ppitta2
I watched the Reptile on my DVR and I can't tell you how slow this movie is. The reptile scenes are minimal and nothing really happens until the last 10 minutes.Some might say that it builds suspense but I found it very dull and talky.When a 90 minute film takes over an hour to have some action you lose interest.I feel that if it's a horror film it should have several scares and appearances of the monster.The makeup on the snake woman was very good but I just wish she was in it more.In fact after I watched it I deleted it from my DVR.That is definitely one I will not be watching again.
Mr_Ectoplasma
After the strange death of his brother, a man and his wife relocate to a remote cottage he's inherited in Cornwall. Weird goings on with the locals, a neighbor, and mysterious deaths in the area seem to be linked to a bizarre creature.One of Hammer's finer, if not campier (by today's standards), efforts, "The Reptile" is immensely enjoyable on the level of pure atmosphere alone. Like most of Hammer's most memorable pictures, the film weaves a tapestry of British atmospherics—the rural English countryside, the quaint cottage, and the ominous forests take center stage here. There is something spellbinding about these films in the way that they fashion their own atmospheric universes, and "The Reptile" is a stellar example of it done extremely well.The score here fantastic and there are some well-handled attack scenes with the titular monster; the film is also surprisingly suspenseful and is able to ratchet the tension over the first seventy or so minutes. Things don't really propel steadfastly until the last fifteen to twenty minutes, but there is plenty of atmosphere and tension preceding it that makes the payoff just good enough. The film's final scene is really fantastic, and the special effects on the monster are commendable by today's standards, despite how absurd the entire thing may really be. The acting also holds up surprisingly well, with Ray Barrett as the leading man and Jennifer Daniel as his inquisitive wife. Marne Maitland is subtly sinister as The Malay, and lends the film an additional element of perturbation.Overall, "The Reptile" is a fun, atmospheric romp through the cold-blooded monster-land of the English countryside. It is most definitely dated in many ways, though it retains enough atmosphere and suspense to be enjoyable today, no matter how you feel about a half-woman half-snake lurking about the moors. Worthwhile for fans of Hammer as well as anyone who likes a good old fashioned monster movie with a British twist. 7/10.
one-nine-eighty
A Hammer horror from '66 which may look dated by today's standards but is worth sitting through due to it's tense thrills and suspense which will keep you guessing all the way until the truth is revealed. Harry Spalding (Ray Barrett) and his wife (Jennifer Daniel) inherit a house in the middle of nowhere (well, Cornwall) after the mysterious death of his brother. Strange things start happening as the couple settle in and meet their neighbours Dr Franklyn (Noel Willman) and his daughter Anna (Jaqueline Pearce). While most people in the local village are staying quiet the inn-keeper Tom Bailey (Michael Ripper) tries to help Harry find the truth. Dr Franklyn tries to persuade Harry to sell the house and move away as people have been dying from a 'black death', Franklyn seems to be involved somehow but Harry wants to treat carefully to find out without himself becoming embroiled in events. Using the same set and filmed back to back with another Hammer classic - "Plague of Zombies" this is really a low budget gem and was a warm up act for "Rasputin: The Mad Monk". John Gilling directed this 90 minute classic which is somewhat under rated. Perhaps people see the poster/box cover and don't want to watch the film based on the make up effects of the 'reptile' however if you ignore that and sit back and just watch the film you'll be happily surprised. 7 out of 10
tomgillespie2002
When his brother is mysteriously killed by a reptilian creature that causes him to foam at the mouth and turn green, Harry Spalding (Ray Barrett) inherits his cottage and moves in with his wife Valerie (Jennifer Daniel). Shunned by the towns yokels but befriended by the brilliantly bearded innkeeper Tom (Michael Ripper), Harry becomes interested in the rumours of the townsfolk dying from the 'black death'. When they alert the local doctor, Dr. Franklyn (Noel Willman), he dismisses any responsibility, and they become puzzled by his strange behaviour towards his daughter and his creepy servant. Is the black death really to blame? Of course not, it's a big reptile-human hybrid thing!As good as Hammer's output was, they levelled it out with a lot of quickly made crap. They shot films furiously fast on a wafer-thin budget to serve as warm-ups to main features. While sometimes this produced some genuinely good stuff (The Plague of the Zombies - also directed by Gilling), often it did not. The Reptile served as an accompaniment to Rasputin The Mad Monk, and it's place as a mere quickie is evident to see. It is hammily acted (usually a good thing), badly scripted, and has some quite shockingly bad make-up. And lead Ray Barrett clearly wasn't the most gifted of actors. However, the mysterious plot that remains a puzzle right until the very end almost saves it, but this still remains a very poor effort, though it's a nice enough way to pass 90 minutes.www.the-wrath-of-blog.blogspot.com
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