ferbs54 Whether you refer to it as "The Night Caller From Outer Space" or by its alternate title, "Blood Beast From Outer Space" (OR, as it simply appears on this great-looking Image DVD under its original British appellation, "The Night Caller"), this sci-fi film from 1965 is an intelligent, restrained, moody and highly effective winner. In it, scientist John Saxon, working at England's Falsley Park research station, grapples with a mysterious sphere that has touched down on the moors, direct from the Jovian moon Ganymede. The film cleaves fairly evenly into two discrete sections. In the first, Saxon and his Falsley coworkers (including blond, no-nonsense Ann Barlow, played by the excellent Patricia Haines) conduct tests on the sphere and endeavor to puzzle out its mysteries. In the latter half, Saxon assists Scotland Yard in its investigation of the disappearances of several dozen young women, all of whom had answered an ad for a modeling job in "Bikini Magazine." Whereas the film's first segment suggests nothing less than a British variant of the classic TV program "The Outer Limits," the second half turns quite noirish as director John Gilling (who, the following year, would helm, for Hammer Studios, the psychotronic greats "The Plague of the Zombies" and "The Reptile") utilizes moody nighttime photography, deep shadows and disorienting camera angles; call this film sci-fi Brit noir. "The Night Caller" is fairly reminiscent of another Shepperton Studios film that I recently saw, 1964's "The Earth Dies Screaming." Both are modestly budgeted but well-done films featuring stunning B&W photography and helmed by directors more often associated with Hammer (Terence Fisher, in "Screaming"'s case). With the exception of "Night Caller"'s very odd opening theme song--a tune sung by Mark Richardson, and more suitable for a Western or romance movie--and a somewhat weak ending, the picture is a surprisingly gripping entertainment throughout.

bob the moo When a group of scientists track some form of meteorite coming to earth they become involved with the military and police. Finding a small sphere that has landed (?) in the "crash" zone they take it back to their lab and analyse it. After dark, Anne Barlow is typing up a letter when a bright light and intense feeling come over her – seconds later a strange hand grabs her but she gets away. With no way in or out of the room Dr Morley hypothesises that the sphere allows the transportation of matter and that some form of creature has come to earth for some reason. Soon lots of girls are going missing and the police find a link to a modelling agency advertising for bikini models in a magazine. The suspect is identified as the mysterious Medra and Dr Costain believes that he is an alien, preparing to lead an invasion of earth.A low budget and relatively unseen little sci-fi b-movie from 1960's Britain, this film had little to make it stand out when I saw it listed in the TV guide but watching it is an entirely different matter. The idea sounds silly – basically an alien has come to earth to pick up chicks, and if you say it like that it sounds trashy. However the plot is much better than the basic premise and it works surprisingly well. The dialogue may well be par for the genre course but this is only one aspect of the delivery and it is carried by others when required. The atmospheric direction provides a genuine sense of menace and the film is careful about letting us see Medra – keeping him a sinister hand and eyes for almost the whole film. Along with this is a rather adult sense of humour (for the period); we have outrageously gay sex shop owners, very British couples arguing in rambling stories and other nice touches.What was most effective though was just how bleak the whole thing was. I can't say anything because of spoilers but some of the things that happened I wasn't expecting and it really took me by surprise. This is also backed up by one or two moments of violence that, although not gory, were genuinely shocking in how graphic they were (again, for the period) – plus the fact that many came out of nowhere and it made them even more so. The cast are not the best but all do well enough for the type of film they are in and also add to the convincing air of foreboding and tension. Saxon looks a bit out of place but does well and is actually good with his lines – he is more than the usual "action scientist" of these films. Denham is much more of a genre staple but he is still OK. Haines is good and quite alluring – the sexual tension between her and Saxon also surprised me for the period. Burke is good and leads the police side of the story well.Overall this is a low budget British sci-fi horror but it works very well and was surprisingly enjoyable. The US title of "Blood Beast from Outer Space" implies that it is a gory b-movie but it is much more than that and is actually pretty engaging in a low-key but tense way. The end of the film is typical of the dark and downbeat tone of the whole film and it is worth seeing for this quality as well as other factors.

