AT its core, The Beast In The Cellar from 1971 is a very simple film. Two ageing sisters, played by much loved thesps Beryl Reid and Flora Robson, potter about their rural abode, gently bickering, discussing this year’s celery crop and drinking endless cups of tea.
There’s also the small matter of their beloved brother who they’ve locked away in their basement for years to protect him from conscription to the war, of course...
Understandably their little brother has grown a trifle insane with only the four walls of the cellar for company and when he escapes and members of the military stationed nearby start turning up brutally murdered, the sisters suddenly realise they have a bit of a problem on their hands.
Directed by James Kelly and produced for Tony Tenser’s Tigon films, who had previously delivered such visceral fare as Witchfinder General and The Sorcerers, this is an odd and slow moving exercise in the horror of the mundane and though nothing much happens for large swathes of its running time it’s not a film without charm.
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Coming at the tail end of the so-called ‘hagsploitation’ trend, a fairly offensive term for the cycle of older women horror fables kick started by the huge success of Whatever Happened To Baby Jane? with Bette Davis and Joan Crawford in 1962, it allows both Reid and Robson to shine as the two old spinsters living alone and harbouring a horrendous family secret.
Slightly dotty but driven by their desire to protect their poor brother they cut strangely sympathetic figures and their slightly edgy bickering hides a deep distrust of the society they see around them. They are, without a doubt, the best reason for sticking with the film even when it feels like it’s losing its thrust occasionally.
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Dafydd Havard is less impressive as the mentally challenged brother who breaks free with murderous urges and sadly he looks like a fairly straggly late sixties hippy rather than a draft dodger from the Second World War but there are moments of gentle creepiness to savour all the same.
Coming from the exploitation house of Tony Tenser means there are occasional moments of gore and the odd bit of uncalled for sex thrown in to spice things up a little, but really this is about watching two fine British actors try to outdo each other on screen with some nicely moody shots of the English countryside and a wistful score from Tony Macaulay that adds to the rural vibe rather nicely.
The recent Blu-ray release of the movie through 88 Films offers a lot of extras to beef up the slightly undercooked main feature including splendid audio commentaries from critics like David Flint and even the never less than entertaining Tony Tenser himself. Interviews with cast and crew are crowbarred in as well.
How much you need a very niche release like this depends upon your appetite for talk heavy, rural horrors that feature elderly English actors and a monster that looks like he plays bass in a Grateful Dead tribute act.
Personally I can’t get enough of it.
