As this film opens German nanny Beate arrives at a stately home. She is there to look after the children of its owner, a lord named Gregory. It soon becomes clear that Gregory has a somewhat degenerate lifestyle; he is desperate to have a choice of sons to inherit his home and is keen that they have a variety of mothers. It also becomes clear that while Gregory may own the house it is run by Tom, his butler. As the film progresses Tom's malevolent control of the house only increases.
This is a distinctly strange film. It is billed as horror but it isn't gory nor is there anything really scary. It is however unsettling at times. It is filmed at Longleat, a great location that really adds to the film... much use is made of both the house and the attached safari park, even if the latter is only shown so we can see scenes of lions eating large slabs of meat. Knowing that Longleat was at the time owned by the Seventh Marquis of Bath, who wrote the book on which the film is based, one can't help thinking the 'degenerate' Gregory was actually a toned down version of the real owner... a man famed for his seventy plus 'wifelets'! The story is a bit slow to get started and when it does it still feels a bit of a mess. The main cast have certainly been better in other films although Oliver Reid is suitably menacing as Tom, despite his strange accent. The low budget shows but doesn't really spoil the film. The occult elements of the film are rather odd; mostly limited to red tinted visions seen by those around Tom. Overall I wouldn't call this a must see but it is an interesting curiosity.
