THE BLACK TORMENT

Heather Sears and John Turner

THE BLACK TORMENT (1964). Director: Robert Hartford-Davis.

Sir Richard Fordyke (John Turner) returns to his ancestral manor in Olde England and brings with him his new bride, Elizabeth (Heather Sears of The Phantom of the Opera). Right away things seem odd, with his tenants, other villagers, and even his staff behaving peculiarly towards him. His major domo, Seymour (Peter Arne of Tarzan and the Lost Safari), tells him that a woman was raped and murdered and cried out his name before she expired, and he has been -- impossibly -- sighted in the village on other occasions, supposedly pursued by the ghost of his first wife, who plunged from a window. Before long Richard begins doubting his own sanity or wonders if some demonic doppelganger is at work ... Although the denouement is fairly predictable, The Black Torment still manages to work up considerable suspense over this situation, and the pic is greatly bolstered by some excellent performances. I first noticed John Turner when he had a small role as a fisherman in one of my favorite monster movies, The Giant Behemoth, but he clearly shows in this that he was meant for greater things, and judging by his talent, should be much better known today. He is outstanding and completely convincing as Sir Richard no matter what the script throws at him during the films' twists and turns. Under Robert Hartford-Davis' adroit direction, Black Torment has some creepy and startling sequences, and is handsomely produced in the full-out Gothic manner. When it's over and all revelations revealed, you may scratch your head when you realize the sheer impossibility of some of the aspects of the story, but Black Torment is still an entertaining horror flick, one which, -- incredibly -- I had never heard of and discovered on Kanopy.  Interesting score by Robert Richards. Hartford-Davis also directed the zesty Corruption.

Verdict: Compelling lead performance and attractive settings lift this above the average. ***. 

THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA (1962)

Heather Sears and Herbert Lom

THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA (1962). Director: Terence Fisher.

The second color remake of the silent classic stars Herbert Lom [Mark of the Devil] as a presumed dead music professor and composer whose work was stolen by a loathsome publisher named d'Arcy (Michael Gough of Black Zoo), and who haunts the Paris opera, kidnapping new singer Christine (Heather Sears of Room at the Top) so he can coach her in her role. The appropriated opera is based on the life of Joan of Arc, but it sounds more like a 20th century work than something from a previous century. An early scene when a corpse suddenly flies across the stage from a rope during a performance makes you think this might be the old story reworked as a nifty Hammer horror film, but aside from some rats and stabs to the eyeball, this version is not much more horrific than the 1943 Phantom of the Opera, and has a less effective chandelier sequence as well. Lom is not as interesting as the disfigured composer as you might expect, Sears is competent but forgettable, and Gough steals the picture with his utterly vicious and slimy portrayal of d'Arcy. Some of the developments of the script give one pause: a producer (Edward de Souza) learns the truth about who actually composed the opera, but does nothing about it, despite d'Arcy's wretched character and his need for comeuppance. In another scene a landlady somehow knows that Lom is still alive even when the police don't. The movie is entertaining, but somehow disjointed.

Verdict: Disappointing thriller with some good moments. **1/2.

ROOM AT THE TOP

ROOM AT THE TOP (1959). Director: Jack Clayton.

"What were you doing fifty years ago during the Great War?"

Joe Lampton (Laurence Harvey) is an embittered WW2 veteran who hates the way that people with money treat him and others like him as if they were inferior. He makes a play for a young woman, Susan (Heather Sears) from a wealthy family, but things get complicated when he falls for an older married woman named Alice (Simone Signoret). Despite the sub-text of class struggle and ambition, Room at the Top is essentially a romantic story, and on that level it certainly delivers. One could quibble that the story is a touch predictable, and that certain sequences could have had more impact, but basically this is an absorbing, adult drama with wonderful dialogue and sympathetic characters. Joe Lampton is not just a heartless or ruthless gigolo, although he makes mistakes. In one powerful scene Alice tells him with consummate understatement, "You're a timid soul, aren't you?" One fight scene between Joe and Alice ends with Joe shouting out the hurtful line highlighted above, a mean reference to Alice's being older than him. Harvey is quite good; Signoret won an Oscar and deserved it. Heather Sears, Donald Wolfit and Hemione Baddeley also offer top-notch performances. Crisply photographed by Freddie Francis, who would direct many horror films in the future.

Verdict: Another British masterpiece. ****.