MOMENT OF TERROR MONDAY! CUSHING IN 'THE SKULL' CLIP

THIS WEEK'S #MOMENTSOFTERRORMONDAY! comes from Amicus films, 'THE SKULL' (1965) starring Peter Cushing, Christopher Lee . .and here, Peter Woodthrope, who some of you may recognise from his portrayal of Zoltan the hypnotist, Hammer films, 'The Evil of Frankenstein' also with Peter Cushing from the same year. The floating SKULL of the The Skull of the "Marquis de Sade" was a true device of terror, and a concept devised by author and screenplay writer, Robert Bloch. Bloch worked on a few Amicus films, The Skull probably being the best of the bunch.

PETER CUSHING plays the tormented Christopher MAITLAND . . .a surname that is a death sentence in an Amicus film, as script writer and producer has used the surname so many times in his films! This is great clip. I LOVE the way that Woodthrope's ,Bert Travers falls through no one, but TWO glass skylights...and if you listen carefully, it sounds as he went through another too . .. . A TRUE Moment of TERROR! BEST print on the market, would have to be the EUREKA BLU RAY. GReat visual quality and sound...and a load of extra features too PLUS It's REGION ZERO! ENJOY! - Marcus

MORE ON THE SKULL IN OUR FEATURE AND GALLERY : HERE!

REMEMBER! IF YOU LIKE what you see here at our website, you'll  love our daily themed posts at our PCAS FACEBOOK FAN PAGE.  Just click that blue LINK and click LIKE when you get there, and help us . . Keep The Memory Alive!. The Peter Cushing Appreciation Society website, facebook fan page and youtube channel are managed, edited and written by Marcus Brooks, PCAS coordinator since 1979. PCAS is based in the UK and USA

HORRIBLE DEATH WEDNESDAY 2: WITH CALLUM MCKELVIE

SO TODAY is of course our new theme, ‘Horrible Death Wednesday’, where we highlight some of our favourite dispatches for a multitude of memorable characters in Cushing’s film. It’s a pretty good line-up if I say so myself, featuring one film I’ve regularly mentioned as a personal best, another that featured in my ‘Choicest Cushing’ article and one that I haven’t as of yet praised- but will shortly. 

FIRST UP is the aftermath of the titular creature’s death from ‘Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell’. During the final moments, the creature (having of course been on the rampage) is set upon by the inmates of the asylum and quite literally ripped apart. A particularly gruesome moment, it’s one of a number of gory sequences that feel at odds in what is essentially a throwback film. None the less, it feels right in what is an exceptionally dark film (even for the Hammer Frankenstein series) and a fitting end to one of the more sympathetic creatures in the series.

NEXT UP is a sequence from a film I’ve regularly mentioned to be a personal favourite, though haven’t as of yet written anything substantial on it. Christopher Lee’s death in The Skull has long been one of my favourites and I think it’s down to the very subtle elements of black comedy in the scene. Bar one sequence at the opening, Lee and Cushing only ever appear playing Billiards together, so it’s little surprise when Cushing batters Lee over the head with a ball. Unlike the above sequence, there’s very little on-screen gore but it’s the context that makes this particularly gruesome. Subotsky had a particular flare for introducing gruesome elements into his films, but somehow instructing directors to keep the high levels of violence off screen (the ‘Blind Man’ sequence in Tales from the Crypt springs to mind). This is a prime example. 

FINALLY we have a sequence from The Mummy. The Mummy is full of a number of great death sequences, Daddy Banning’s and Mehemet Bay’s spring to mind, but today’s is the death of Cushing’s uncle played by Raymond Huntley. Huntley is a familiar British character actor and he’s such a friendly and likable character that his death, strangled as Lee’s titular walking cadaver crashes through a door, proves to have something of a resonance to it.

IF YOU LIKE what you see here at our website, you'll  love our daily themed posts at our PCAS FACEBOOK FAN PAGE.  Just click that blue LINK and click LIKE when you get there, and help us . . Keep The Memory Alive!. The Peter Cushing Appreciation Society website, facebook fan page and youtube channel are managed, edited and written by Marcus Brooks, PCAS coordinator since 1979. PCAS is based in the UK and USA  . 

AMICUS THE SKULL : BIG FALL : MOMENT OF TERROR MONDAY AND TRICK OR TREAT PLANS?

THIS WEEK'S #MOMENTSOFTERRORMONDAY! comes from Amicus films, 'THE SKULL' (1965) starring Peter Cushing, Christopher Lee . .and here, Peter Woodthrope, who some of you may recognise from his portrayal of Zoltan the hypnotist, Hammer films, 'The Evil of Frankenstein' also with Peter Cushing from the same year. The floating SKULL of the The Skull of the "Marquis de Sade" was a true device of terror, and a concept devised by author and screenplay writer, Robert Bloch.

