Le vampire a soif

You'll have to agree about one aspect of this movie…these British scriptwriters sure knew how to think up appealing titles! Look at this: blood + beast + terror … Separately, these three words already make every horror lover slaver. Together, they form the title to a seemly indispensable horror film. Sadly, this is a very wrong perception. The Blood Beast Terror is not a vital British horror picture. Especially not compared to so many other titles from that era. Although the plot of this film features a few promising and creative aspects (the still unknown universe of insects!), it develops itself very slow and tediously. The twists near the end don't really offer any surprises or innovative elements. Certainly not if you're familiar with the more famous Hammer monster movies like `The Reptile'. Peter Cushing stars as a cop investigating murders that are seemly committed by a giant death's head moth. Dr. Mallinger (Robert Flamyng) and the stunningly beautiful female resident in his mansion are behaving suspiciously, so Cushing goes undercover in rural Britain. His cute daughter and a bug-worshiping nerd accompany him. There's absolutely no tension to detect in this film. Maybe that's partially due to the far-fetched plot, but I rather blame the tame directing-skills of Vernon Sewell and the truly limited depth of this film. The characters in `Blood Beast Terror' are weak and uninteresting, while the make-up effects are downright ludicrous. The transformation-sequences that turn wench into moth are really, really cheap! And yes, I do keep in mind that the film is over 35 years old now. Even then, the special effects look stupid, mind you! In the same year of 1968, the production company (Tigon Productions) released `The Witchfinder General' starring Vincent Price. That film is at least a dozen times better and one of the most atmospheric movies I ever saw. A proof that the Hammer studios weren't the only ones who were able to create timeless, compelling horror. My advice: skip this one and continue your search for the more essential golden Brit-horrorfilms.

I really see no different from this film and other horror films starring the great Peter Cushing. Nor do I see a difference in shape-shifting to a (were)wolf or a moth or a bat - it's still horror and this one is done tastefully as I would expect from a Peter Cushing film of this time era.

Beautiful Gothic imagery, a good suspenseful inspector/detective story blended in quite well with the horror we see on screen. I love some of the music in this film as well - works quite well - eerie sounding. The acting is good - it's as if the actors really believe they are the characters and this really is happening - just the way it is suppose to be, very convincing.

Good late night film - I quite enjoyed this one.

8.5/10

A scientist (Robert Flemyng), working with genetics, creates a creature that is capable of transforming back and forth between a giant Death Head moth and a beautiful woman. The creature masquerades as his daughter when she is in her human incarnation and feeds on the blood of her victims when she is in the moth form.

So, Peter Cushing has allegedly said this was his least favorite role or the film he considered his worst. This is taken from IMDb, and there is no source or exact quote. I can see why he might say that -- this is not the best Cushing role by any means. But it is far from a bad film. Tigon gets a rough break, being treated as the third best British horror studio (behind Hammer and Amicus), but this does not mean their films are awful.

Apparently Basil Rathbone was going to play the part of the scientist. I think the only good that would come from that would be a slight increase in star power. Flemyng handles the role very well, and I am hard-pressed to say Rathbone could have improved upon it in any way.

OK, not one of the better offerings of British horror, that's true. But it does have Peter Cushing who is always fun to watch and I have to give credit for the writers to try to bring a somewhat more original monster to the screen than just another rehash in the Vampire or Frankenstein vein. Well, come to think of it aside from making the monster a moth ,this really is just another rehashed Vampire story with a few elements from the Frankenstein storyline thrown in for good measure.

I cannot help but wonder if the monster was inspired by the legend of the Mothman, the legendary beastie from West Virginia. The resemblance is pretty close. A man sized moth creature with red glowing eyes.

Shame more people have not seen this though, it's not as bad as its reputation. I find it pretty enjoyable.

Peter Cushing used to refer to THE BLOOD BEAST TERROR as the worst film of his prolific career, and this was enough to keep me from getting the SE DVD of it on R2 from DD Video when I purchased four more second-tier British horrors from the same outfit last year - namely, ISLAND OF TERROR (1966), NIGHT OF THE BIG HEAT (1967), CURSE OF THE CRIMSON ALTAR (1968) and THE CREEPING FLESH (1973). Eventually, it was shown last Saturday night on an Italian TV channel in its original language with forced Italian subtitles, and I really couldn't let an occasion like that pass me by...

Tigon was always seen as a cut-rate Hammer and this film was clearly inspired by the latter's THE REPTILE (1966; one of the Bray Studio outfit's best of the decade, and which THE BLOOD BEAST TERROR can't hope to match) - where, again, we find a female monster 'created' by her eminent but misguided entomologist father (Robert Flemyng). The monster design (we're dealing with a giant Death's Head Moth here) isn't too bad, actually, and it's thankfully not over-exposed during the course of the film: besides, Wanda Ventham's character is interesting in that she doesn't bemoan her fate as usually happens in such genre efforts - rather, she's single-minded in seeking out her prey among Flemyng's naïve students and rugged helpers around the estate, all of whom are easily swayed by her attractiveness!

Aided by a fine score from resident Tigon composer Paul Ferris, the film creates a reasonable Gothic atmosphere throughout (with, at one point, even an amateur rendition/parody of a typical Grand Guignol performance set up by the students - and also featuring Ventham - in Flemyng's house). The script, incidentally, is by Hammer alumnus Peter Bryan (THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES [1959], THE BRIDES OF Dracula [1960] and THE PLAGUE OF THE ZOMBIES [1966]) and, while offering no real surprises, it's quite enjoyable for what it is - certainly better than its reputation would suggest! That said, the monster's come-uppance in an unconvincing and abrupt fiery ending is one of the lamest of its kind I've ever come across...

Cushing - with his customary fastidiousness and dry wit intact - is always a pleasure to watch; Flemyng, too, offers his unhinged medico routine - and it's interesting, to say the least, to witness this clash of Hammer and Italian horror acting styles! Notable among the supporting cast is Roy Hudd as a scurrilous morgue attendant.

At this stage, I don't know whether I'll eventually spring for the R2 DVD - since it contains a 25-minute career overview with Ventham - but, if it's ever discounted again by one of my British retailers of choice (and provided that it hasn't gone out-of-print by then!), it's worth considering. Another DD Video title I've long neglected is THE DEVIL'S MEN (1976), incidentally, also starring Peter Cushing - and, even though it's an equally maligned horror effort, I have to admit that I'm a sucker for such things...