And Now the Screaming Starts!
And Now the Screaming Starts! | |
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Fox-Rank | |
Release date |
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Running time | 91 minutes |
Country | United Kingdom |
Language | English |
Budget | $500,000[1] |
And Now the Screaming Starts! is a 1973 British gothic horror film directed by Roy Ward Baker and starring Peter Cushing, Herbert Lom, Patrick Magee, Stephanie Beacham and Ian Ogilvy. It is one of the few feature-length horror stories by Amicus, a company best known for anthology or "portmanteau" films. Baker felt the title was "silly".[2]
The screenplay, written by Roger Marshall, is based on the 1970 novella Fengriffen by David Case. The film is also known as Fengriffen or Bride of Fengriffen.[3][1]
Plot
The film begins in 1795. After moving to her fiancé Charles Fengriffen's (Ogilvy) family estate, Catherine (Beacham) experiences terrifying visions of an undead corpse with a heavily birthmarked face, empty eye sockets and a severed right hand. On her wedding night, she is attacked and raped by an evil spirit in the bedroom of Fengriffen House. Later, she is disturbed to encounter Silas, a woodsman who lives in a lodge on the estate and has a birthmark identical to that of the corpse. Charles and others are reluctant to tell her anything about Silas, and those who show a willingness to answer her questions are killed in bizarre circumstances: Maitland, Charles' solicitor, is hacked to death with an axe; Mrs Luke, the housemaid, is thrown down the stairs; and Aunt Edith, Catherine's chaperone, is strangled by the severed hand, which then vanishes.
Announcing that Catherine is pregnant, physician Dr. Whittle urges Charles to tell her the story of the estate's dark past, but Charles refuses, believing it to be nothing more than a legend. Deciding that Catherine's visions are the result of
Pope agrees to stay with the Fengriffens until their baby is born. When Catherine goes into labour, he sedates her and delivers the child. Repulsed by the newborn's appearance, Charles rushes over to Silas' lodge and shoots the triumphant woodsman in the face with a pair of pistols. Pope follows and finds Silas dead on the floor with a shot through each eye, matching the corpse seen by Catherine. The furious Charles then sets about smashing open his grandfather's grave, beating Pope away when the doctor tries to stop him. As Charles destroys Henry's skeletal remains, Pope returns to Catherine and presents her child – which, like the older Silas, has a birthmarked face and no right hand. The camera zooms in on Catherine's tear-streaked face and the end credits roll.
Cast
- Peter Cushing as Dr Pope
- Herbert Lom as Sir Henry Fengriffen
- Patrick Magee as Dr Whittle
- Stephanie Beacham as Catherine Fengriffen
- Ian Ogilvy as Charles Fengriffen
- Geoffrey Whitehead as Woodsman/Silas
- Guy Rolfe as Lawyer Maitland
- Rosalie Crutchley as Mrs Luke
- Gillian Lind as Aunt Edith
- Janet Key as Bridget
- Sally Harrison as Sarah
Production
Filming locations
The large gothic house used in the film is Oakley Court, near Bray village, which is now a four-star hotel.
Release
In the UK, And Now the Screaming Starts! went out on a double bill with the American horror film, Doctor Death: Seeker of Souls.
Critical reception
The film received a lukewarm reception in Britain and America on its release. Jonathan Rosenbaum of
Citations
- ^ a b Ed. Allan Bryce, Amicus: The Studio That Dripped Blood, Stray Cat Publishing, 2000 p 102-109
- ^ Fowler, Roy (Oct–Nov 1989). "Roy Ward Baker Interview" (PDF). British Entertainment History Project. p. 172.
- ^ a b Burger, Mark (17 May 2002). "Video View". Winston-Salem Journal: p. 3.
- Monthly Film Bulletin, 41:480/491: p. 243.
- ^ Weiler, A H (28 April 1973). "Screen: A Creepy Legend". The New York Times: p. 21.
- ^ Galbraith IV, Stuart (25 June 2006). "And Now the Screaming Starts!". DVD Talk. Archived from the original on 30 September 2020. Retrieved 27 January 2021.
Further reading
- Chibnall, Steve; Petley, Julian (ed.) (2005). British Horror Cinema. Oxford: ISBN 0-203-99676-3
- Mayer, Geoff (2004). Roy Ward Baker (British Film Makers). ISBN 0-7190-6354-X