RARE STILLS GALLERY BEHIND THE SCENES from THE SKULL in  The Amicus Films of Peter Cushing PART ONE Right HERE!

BLOCH WORKED on a few Amicus films, The Skull probably being the best of the bunch. Peter Cushing plays the tormented Christopher MAITLAND . . .a surname that is a death sentence in an Amicus film, as script writer and producer has used the surname so many times in his films! This is great clip. I LOVE the way that Woodthrope's, Bert Travers falls through no one, but TWO glass skylights...and if you listen carefully, it sounds as he went through another too . .. . A TRUE Moment of TERROR! BEST print on the market, would have to be the EUREKA BLU RAY. Great visual quality and sound...and a load of extra features too PLUS It's REGION ZERO! ENJOY! - Marcus

OVER AT THE Peter Cushing APPRECIATION Society Facebook Fan Page   WE'RE ASKING ABOUT YOUR PLANS FOR TOMORROW EVENING? JOIN US?

IF YOU LIKE what you see here at our website, you'll  love our daily themed posts at our PCAS FACEBOOK FAN PAGE.  Just click that blue LINK and click LIKE when you get there, and help us . . Keep The Memory Alive!. The Peter Cushing Appreciation Society website, facebook fan page and youtube channel are managed, edited and written by Marcus Brooks, PCAS coordinator since 1979. PCAS is based in the UK and USA  . .   

I NEVER FORGET A FACE OR A HEAD! #THROWBACKTHURSDAY!

#THROWBACKTHURSDAY! I NEVER FORGET A . . . HEAD! You may recall I asked all #HAMMERFILM fans out there, if they recognised the HEAD posing as the remains of the Marquis de Sade in Cushing film, The Skull, and posted a pic of the HEAD. No one spotted it, so here is the answer . . . that should make em sit up at the next pub quiz!

FIND OUT MORE ABOUT THIS FILM at our SUPPLEMENT WEBSITE The Black Box Club. There is a full review and RARE IMAGE GALLLERY : HERE!

 

IF YOU LIKE what you see here at our website, you'll  love our daily themed posts at our PCAS FACEBOOK FAN PAGE.  Just click that blue LINK and click LIKE when you get there, and help us . . Keep The Memory Alive!. The Peter Cushing Appreciation Society website, facebook fan page and youtube channel are managed, edited and written by Marcus Brooks, PCAS coordinator since 1979. PCAS is based in the UK and USA      

#GETTHECUSHIONSUNDAY: THE AMICUS VAULT OF HORRORS PART TWO

#GETTHECUSHIONSUNDAY! PART ONE OF this documentary went down very well last Sunday, and I know there are many waiting for #PARTTWO. Lots of gems in this part, from 'The Psychopath' right up to 'The House that Dripped Blood'. Please feel free to send any thoughts, comments and observations about Part Two, your comments are always welcome. Help us by subscribing and sharing. It keeps the sites and the memory of #PETERCUSHING alive!

#THEHOUSETHATDRIPPEDBLOOD #AMICUS #PETERCUSHING

 

#SCREAMANDSCREAMAGAIN #PETERCUSHING #AMICUSFILMS

#VINCENTPRICE #CHRISTOPHERLEE #PETERCUSHING #ACID #BATH  #AMICUSFILMS

#DRWHO #DOCTORWHO #TARDIS #DRWHOANDTHEDALEKS #AMICUSFILMS

#THESKULL #PETERCUSHING #CHRISTOPHERLEE #AMICUSFILMS

#DRTERRORSHOUSEOFHORRORS #PETERCUSHING #DONALDSOTHERLAND

#CHRISTOPHERLEE #MICHAELGOUGH #AMICUS FILMS

#JONPERTWEE #GEOFREYBAYLDON  #AMICUSFILMS #ROBERTBLOCH

#HORRORFILMS #GIFS #DOCUMENTARY #AMICUSFILMS

 IF YOU LIKE what you see here at our website, you'll  love our daily themed posts at our PCAS FACEBOOK FAN PAGE.  Just click that blue LINK and click LIKE when you get there, and help us . . Keep The Memory Alive!. The Peter Cushing Appreciation Society website, facebook fan page and youtube channel are managed, edited and written by Marcus Brooks, PCAS coordinator since 1979. PCAS is based in the UK and USA   

REMEMBERING PATRICK WYMARK : BORN TODAY

#TOOCOOLTUESDAY: Today we remember British character actor PATRICK WYMARK. An experienced actor of stage, TV, film and Radio, whose life was cut short suddenly due to an heart attack at age 44…. Some of his best known film roles are Where Eagles Dare (1968) , Repulsion (1965), The Blood On Satan’s Claw (1970) and Journey To The Far Side Of The Sun (1969) and Cromwell (1970)… He co-starred with Peter Cushing in Amicus’s The Skull (1965)

THE WYMARK family: Patrick Wymark and family in 1965, the year of #THESKULL release .. his wife Olwen, with their children (L-R) Dominic, Tristram and Rowan, at their home.

