House of Mortal Sin
House of Mortal Sin | |
---|---|
David McGillivray | |
Story by | Pete Walker |
Produced by | Pete Walker |
Starring | Anthony Sharp Susan Penhaligon Stephanie Beacham Norman Eshley Sheila Keith |
Cinematography | Peter Jessop |
Edited by | John Black |
Music by | Stanley Myers |
Production company | Pete Walker (Heritage) |
Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
Release date | February 1976 (UK) |
Running time | 104 minutes |
Country | United Kingdom |
Language | English |
House of Mortal Sin (also known as The Confessional and The Confessional Murders) is a 1976 British
Plot
Hearing that her friend Bernard has become a
The next day, Meldrum invites Jenny over to his
At first refusing to believe Jenny's claims about Meldrum, Jenny's sister Vanessa learns the truth when she answers a threatening phone call from the priest on Jenny's behalf. She goes to the presbytery and encounters Mrs Meldrum, who knows that her son is mad and begs Vanessa to help. Meldrum arrives, strangles Vanessa, and at Brabazon's urging, murders his mother on the pretext of a
Cast
- Anthony Sharp as Father Xavier Meldrum
- Susan Penhaligon as Jenny Welch
- Stephanie Beacham as Vanessa Welch
- Norman Eshley as Father Bernard Cutler
- Sheila Keith as Miss Brabazon
- Mervyn Johns as Father Duggan
- Hilda Barry as Mrs Meldrum
- Stewart Bevan as Terry Wyatt (as Stuart Bevan)
- Julia McCarthy as Mrs Davey
- Jon Yule as Robert
- Bill Kerr as Mr Davey
- Victor Winding as Dr Gaudio
- Jack Allen as GP
- Kim Butcher as Valerie Davey
- Ivor Salter as Gravedigger
- Andrew Sachs as Man in Church
- Jane Haywardas Nurse
Production
Casting
Originally Peter Cushing was offered to play Father Meldrum and at the time there were some rumors that Cushing hated the script. In 1983, when Cushing acted in Walker's final film, House of the Long Shadows, Walker learned that Cushing actually liked the script, but had other film commitments.
Harry Andrews and Stewart Granger were also considered to play Father Meldrum.
Filming
The film was shot over a period of five weeks in
Critical reception
This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (June 2016) |
- "McGillivray’s script is full of inventive ideas which were obviously meant to shock and stir up controversy. Having the villainous murderer a repressed and crazed Catholic priest in modern times brought a new and different kind of monster to the catalog of British horror, and he’s marvelously played by Anthony Sharp. A lapsed Catholic in real life, Walker uses the film as a comment on organized religion, as extreme and satirical as it may be…” ~ George R. Reis, DVD Drive-In [3]
- "Much criticism has been leveled against this film for its unabashed attacks on Catholicism, but it's really Walker's trademark amoral approach to filmmaking that elicits a strong urge to take a hot bath after viewing." ~ Cavett Binion, Allmovie [4]
- "a disappointment, although it has its moments...The script relies too much on mild sacrilege for its effects, instead of concentrating on more interesting aspects of religious repression." ~ Time Out [5]
- "I ended up being quite impressed with this one; it's one of those horror movies that tries to be about something more than just scaring people." ~ Dave Sindelar, Fantastic Movie Musings & Ramblings[6]
- "the way the creepier, suffocating aspects of religion are brought out is bold and effective. As a whole, it's a callous, low budget and grey-toned work, but stays with the viewer longer than slicker horrors then or since." ~ Graeme Clark, The Spinning Image [7]
- "well-executed and maintains a dark interest throughout, supported by interesting performances (especially Sheila Keith as Meldrum's devoted love)." ~ The Terror Trap[8]
- "Walker fails to bring any sensibility, other than the merely exploitative, to the grotesque material, this must be considered pretty irredeemable stuff, even for a horror film." ~ TV Guide [9]
- "there are more pros than con with "House of Mortal Sin," but Walker feels constipated with this effort, unsure if he wants to court controversy or make a cracking chiller." ~ Brian Orndorf, Blu-Ray.com[10]
- "A hugely underrated shocker from cult director Pete Walker, who alone saved the British cinema of the 1970s from complete terror blandness with a series of Home County horrors that included House of Whipcord and Frightmare. Anthony Sharp gives an extraordinary performance...A serious look at the theme of a respectable public person using their position to pass judgement on those they see as corrupt, done with elegance, wit and purposely indignant bad taste." ~ Alan Jones, Radio Times [11]
References
- ^ "House of Mortal Sin". BFI. Archived from the original on 4 August 2012.
- ^ "The Confessional". Eccentric Cinema. Retrieved 22 February 2014.
- ^ "The Confessional (The House of Mortal Sin)".
- ^ "The Confessional (1975) - Pete Walker - Synopsis, Characteristics, Moods, Themes and Related - AllMovie".
- ^ "House of Mortal Sin".
- ^ "Fantastic Movie Musings & Ramblings - HOUSE OF MORTAL SIN (1976)". Scifilm.org. 19 March 2009. Retrieved 22 February 2014.
- ^ "House of Mortal Sin Review (1976)".
- ^ "The Confessional (1975) - The Terror Trap".
- ^ "The Confessional".
- ^ "House of Mortal Sin Blu-ray".
- ^ "House of Mortal Sin - Film from RadioTimes".
External links
- House of Mortal Sin at IMDb