My Ratings:
Story 1.50 : Direction 1.50 : Pace 1.25 : Acting 1.25 : Entertaining 1.50
Total 7.00 out of 10.00.
This twisted take on the Hansel & Gretel fairytale has now become my favourite Christmas Horror, though it's not a horror film it's a chiller - but, nowadays there appears to be no distinction. Amazingly, this film never gets a mention in any of the genre's festive lists. People, you don't know what your missing.
Firstly: David Osborn, along with Robert Blees and Jimmy Sangster came up with the wonderfully twisted take. Mrs Forrest is a retired vaudeville star. Who, with the help of her magician husband, made enough money to live in a country estate and to hold a Christmas Party for the orphans every year. Mrs Forest insists the children call her Auntie Roo while they're under her roof. However, Auntie Roo has an ulterior motive for their invites. She loves children... and she's never gotten over the disappearance of her own daughter. That's what the locals believe, but they are only half right. This Christmas time two of the orphans will discover the dark truth to Auntie Roo. Unfortunately, Christopher Coombs has just read his sister, Katy, a bedtime story. One, where the witch takes two lost children captive. One, where she feeds them up. One, where she eats them all up... In Christopher's mind, Auntie Roo is that big bad and hungry witch.
What the writers then do is add empathy to Auntie Roo. You felt sorry for her, while willing the kids to escape. Because, even though you relate to Auntie Roo, you know she's broken, and nothing good will come of this situation.
Secondly: Curtis Harrington, the director, keeps the pace of this chiller, fairly tripping along lightly. Though there are some very dark elements to the story the film never plunges into too dark a depth. This works superbly with the script and the cast alike. He handles the few flashbacks well and doesn't confuse the viewer, which some films have been apt to do. What a lot of directors like to do nowadays is to get down to the grit. They use grey filters to give a bleak and depressing feel. They exploit the darkness by making the viewer strain to see what's going on. Hoping their imagination will fill in the blanks (most of the time this doesn't work as they don't entirely prep the audience beforehand). They rely on shaky camera work to give the illusion of reality, especially in point of view flicks. Harrington does none of this. Everything is in vivid colour. The night sequences are well lit so you can see everything. And the cameras glide and pan smoothly. And yet, thanks to the story and the actors, he crafts a film full of different atmospheres; joy, sadness, loss, tension, and hope to name a few.
Thirdly: The actors, some of whom are in personas you wouldn't expect, are excellent... except for Shelley Winters. Let me state I adored her strong portrayal in The Night Of The Hunter. This was the first movie of hers where I thought, Wow, this lady can act! However, it seems to be hit or miss with Winters and this portrayal as Auntie Roo just misses. It comes close... but sometimes she goes too far and enters the overacting arena. The film belongs to the strong British cast who more than make up for her handful of glitches. I thought using Lionel Jeffries as Inspector Willoughby was a strange choice. However, he brings an air of class to the role which he doesn't play for comedy. Though he adds a nice joviality when he's around the orphans. The orphans, themselves, are great. Each does a brilliant job and adds to the reality of the film.
All in all, this is a wonderfully dark, twisted, and excellently written, filmed, and acted slice of entertainment. I would recommend this to everybody who likes or loves Chillers... and horror films. I'd even recommend it to new audiences of the genres. I wish they produced more of today's horror and chiller films with this eye and attention to detail... and not reliant on gimmicks to keep their audience's attention.
Skip on over to my Killer Thriller Chillers to see where I've ranked this forgotten jewel.
Take Care and Stay Well.
This twisted take on the Hansel & Gretel fairytale has now become my favourite Christmas Horror, though it's not a horror film it's a chiller - but, nowadays there appears to be no distinction. Amazingly, this film never gets a mention in any of the genre's festive lists. People, you don't know what your missing.
Firstly: David Osborn, along with Robert Blees and Jimmy Sangster came up with the wonderfully twisted take. Mrs Forrest is a retired vaudeville star. Who, with the help of her magician husband, made enough money to live in a country estate and to hold a Christmas Party for the orphans every year. Mrs Forest insists the children call her Auntie Roo while they're under her roof. However, Auntie Roo has an ulterior motive for their invites. She loves children... and she's never gotten over the disappearance of her own daughter. That's what the locals believe, but they are only half right. This Christmas time two of the orphans will discover the dark truth to Auntie Roo. Unfortunately, Christopher Coombs has just read his sister, Katy, a bedtime story. One, where the witch takes two lost children captive. One, where she feeds them up. One, where she eats them all up... In Christopher's mind, Auntie Roo is that big bad and hungry witch.
What the writers then do is add empathy to Auntie Roo. You felt sorry for her, while willing the kids to escape. Because, even though you relate to Auntie Roo, you know she's broken, and nothing good will come of this situation.
Secondly: Curtis Harrington, the director, keeps the pace of this chiller, fairly tripping along lightly. Though there are some very dark elements to the story the film never plunges into too dark a depth. This works superbly with the script and the cast alike. He handles the few flashbacks well and doesn't confuse the viewer, which some films have been apt to do. What a lot of directors like to do nowadays is to get down to the grit. They use grey filters to give a bleak and depressing feel. They exploit the darkness by making the viewer strain to see what's going on. Hoping their imagination will fill in the blanks (most of the time this doesn't work as they don't entirely prep the audience beforehand). They rely on shaky camera work to give the illusion of reality, especially in point of view flicks. Harrington does none of this. Everything is in vivid colour. The night sequences are well lit so you can see everything. And the cameras glide and pan smoothly. And yet, thanks to the story and the actors, he crafts a film full of different atmospheres; joy, sadness, loss, tension, and hope to name a few.
Thirdly: The actors, some of whom are in personas you wouldn't expect, are excellent... except for Shelley Winters. Let me state I adored her strong portrayal in The Night Of The Hunter. This was the first movie of hers where I thought, Wow, this lady can act! However, it seems to be hit or miss with Winters and this portrayal as Auntie Roo just misses. It comes close... but sometimes she goes too far and enters the overacting arena. The film belongs to the strong British cast who more than make up for her handful of glitches. I thought using Lionel Jeffries as Inspector Willoughby was a strange choice. However, he brings an air of class to the role which he doesn't play for comedy. Though he adds a nice joviality when he's around the orphans. The orphans, themselves, are great. Each does a brilliant job and adds to the reality of the film.
All in all, this is a wonderfully dark, twisted, and excellently written, filmed, and acted slice of entertainment. I would recommend this to everybody who likes or loves Chillers... and horror films. I'd even recommend it to new audiences of the genres. I wish they produced more of today's horror and chiller films with this eye and attention to detail... and not reliant on gimmicks to keep their audience's attention.
Skip on over to my Killer Thriller Chillers to see where I've ranked this forgotten jewel.
Take Care and Stay Well.