Amanda Norman
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Hammer Films Wake Wood Review
Well after being disappointed that Hammer’s latest film was only on at a selected number of cinemas and only available ‘on demand’ when released on Friday 25th March 2011, I finally got my DVD from Asda today for a whopping £10.97.
Was it worth it?
No, I don’t think it was considering you could buy Let Me In on Blu-Ray for the same price.
I was annoyed that they chose to release it on-demand as there was some catch with each of the providers if you weren’t an original subscriber.
Now call me a saddo, but I viewed the opening credits waiting to see the wonderful Hammer logo and it wasn’t there and it didn’t appear on the final credits.
Anyway I digress as you’re more than likely wanting to read my review…
Wake Wood had an interesting plot with a couple grieving the loss of their daughter Alice who was mauled to death by a dog. They move to Wake Wood and discover the opportunity to bring Alice back from the dead for three days only. Of course things take a turn for the worse.
I enjoyed the scene where a farmer got crushed to death by the back end of a bull, but then I was extremely disappointed when it showed the bull trampling over the farmers body that resembled a crude Guy Fawkes effigy that a gang of kids had made for bonfire night.
From then on in, the film just played its course. No scares and no twists in plot, which is unfortunate as the scenery, setting and actors had everything to make this movie a Hammer classic.
This film was certainly not worth the money I spent on it, but I would recommend that you watch it and make up your own mind about it. Personally, I’m glad I watched it, but it’s not a film that I would watch again.
If you want to see a good modern Hammer horror, then stick with The Resident and Let Me In, reviewed here.
Classic Horror Campaign – Horror Double Bill
The Classic Horror Campaign is proud to present “The Horror Double Bill” in association with the Roxy Bar & Screen, London.
This event will take place on Good Friday 22nd April starting at 3pm and will feature the classic horror fan favourite “Night of the Demon” followed by Hammer’s “Vampire Circus” which has gained a large cult following in the years since its release.
The screening will take place at the Roxy Bar & Screen on Borough High Street in London close to London Bridge and tickets cost just £5 per person on the door. This unique and popular venue is the perfect setting for the first in a series of events celebrating classic horror in the tradition of the BBC’s iconic horror double bill seasons of the 1970s and ‘80s.
The Classic Horror Campaign was set up by Richard Gladman in order to persuade the BBC and other television networks to bring these legendary films back to our screens so that they may be shared and appreciated by a whole new generation.
The campaign is being fronted by UK Scream Queen Emily Booth and is currently supported by various celebrities including Jeremy Dyson, Andy Nyman, Reese Shearsmith, actress Eileen Daly, best-selling author David Moody and Hammer Horror stalwarts Shane Briant and Caroline Munro.
For further information please contact Richard Gladman on mobile 07791022427 or email admin@classichorrorcampaign.com
Website – www.classichorrorcampaign.com
Twitter – @horrorcampaign
Facebook – www.facebook.com/ClassicHorrorCampaign
Petition – www.ipetitions.com/petition/bringclassichorrorfilmsbacktothebbc/
Hammer Horror and The Karnstein Trilogy
Last night in memory of Ingrid Pitt who sadly died this week, I decided to watch the 1970 film The Vampire Lovers and although I’ve seen it before, tonight’s viewing was very special.
This is one of my favourite Hammer films that is based on the novel Carmilla by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu, which was first published in 1872.
Carmilla is a tale full of vampire lesbianism and Hammer’s adaptation of it is very good. Carmilla played by Ingrid Pitt preys upon two females, killing one and almost succeeding with the second named Laura.
Sometimes after an hour of apathy, my strange and beautiful companion would take my hand and hold it with a fond pressure, renewed again and again; blushing softly, gazing in my face with languid and burning eyes, and breathing so fast that her dress rose and fell with the tumultuous respiration. It was like the ardour of a lover; it embarrassed me; it was hateful and yet overpowering; and with gloating eyes she drew me to her, and her hot lips travelled along my cheek in kisses; and she would whisper, almost in sobs, “You are mine, you shall be mine, and you and I are one for ever”. (“Carmilla”, Chapter 4).
Laura grows very close to Carmilla, not suspecting that Carmilla is a vampire as she can happily survive during daylight hours. At night, Laura suffers terrible encounters with a large black cat biting her bosom and drawing blood. She screams and unfortunately for her, she’s told that it’s just a bad dream. Later on in the story, the villagers reveal the history of the Karnstein vampires and we see Carmilla being staked and beheaded.
What I adore about this film is the opening sequence. The tale of how Baron Joachim von Hartog played by Douglas Wilmer watched a Karnstein vampire rise from its tomb in a plume of smoke, all shrouded and mysteriously glide off out of the smoke filled graveyard. He steals the vampires shroud knowing that the creature will not be able to rest without it. The vampire returns and he coaxes the vampire to him by revealing its shroud. When approached, Baron Joachim von Hartog is consumed by the vampires beautiful appearance, her naked body covered lightly with a soft see through gown. He’s mesmerised until the vampire reveals its fangs and he makes one strike of his sword and decapitates the vampire in one.
The Vampire Lovers is the first Hammer film to base its story on Carmilla. It was followed by the 1971 film, Lust for a Vampire and in this film we see Yutte Stensgaard playing Carmilla. I’ve hunted down my favourite clip of Lust for a Vampire to show you below. The third and final film is the 1971 film, The Twins of Evil which doesn’t feature the character Carmilla, but does feature members of the Karnstein family. Twins of Evil is another favourite vampire film of mine and I love Madeleine Collinson’s portrayal of Frieda Gellhorn.
I’ve just been informed that reference to the Karnstein vampires is made in the film 1972 film ‘Vampire Circus’ although I will have to watch this film again at some point to confirm that.
I have such a passion for vampires thanks to Hammer Horror. They always casted their vampires as beautiful women with heaving bosoms and scantily clad, with the exception of Christopher Lee as Dracula of course! Ingrid Pitt played Carmilla with such passion and of course she was stunningly beautiful.
RIP Hammer Queen Ingrid Pitt
I’m really saddened about the loss of Hammer Horror actress Ingrid Pitt who has died today at the age of 73.
The Hammer Horror films she starred in, Countess Dracula, The Vampire Lovers are among my all-time favourites and I was lucky enough once to interview Ingrid a few years ago for a vampire site that I used to run. I emailed Ingrid and asked if she would agree to be interviewed via email and I didn’t expect the response I got.
She talked in-depth about Countess Dracula, her trip to Romania and of course Hammer Horror and she had a lovely warm sense of humour.
She even signed the photograph pictured here and I have it together with a signed copy of the script for Countess Dracula.
We should never forget Ingrid! She’s a true star and was a worthy ambassador of Hammer Horror.