Friday, July 23, 2010

THE BEAST MUST DIE / Amicus - 1974

Welcome everbloody to Friday Night Drive-In, with your host Tabonga and lil' hunchback Dungeon helper, Ralphie the Tarantula...

We gots a strange one fer sure, great cast, alternate title is BLACK WEREWOLF! From a story by James Blish. Director Paul Annett has 39 directing credits, but, directed only one other flick besides this one, everything else was various episodes of TV shows! A few titles he worked on are FRAUD SQUAD, DEAD OF NIGHT, SPY TRAP, TALES OF THE UNEXPECTED, THE SPONGE MAN and MENACE UNSEEN.

Great narration at the beginning by uncredited Bill Mitchell. Guess you'll need to pay attention while you watch, or else you'll look like a dummy at the end!..

The music is cool but very dated. The wah-wah pedal chicka-chicka sound with big horns says, well... 1974!! It was composed by Australian Douglas Gamley, Douglas had 35 composing credits from 1956-83 which includes HIGH FLIGHT, TOM THUMB, TARZAN'S GREATEST ADVENTURE, THE UGLY DUCKLING, HORROR HOTEL, THE HORROR OF IT ALL (coming soon!), AND NOW FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT, TALES FROM THE CRYPT, ASYLUM, THE VAULT OF HORROR, MADHOUSE, THE LAND THAT TIME FORGOT and THE MONSTER CLUB!!.. Not too shabby!

Okay then, lil' Ralphie has just informed Tabonga that it's in the best interest of progress to have him push, once again, that big red 'GO' button and bring everbloody our Eariffic Earclip flavor of the night!! Here's... THE BEAST MUST DIE!

The flick starts with Calvin (HONEYBABY, HONEYBABY) Lockhart running from rabid military style persuers!

Calvin plays millionaire Tom Newcliffe, who's actually testing his own surveilance and tracking systems! And there's Dungeon pal Anton Diffring, Anton appeared in these fine productions too: I AM A CAMERA, TALES OF FRANKENSTEIN (TV), THE MAN WHO COULD CHEAT DEATH, CIRCUS OF HORRORS, GHOST SQUAD (TV), FAHRENHEIT 451, PIGGIES (TV), SON OF HITLER and PLUTONIUM (TV).

The story is basically a mix of 10 LITTLE INDIANS and THE MOST DANGEROUS GAME, but with a Werewolf thrown in for good measure!

Hmmmm... Now, who could be that infernal Werewolf anyway, I wonder?

Where there's Wolf Bane, there's usually a Werewolf!!

Anton Diffring - Before and after a Werewolf attack!

Tom takes his varmint hunting... vewy, vewy, sewiouswy!!

What?!.. Strange things just always happen during a full moon!

A portrait of Peter worthy of a painting!!

It's a freakin' MADHOUSE!!

~ DO YOU KNOW WHO IS... THE WEREWOLF?

4 comments:

Prof. Grewbeard said...

ummm, the black dude?...

Greg Goodsell said...

Dis movie stinks on ice and was the final nail in Amicus Studios' coffin!

Anonymous said...

Tower of Power?

Christopher said...

Truck Turner meets the Wolfman

Monster Music

Monster Music
AAARRGGHHH!!!! Ya'll Come On Back Now, Y'Hear??