The Corpse

Right from the opening seconds we know that something is seriously wrong with the Eastwood family.

Mother and daughter (Yvonne Mitchell and Sharon Gurney) scurry about surreptitiously, like prisoners, while husband / father Walter Eastwood (Michael Gough) dominates, lurks, and spies on them. Walter is an irredeemable pig. He's also violent. His son, Rupert (Simon Gough) is a chip off the old blockhead. A mere dinner at home is a maddeningly tense experience. Calling this family "dysfunctional", would be like calling the sun "warm".

It doesn't take long to see where this is heading.

CRUCIBLE OF HORROR is sort of a familial version of DIABOLIQUE, up until the jaw-dropping-ly impossible, ambiguous, yet perfect ending. Many questions arise, such as, "Was it all a dream / fantasy?", "Was there something afoot PRIOR to the vengeful scheme?", "Were supernatural forces at work?". Of course, this is all left open-ended, so, it's up for debate. Worth a watch. See if you can figure it out.

Michael Gough gives one of his best performances...

The key-word in this movie is atmosphere. The scenario is not the most original I know, the girl that plays the daughter sucks, but the photography and the music add a lot to this movie. I can't say I was any scared when I saw it on TV, yet I couldn't help but love this simple and naive little thriller, just because it was such. 6

Even for the Seventies I found this quite a disturbing movie. Michael Gough plays a sadistic father and husband to Jane and Edith, and his son Rupert is not much better really. Anyway the two females hatch a plan to kill Gough whist he's away for the weekend. I won't spoil the ending but this is a very underrated British film filled with an impending sense of doom throughout. In fact there's hardly a smile in the entire film.

Those with long memories might notice this film borrows more than a little from DIABOLIQUE, if not necessarily in a good way. Despite a nasty caning and attempted murder this is more about psychological torment than physical violence; the lasting impression is that typical English family life is enough to drive anyone to murder or bonkers, in that order. One of the seemingly endless string of potboilers that Michael Gough used to liven up, back in the day.

Not to be confused with the 1972 horror film about wax museums called Crucible of Terror; This is Crucible of Horror (1970) - British title: The Corpse. The film stars Michael Gough (Alfred from the Batman films) as Walter Eastwood - a wealthy, cruel & sadistic husband and father. Yvonne Mitchell plays Edith, the poor unfortunate woman who's basically lost her soul being married to Walter. Their children are Jane (Sharon Gurney) and Rupert (played by Gough's real life son, Simon). Walter consistently abuses Jane and praises Rupert. In one frightening scene, Walter beats Jane with a reed for stealing money from a friend of his. Rupert is the only one with a reasonably normal relationship with Walter - and why shouldn't he be? Walter puts his son on a pedestal and abuses his wife and daughter mentally and physically. The point of the film is that Edith and Jane reach their breaking point and decide to end their abuse by putting an end to Walter. So they poison him and make it look like a suicide. Then they have to worry about keeping it from Rupert. Things don't go exactly as planned. I won't dare ruin the outcome of this suspenseful british classic. If your a fan of the best Hammer films and horror of the late 60s and 70s, I highly recommend seeking Crucible of Horror out. There is something about this film, the music, the cinematography, etc., that creates a chilling atmosphere. Turn the lights out when you watch this. You'll never see Alfred the butler in the same way again!