The Beast in the Cellar

source: The Beast in the Cellar

Moviecut—The Beast in the Cellar

This latter day Tigon film used to be on the telly all the time when I was young. Me and my sister thought it was great! It doesn't seem to have all that good of a reputation though but having saw it for the first time since way back when, I can safely say that I still like it! It centres on a couple of elderly sisters who live together (Beryl Reid and Flora Robson) who keep their deranged brother in the cellar; he gets out and starts killing soldiers from the local training base. The two central pensioners are pretty good value and it has a sense of place and atmosphere to boot.

The bad news: the Canadian version of Beast In The Cellar released by Maple Pictures that I saw was of poor quality. Dark and washed out, it appeared to be dubbed haphazardly from a VHS tape. It even skips at one point due to some missing frames. The good news: this movie is so bad that the poor quality of the DVD detracted little from my viewing enjoyment. This horror movie fails to build tension and lacks scares. It is a horrorless horror film. While most frightening films have limited dialog, Beast In The Cellar is a gabfest, so much so that a character will repeat something we have just heard said by two other characters. Presumably, all the chit chat acts as filler for a very low budget, unimaginative movie. Unfortunately, the dialog isn't campy enough to make it worth a watch.

A soldier walks alone in the ever darkening sunset. Suddenly he is attacked by a creature. You know this because the camera is shaken around, there is disjointed screaming, and the same photo of a bloody slash mark is subliminally flashed. This was obviously to avoid too much editing by the censor, but I immediately thought, "Great, a 1970's crap horror movie. Worth watching" Then the laid back, easy-listening trumpet title tune put the icing on the cake - more cocktail lounge than horror film it is immediately at odds with the theme of the film. After the intro, the usual chapter with the detectives investigating the incident scene. You don't actually see the body, but the contrived commentary by the detectives gives you a good idea of its condition. "Hmmmm, deep lacerations to the face and body made by talons, I'd say." You get the picture. This thorough off the cuff autopsy by the detectives gets them off on the wrong foot by making the assumption that it's a Panther. Apart perhaps from the two leading actresses and T P McKenna, there is little evidence of any real acting. The soldier that keeps an eye on the two old dears was probably a real soldier - he appeared to be reading from idiot boards such was his woodeness. However, the story does get a bit more involved and at times seems well written, so you shouldn't judge this film by the first amusing half hour.

Two spinsters Joyce and Ellie live together in the family home they grew up in,but hide a dark and sinister secret. They keep their demented brother Steven locked in the cellar. But Steven manages to escape and starts killing soldiers. And he can see in the dark."Beast in the Cellar" is a pretty creepy horror movie produced by Tigon. The score by Tony Macaulay is marvelous and there are some moments of genuine suspense. The film is well-acted and directed. Beryl Reid and Flora Robson shine in their chilling performances of two elderly sisters Joyce and Ellie. The climax is a bit predictable and the editing is rather bad in places plus it's quite difficult to see what is happening. Still solid British shocker.8 beasts out of 10.

In rural Lancashire in the north west of England, two elderly sisters played by Beryl Reid and Flora Robson have kept their younger brother locked up in the cellar for thirty years and as a result he has been driven right out of his mind. He escapes and starts killing soldiers from a nearby army camp in frenzied attacks. "The Beast In The Cellar" is a "Tigon" produced shocker that went out as a double bill with the company's own "Blood On Satan's Claw" (Dir: Piers Haggard). Although most critics have condemned it, one called it an "Idiotically boring farrago", it isn't really that bad although there is quite a lot of laughably melodramatic chit chat between the leading ladies and the low budget does show at times. However, the success of this film is through the lighting of Harry Waxman and Desmond Dickinson (one of my favoured cinematographers) who use the rural setting to the full and there is one set up at the end which stands out in the memory long after the movie is over. The sequence in which the beast is seen creeping up a staircase in the middle of the night during a thunderstorm rather recalls the earlier horror movies of the 1930's through it's sinister use of shadow. This transcends the basic story which is by no means bad, but it would of worked much better as a short story segment in a portmanteau horror film.

This film has haunted me for 30 years. I'm trying to buy a PAL format VHS or UK or USA DVD copy. This film is excellent. Flora Robson is disturbingly controlling and the ending, if you haven't been told of it, is sad & very moving. And my home is 90 years old- with a cellar.

I remember viewing this movie when I was a kid. I recall it terrified me immensely and it stayed with me all these years. I spent a couple of years trying to find it online...didn't remember the title, only the storyline. After searching and searching, I came across a VHS that was being sold on E-Bay. I was excited and when it finally arrived, I jammed it into the VCR and couldn't help but feel a bit nostalgic. Needless to say, I was slightly disappointed. This wasn't the movie I remember watching as a kid. It was boring at times and I found Beryl Reid's incessant whinning extremely annoying. Both performances by Reid and Flora Robson were good overall but the movie wasn't scary. I think any movie is worth viewing to form you're own opinion but sometimes, well......

One thing I have noticed about British horror movies from the 1970s is that they don`t hold up to repeated viewing THEATRE OF BLOOD is a case in point as are all those Amicus anthology movies . Add THE BEAST IN THE CELLAR to the list Much of the drama of this movie revolves around the build up of a plot revelation at the end . Once you know what the revelation is this becomes a rather flat film . It does open with a fairly good hook but after that we`re treated to long boring sequences of two old ladies making small talk . Correct me if I`m wrong but how many people watch a horror movie expecting a couple of old ladies making small talk ? The only sort of interest to be found in THE BEAST IN THE CELLAR is the anti-smoking stance . Some people have mentioned that this is an anti-war or anti-military film but watch carefully and you`ll see that everytime a squaddie lights up for a fly puff he gets killed . Rather strange considering attitudes to smoking weren`t nearly so hysterical as they are nowadays