Remember, there was a humorous scene at Jan Arlazorov about the movie, which sounded something like this: “I brought a thriller here!” You're not laughing. Nothing contagious! This time, Hammer brought us a thriller. In the seventies, noticeably losing its former popularity, the “hammer” British film company began to reduce the shooting of the signature Gothic horror, experimenting with genres. Even comedies began to appear, but the action-packed direction did not fade, in addition to horror films, delighting fans with thrillers. “Fear in the Night” is one of them, when there is no longer any traditional mysticism, the film adaptation of various terrible superstitions with monsters and vampires, the retro costumed spirit has evaporated, but the studio stars are in place with luxurious scenery. Initially, the script was written for the American studio “Universal”, which waited for many years of tormentation, all sorts of alterations, until he found life in the British in the form of a detective story taking place in the prose world of modernity, where the most terrible monster is not an enchanted mummy, an immortal bloodsucker or a frightening ghost, but a selfish man.
It begins with a young woman who has left a mental institution and recently married a schoolteacher. Hopeful for a happy life in the future with her beloved husband, who got a job in a country boarding school, she keeps silent about the attack on herself by a mysterious type with a prosthetic instead of a hand - the reputation of the former madman does not contribute to her being believed, besides there is no evidence. Arriving at the place, our heroine enters the deserted world of a spacious educational institution, which turned out to be abandoned. Presses on the psyche the very atmosphere of empty offices, a huge dining room, a gym for physical education, a football field and the autumn forest around. Every buzzing corridor and silhouette of furniture, covered from dust with sheets, suggests something sinister, not to mention the mysterious director of the boarding school. The gray-haired man, despite his solid appearance with courteous manners, harbors some frightening secret, hiding a fixed hand under the teaching robe, as if there was a prosthesis. His beautiful wife is the exact opposite of the guest - confident, active, ruthlessly shooting rabbits on the hunt. Next to such awkward and insecure, especially when you yourself resemble a small quiet animal, shying away from every loud sound and dreaming of finding peace of mind in a mink house. Naturally, based on the genre, there can be no question of any peace.
Immediately it is worth noting that the picture is not flawless, noticeably stalling in the development of events. The plot moves slowly, using only hints and anticipation of a catch in every neutral phrase, look, place, without amplifying the suspense with something obvious. The viewer is given the role of an observer for a fragile girl who finds herself in a new environment, where it is intuitively uncomfortable and sinister, but all this can be caused only by personal suspicion. We, like her, cannot pinpoint the true source of the threat. Along the way, one should not discount the former mental disorder of the heroine, who does not trust herself. What is happening on the screen is perceived as a paranoid thriller with small glimpses of a detective, which is difficult to unravel. The first spectator theories fail not by chance, because closer to the climax, the story acquires a successful sharpness, opening the second bottom. Interest is enhanced by an adventurous turn, which allows you to look at the whole situation in a new way, when many participants of events appear in a different light, changing the obvious positivity for negativity or vice versa. Criminal detective brings long-awaited tension and a very exciting apogee. It, alas, is fleeting in comparison with the preparatory groundwork for a good two-thirds of the timekeeping, but fascinating. A cunning plan with murder, manipulation, an insidious conspiracy, pretended masks, a double game, yesterday’s prey became a hunter, merciless hunters who turned out to be prey and the “Chekhov’s gun”, which will necessarily shoot repeatedly, are excellent components for any detective thriller. In addition, for fans of the brainchild of the studio, it is decorated with the participation of Peter Cushing, who has become one of the integral persons of Hammer. The actor, feeling the status of a well-deserved star in the episode, skillfully copes with the role of a mysterious director from whom you can expect anything. This character hides a mystery, managing to appear good-natured and sinister alternately. His on-screen wife is performed by the also famous Joan Collins, who in the early seventies returned to her homeland as an international star, taking up the unspoken cycle of action films in her career. The role is simple, more designed for the type of attractive devil, which the actress embodied on the screen without difficulty. The rest of the participants also cope well, despite the similar simplicity of the characters - after all, the film focuses more on an adventurous detective than complex images. The production did not become a landmark for the studio, which we would call among the first in reference to “Hammer”, however, the detective horror story is able to decorate the evening or even night viewing, if you remember its title.
6 out of 10