paced mood-piece – in fact, it might best be described as REPULSION (1965) in the countryside (with all the inherent eeriness that such a remote setting entails)! In any case, relying as it does on fleeting frissons (the subtle appearance of a 'mysterious' woman roaming the mansion), admirably-sustained tension (the connotations involving Peter Vaughn's character and, of course, the various murder sequences) and a carefully-deployed central puzzle (which keeps us guessing down to the very penultimate shot!), the film is surely a testament to Larraz's versatility within a genre which had all but turned stale by this time (even more so vis-a'-vis the then-crumbling British movie industry).

Interestingly, the lead role is played by Angela Pleasence – daughter of horror icon Donald; just because she's his spitting image, the actress' odd looks are perfect for her mentally unbalanced character (though I doubt Larraz intended it to be a serious case history, there is the singular fact of SYMPTOMS being one of the competing entries at that year's Cannes Film Festival to consider!). Equally thoughtful was the selection of the other principal cast members: the aforementioned Peter Vaughan's burly and stern handyman could, at first glimpse, have been played by just any heavy-set person – but there's no denying that the part benefits immensely from his experienced presence; and pretty Lorna Heilbron (from THE CREEPING FLESH [1973]) as Pleasence's housemate, with short-cropped hair suggesting the then-fashionable androgyny. Affable character actor Raymond Huntley, a veteran of many a British comedy, plays the owner of the village drugstore in what proved to be his last film.

Incidentally, this was yet another picture – bafflingly M.I.A. on DVD as we speak – which I recently acquired on DVD-R i.e. I've had to make do with a full-frame edition culled from TV with forced Spanish subtitles to boot…but which is appropriate in this case, since the director actually hails from that country!

A considerable nonchalance fills the first long stretch of the movie, with nothing more than mere suggestions of anything peculiar dancing around the edges of the picture. At that, the marginal unease is built almost exclusively with out of place sound effects, John Scott's ominous score, or lines of dialogue that do not comport with the beautiful scenery and setting. So it is until just over one-third of the film has passed, as the eeriness begins to coalesce - first with more concrete notions of something amiss in the scenario, and at last with confirmation.

I appreciate the costume design. I think the concept is alright. However, I think the screenplay is regrettably thin, and hollow. Unconcerned pacing and piecemeal, light plot limit our engagement, and dialogue is often ham-handed and unconvincing. These qualities are echoed in the writing and orchestration of scenes, and the characterizations, to which little to no personality is imparted. All this works to restrict the cast, especially stars Angela Pleasence and Lorna Heilbron, from fully realizing the potential of characters. Heilbron is duly pleasant and uncertain as Anne, and Pleasence bears a dark intensity and disquiet as Helen; sadly, that's about all the more there is to be said. Whatever measure of nuance the leads are able to bring to their performances is effectively lost given the indelicate, feeble hand otherwise crafting the feature.

There are strong ideas here, and a strong cast. The end result just doesn't cut it. The atmosphere, thrills, foreboding, and broad entertainment we should get are greatly dampened by what feels like a weak, incomplete writing. I feel as indifferent to the film at its end as I did when I first began watching - save for that I'm also disappointed. There are worse things you could watch, and yet - a horror-thriller should get one's blood pumping to at least some small extent, but as it is, this simply doesn't. I hesitate to say that 'Symptoms' is outright bad, but it's not good, either.

A young woman called Anne (Lorna Heilbron) is invited by her girlfriend named Helen (Angela Pleasence) , who lives in an English country house , to stay there with her. The estate, however, isn't quite what it seems and neither is the friend who issued the invitation, as things go wrong when strange happenings start appearing at the woods and at the weird mansion .

An interesting and terrifying movie with tension, thrills, chills, suspense and an unexpected conclusion. It is an enjoyable film that owes a lot to ¨Polanski's Repulsion¨ and ¨Hitchcock's Psychosis¨by taking parts here and there , although , of course , inferior to these two great terror films that quickly established themselves as classics in its field and whose frames have been very imitated since . This Symptoms (1974) packs a chilling feeling of incipient madness that has seldom been realised with such imagination and skill , containing some hallucinatory and surprising scenes . Larraz's direction is slow but deliberate , never missing a chance of jolting the audience with a sudden shock . This disturbing horror movie was such a critical and public success at the time , but unfortunately after being forgotten , and nowadays recuperated from obscurity and considered to be a cult movie . Terrific acting from main starring Angela Pleasence who shows efficiently all the agony of a tormented mind in her eyes .Also very nice acting from his beloved friend Lorna Heilbron and the suspicious handyman played by veteran Peter Vaughn . Special mention for the thrilling and suspenseful musical score by John Scott.

This much-loved 70s shocker was professional and stylistically directed by Jose Ramon Larraz . Larraz who deceased in 2013 started in cinema world by casual way when he meets the famous director Josef Von Stenberg running a cinematographic course in Brussels . Larraz was a director of horror and erotic films and former comic book illustrator and fashion photographer . Worked in England as Joseph Larraz, and in Spain, using the pseudonym Joseph Braunstein . Larraz subsequently shot horror classics , cult obscurities , euro-trash , and even some sexploitation . As he filmed his first movies in England , plenty of terror , suspense and sex , such as ¨Whirlpool¨ (1970) , ¨Deviation¨(1971) , ¨La Muerte Incierta¨(1972) , ¨Scream or die¨(1973) and ¨Symptoms¨ with Angela Pleasence and Peter Vaughan . He also shot soft-cores and then Jose Ramón returns Spain filming horror and semi-exploitative movies such as ¨Estigma¨ , ¨Ritos Sexuales Del Diablo¨, ¨Al Filo del Hacha¨ and ¨Descanse en Piezas¨ , imitating the American Slashers of the 70s and 80s . His most successful film is this ¨Vampyres¨ about bloodsuckers who get victims to pull over hitchhiking , played by Playboy young models with sexy bodies , blending arty house , horror and erotic situations . Symptoms (1974) rating : Notable terror movie . Most hardcore Euro horror fans will appreciate the kinkiness of this film as that is what gives it its distinctive flavour . A compelling movie that's a must for connoisseurs of the cinema's darker corners.

the plot is paper thin but what it lacks in story it makes up for in good acting, excellent cinema photography like visual poetry, and a creepy moody atmosphere. I watched it in black and white and it looked beautiful.. I may watch again in color just to compare. This is the kind of movie that needs to be remade.. fix some of the clunky dialog and establish a more cohesive story arc.. but then again the feeling of being lost as to what exactly was happening on screen is part of this movie's charm.