THE
BLOOD BEAST TERROR (1967)Director: Vernon Sewell
Image Entertainment
THE
BLOOD BEAST TERROR (1967)During the 1960s, several British production companies arrived on the scene to try and emulate the vast success of Hammer Films. One of those companies was Tony Tenser's Tigon which boasted classics such as THE SORCERERS, THE CONQUEROR WORM and BLOOD ON SATAN'S CLAW under their umbrella. Unfortunately, BLOOD BEAST TERROR represents the low end of the Tigon catalogue.
Here, Peter Cushing stars as an inspector who investigates a rash of murders. All the victims are males who are completely drained of blood. He is lead to the house of a doctor (THE HORRIBLE DR. HICHCOCK's Robert Flemyng) who happens to be creating a giant Deaths Head moth to mate with his daughter (Wanda Ventham). Thanks to dad, after luring sex-starved men as her attractive self, she is able to transform into a giant black moth and devour the poor suckers. Soon Cushing's daughter is hypnotized for some bloodletting to feed the male moth, and it's up to him to put an end to all the dastardly doings.
BLOOD BEAST TERROR is a second-rate outing directed by the often-uninspired Vernon Sewell (THE CRIMSON CULT). The film's only eerie circumstance is provided by the horribly web-encrusted, slithering male moth, but the creature is prematurely set to flames before it is fully realized. Ventham's moth transformation is laughable, and the result is a paper mache WASP WOMAN retread flapping it wings around in place. The finale's special effect is so lame, you can't even figure out what's being set fire to.
It has the look of a 60s Hammer film (blended with the look of a 60s Andy Milligan film) with great period costumes and quaint English locales, but aside from Cushing's superior performance, it's a real letdown. Cushing was once quoted as saying that this was his worst film, and as far as his starring roles in horror films go, it probably is.
With its lame packaging, Image's DVD fares no better than the film itself. Formatted at 1.66:1, the transfer is far too grainy, and although the film elements are in very clean condition, the colors look extremely dull and unnatural. The mono sound is adequate, which is a good thing as Paul Ferris supplies a much better score than the film deserves. As bad as the disc looks, if you're used to Monterey's out-of-print VHS edition, complete with muddiness and a distracting "blinking" interference throughout the presentation, you won't be too disappointed here.
There are no extras, and the film's outrageous U.S. theatrical trailer (under the title THE VAMPIRE BEAST CRAVES BLOOD), would have been appreciated. By the way, the film was released here in 1969 on a double bill with "Curse of the Blood-Ghouls," a retitling of SLAUGHTER OF THE VAMPIRES, which I'd love to see on DVD someday! (George R. Reis)