IF YOU LIKE what you see here at our website, you'll  love our daily themed posts at our PCAS FACEBOOK FAN PAGE.  Just click that blue LINK and click LIKE when you get there, and help us . . Keep The Memory Alive!. The Peter Cushing Appreciation Society website, facebook fan page and youtube channel are managed, edited and written by Marcus Brooks, PCAS coordinator since 1979. PCAS is based in the UK and USA.

#MONSTERMONDAY: CHRISTOPHER MAITLAND IN THE SKULL

#MONSTERMONDAY: Greg Jenkins suggested Peter Cushing's Christopher Maitland from Amicus films, The Skull today...and we thought this was a great suggestion. The Skull is a terrifying story of a collector caught up in having his sights set on the ultimate addition to his collection... THE Skull of the Marquis De Sade.

EVENTUALLY, Maitland wins his prize at an auction, and then it all goes terribly wrong.... very quickly. It's a story of greed, obsession, pride, torment and ultimately destruction. But, I am not quite sure if Cushing's Maitland, is as an innocent victim, as he first appears... what do you think, Victim or Monster?

READ ALL ABOUT  PETER CUSHING ROLE IN THE SKULL AND MANY OF HIS AMICUS FILMS THROUGH OUT HIS CAREER IN SERIES THE AMICUS FILMS OF PETER CUSHING : PART ONE . .

WANT MORE? There are FOUR THEMED posts most days, seven days a week at our official PCAS Facebook Fan Page: Why Not Join US?? Just CLICK HERE AND CLICK LIKE THERE!

#GIMMETHEGIFWEDNESDAY: IT'S DONALDS BIRTHDAY REMEMBERED AND PERTWEE AND PITT DO PRETENTION

REMEMBERING: Actor Donald Pleasence who was born today in 1919... Pleasence appeared alongside Peter Cushing in a surprising amount of titles. From the quite early on brilliant BBC production of '1984' to the not so brilliant 'The Devil's Men', 'Flesh and the Fiends', 'Trial By Combat' and 'From Beyond The Grave' In a very lengthy career, with many highlights, Pleasence was always entertaining, especially with nervous, evil obsessive characters. Pleasence is probably best know for his role of Dr. Sam Loomis in the 'Halloween' films...a role interestingly enough that Peter Cushing was originally approached to play....

#GIMMETHEGIFWEDNESDAY: Peter Cushing as the forensic surgeon of Tyburn films, Legend of the Werewolf, kisses the 'SILVER' top, of his favourite walking cane... he needs the silver for a better purpose....

 

#GIMMETHEGIFWEDNESDAY: TOMAS HILL from Sheffield, UK has requested this gif of JON PERTWEE and INGRID PITT from the Amicus film, 'The House That Dripped Blood' . . . what a pair of 'Theatricals'! Both Pertwee and Pitt enjoyed playing the roles of Paul Henderson and Carla Lind in what was intended to be 'the fun' story in the film, 'The Cloak'. Watching an interview with director Peter Duffell included in the extras of the DVD box set release, Duffell explained that he wasn't quite sure if the under-cranked shots in the story actually achieve the effect he was looking for. I think I agree with him. In two of producer Milton Subotsky's films that include a 'wacky-comedy story' The House that Dripped Blood' (1971) : The Cloak and 'The Monster Club' (1980) :  The Vampires, they are, in my opinion, the weakest stories of the bunch, and the comedy in very weak and pathetically pun filled'. Still, 'The Cloak' did give Pertwee the opportunity to exercise his comedy chops, a field in which he made his name, and it gave us the rare opportunity to see him and Ingrid work together.

#GIMMETHEGIFWEDNESDAY: Requested by Anne Price. The Nightmare sequence featured in 'The House That Dripped Blood' is one of the few stand out moments in the film. Cushing had played a similar scene for another Amicus film, The Skull back in 1965. Interestingly, here we can see the choices of two directors, shooting the illusion of a terrifying nightmare... both effectively use distorted angles, slow motion and dry ice. In The Skull Freddie Francis used different lenses, while director Peter Duffell here in this scene, uses the cheaper, but maybe more effective method of almost comic strip, 'Dutch Tilts'. It's the one scene that most often is remembered when you write to us about this Cushing film.

COME JOIN US ALONG WITH OVER 25,000 OTHER FOLLOWERS AT OUR FACEBOOK FAN PAGE: RIGHT HERE!