Paul Andrews The Night Caller starts at 'Falsley Park, Government Radio & Electronic Research Establishment' where two scientists named Dr. Morley (Maurice Denham) & an American named Dr. Jack Costin (John Saxon) plus their assistant Ann Barlow (Patricia Haines) have detected an unidentified object in space heading for London at 10,000 mph. They assume that it is a meteorite but soon work out that this object is being guided down & has landed somewhere nearby, cue opening credits over Big Ben & the Houses of Parliment just to further prove that we are in fact in London! In no time whatsoever Doctors Costin & Morley are at the calculated crash site, however the army have beaten them to it. But Costin & Morley aren't going to let a little thing like the army stop them so after waving their ID's all over the place they're both giving out orders like they own the place. They speak to the Major (John Carson) in charge & establish the whereabouts of the object. Upon arrival they find a white sphere that appears to be slightly larger than a football, they load it into a jeep & head back to Falsley Park to examine it. Costin & Morley quickly discover that the sphere is alien to our planet & they theorise that it might be a transmitter for sending & receiving matter. Soon after Morley is killed while conducting an experiment on his own & the sphere is stolen, the only clue Costin has is a description by Ann who claims she was attacked by something with a claw for a hand & that 21 girls in under 3 weeks have disappeared & a man fitting the description Ann & some soldiers gave was seen by each girls house shortly before they went missing. Costin visits Scotland Yard & talks to Super Intendant Hartley (Alfred Burke) who is heading the investigation, together they quickly learn that the common factor between the missing girls is a magazine called 'Bikini Girls' which carried an advert to which they all replied. As more girls go missing Costin is convinced that it is connected to the sphere & the mysterious man with the claw, but how exactly...?Directed by John Gilling I thought The Night Caller was an OK Sci-Fi horror that's a decent enough way to spend 80 odd minutes. The script by Jim O'Connolly based on the novel 'The Night Callers' by Frank Crisp is not quite as predictable as I expected without the cliché of any monsters hiding out in nearby woods occasionally popping up to kill the odd disposable character & is basically split into two half's. The first half of The Night Caller is standard 60's Sci-Fi with the alien object falling form the sky, the army & scientist characters at odds with each other because the scientists see it as a possible way to learn & want to examine it while the army see it as a possible threat & want to destroy it & the monster which is only shown by it's rubbery claw to start with. But for the second half of it's running time The Night Caller switches to police thriller as the investigation into the missing girls come to the fore & the film concentrates on this aspect. Like a lot of other Sci-Fi from this period The Night Caller tries to end on a message as it asks who are the real aggressors & what are we doing to our world... It moves along at a reasonable pace & never becomes boring & I thought the dialogue wasn't quite as stiff & wooden as in most 50's/60's Sci-Fi films. It does seem a little strange that a highly intelligent being from another world capable of space flight & the transmitting of matter has to take an ad out in the back of a magazine called Bikini Girls to attract girls though! The Night Caller is a fairly modest effort & doesn't try to do too much, there is only one monster so don't expect a entire invasion & it's mostly only shown by it's claw hand while when it's face is eventually revealed it looks just like an ordinary man with a few lines on one side of his face. The special effects are kept to an absolute minimum as well, there are just a couple of optical effects throughout the entire film without a flying saucer in sight. There is no blood or gore & only two people die as our alien is revealed to be mostly peaceful at the end & basically means us no harm. The acting wasn't as bad as I had expected either but at the same time it ain't great & Saxon gives a very one dimensional performance. Technically the film is fine with the surprisingly nice sharp free flowing black & white photography being better than I expected, I mean I've seen a lot worse in films such as this. Overall I liked The Night Caller as far as 60' Sci-Fi goes, it didn't knock my socks off or change my life but it's an entertaining way to pass 80 odd minutes. Worth a watch especially if your a fan of this sort of thing.

Coventry "The Night Caller (from outer space)" is another clever British Sci-Fi gem from the sixties that incomprehensibly got neglected over the years. What are you waiting for, horror fans? This puppy is up for an urgent re-discovery as it is a rather intelligent, atmospheric and involving film. The premise is silly, sure, and can be summarized in one phrase: Medra is an alien from Jupiter's 3rd moon, capable of transporting matter through space, and he comes to earth to abduct young girls in order to repopulate his planet. I realize the plot sounds like a textbook example of cheap and cheesy 60's trash, but it really is worth watching! The script is filled with minor but ingenious little aspects and there's this constant haze of mysteriousness that keeps you fascinated at all times. The movie opens with three scientists (Denham, Saxon and Patricia Haines) investigating a strange alien cocoon that landed on the earth but it abruptly turns into an action-packed detective story in which cool cop-characters (like Stanley Meadows) and the remaining scientists try to solve the disappearing of over twenty girls, unquestionably linked to the arrival of the outer space visitor... The editing is a little rough at times, but the dialogues are wit and imaginative. There's some nice B-movie flavored acting as well, especially coming from the great John Saxon. Especially his 60's and 70's movies are terrific since it looks like he was still figuring out himself which type of roles fit him best.