L'Invasion des morts-vivants

This movie begins with a young woman by the name of "Alice Mary Tompson" (Jacqueline Pearce) awakening from what appears to be a bad dream. The scene then shifts to London where a gentleman named "Sir James Forbes" (Andre Morell) is handed a letter from his daughter "Sylvia Forbes" (Diane Clare). The letter just happens to come from the husband of Alice who goes by the name of "Dr. Peter Tompson" (Brook Williams) which details a mysterious ailment in the Cornish village where he and Alice live. Being a professor of medicine Sir James is intrigued and decides to travel to this village to check it out. Sylvia comes with him because she is anxious to see her good friend Alice. Anyway, when they get there they soon discover that this plague is unlike anything they have ever come across and they cannot seem to isolate the cause. Now rather than disclose any more and risk ruining the film for those who haven't seen it I will just say that this movie was certainly quite watchable. At least for me. I say this because I typically like most zombie movies. Not only that but I especially like movies bearing the "Hammer" trademark. So this film definitely had my interest and I was not disappointed. Having said that however, I think it's only fair to point out a couple of minor deficiencies. First, the zombies looked a bit goofy. But considering that this movie was made in the mid-60's I suppose one has to make some allowances. The other thing I noticed was that some of the acting was a bit mediocre at times. Not bad necessarily but a bit mediocre all the same. Be that as it may, I liked the performance of Diane Clare and I also thought the story flowed very smoothly from one scene to the next. In short, this was a fine "pre-Romero" zombie movie and I rate it as slightly above average.

Andre Morell's character, Dr. Forbes, makes a very unusual house call at the opening of "The Plague of the Zombies." His old student, now practicing in a small (Victorian era) Cornish village, is mystified by the recent outbreak of deaths in that town, and even his wife, Alice, is starting to exhibit some strange lethargy. After Forbes arrives to help, he and his friend uncover a mix of voodoo, grave robbing and the undead, in this lesser known Hammer title that certainly deserves a greater renown. And thanks to the fine folks at Anchor Bay, this film's popularity may soon spread beyond its current cult reputation. "Plague" features an intelligent script, fine acting, solid photography and great atmosphere. Andre Morell's doctor makes for a very reassuring action hero, despite the actor's age (he was 57 at the time this picture was made). The film boasts three very chilling scenes: the first, nighttime appearance of a zombie on a hillside; the much-celebrated dream sequence; and Alice's rising from her grave. The smile on actress Jacqueline Pearce's face in this last scene is just haunting. Though marred by a somewhat disappointing finale, the film remains a minor horror masterpiece and one of the scariest works that I've yet seen from the House of Hammer. This movie would make a wonderful double feature with the similarly themed "White Zombie" (1932), or with another Hammer film made that same year (1966), "The Reptile," featuring Pearce again and the same director, John Gilling. Any way you watch it, though, the film is a real winner.

John Gilling directs with style and flair in one of his minor masterpieces The Plague of the Zombies. Hammer only made one foray into the zombie sub-genre with this film about a doctor and his daughter paying a visit to a former medical student who has written for help. Apparently in his Cornish village, men and women are dying without explanation and are showing symptoms the doctor cannot diagnose with any real degree of certainty. Of course they soon discover that the bodies are no longer in their caskets and that many of them have been seen AFTER they have died. Gilling effectively films the sequences of action that take place in typical Hammer style with an emphasis on suspense. Although lacking the star power usually attributed to a Hammer production, this film is right up there in terms of great Hammer films. The only "star" is Andre Morrell(you may remember him as Watson in Hammer's The Hound of the Baskervilles). Morrell is quite good and I think he should have been utilized more by the studio than he was. The rest of the cast does a very credible job as well. Gilling's camera is the real treat though as he really shoots several scenes quite effectively. His dream sequence with the zombies tearing the earth from their way out into the open is a classic. Now I know some people will make the inevitable comparison to this and Night of the Living Dead(a film that came AFTER this one). That is understandable using NOTLD as the barometer of all zombie films; however, let me just point out again that this film came before that one and may have aided Romero in some way. Granted there are not a slew of similarities, but Romero may have gleaned something for this production as it is apparent he did from The last Man on Earth and Carnival of Souls. I too wish Hammer had done more with zombie films. they would have given that sub-genre a bit more class than is sometimes associated with it.

My vote for best Hammer movie of the 1960s goes to 'The Plague Of The Zombies'. It is easily one of the most original and entertaining films the studio ever released. Director John Gilling (also responsible for the bodysnatching classic 'The Flesh And The Fiends' a.k.a. 'Mania') really turns up the suspense in this gripping tale. He is helped enormously by a strong cast of leads - Andre Morell (the best Quatermass, in the original fifties TV version of 'Quatermass And The Pit'), who plays Sir James Forbes, man of science who must eventually accept that magic exists. Diane Clare ('The Haunting'), his independent daughter Sylvia, who becomes entangled in the mysterious goings on in a small Cornish village. And John Carson ('Captain Kronos, Vampire Hunter'), the charming but evil Squire who they must defeat. I thoroughly enjoyed this movie, and am baffled why it is rarely mentioned when Hammer horror movies are discussed. Highly recommended fun, creepy and well acted.

This is one of the few good horror movies about zombies that I've ever seen. It has wonderful acting, mystery, intrigue, a great plot, and, of course, scary zombies. I wish modern horror movie makers would create more movies in the vein of this 1966 classic, rather than continually pumping out the tripe that we see so much of today. This film is a respectable addition to any horror lover's personal movie collection.