Patrick
Wymark and Linda Hayden star in this British
horror film from 1971. The
story is set in 17th century England and begins with a farm hand named
Ralph Gower ploughing a field and unearthing a strange-looking skull
that bears some fur and has one very functional-looking eye.
Ralph is so unnerved by his find that he rushes to the farmhouse to
inform a travelling Judge who is the guest
of Isobel Banham, who owns the farm.
The judge listens to Ralph, but he is not
inclined to believe
the story and it does not help matters when Ralph describes his find as
the skull of a ‘fiend.’ Isobel manages to coax the
judge into action, but when he gets to the field the skull is gone and
this only makes the judge more inclined to believe that Ralph has
wasted his time.
While the judge is out, Isobel’s nephew, Peter, arrives at
the
farm. He has brought a young lady with him and announces, “I
want you to meet Miss Rosalind Barton. She and I are to be married
tomorrow.” Rosalind is certainly a comely wench and it is
easy to see the attraction,
but Isobel is not at
all pleased by this turn of events and is not happy at the idea of
Peter’s intended staying under her roof. In the end she
condescends to allow Rosalind to sleep in the attic, where she is
driven out of her mind by something that emerges from beneath the
floorboards. The following morning the poor girl is carted
off to the madhouse and Peter is shocked to see that one of her hands
has turned into a very large and unsavoury-looking claw.
Distraught by his loss Peter decides to sleep in the attic, but he
wakes up in the middle of the night and discovers that his right hand
has turned into a hairy claw that is busy trying to throttle
him. Peter
does the only thing he can do, he reaches for his knife and hacks the
thing off. On hearing the commotion, the Judge rushes to
Peter’s bedside, sees what has happened, and calls for the
doctor, who is probably the first person who has any idea what is going
on. The doctor has an old book with him and one page describes a
creature that resembles the one Ralph found buried in the field. The
judge is loathe to believe that witchcraft has returned to the village,
but on studying the book he becomes intrigued and takes the book with
him when he leaves for London the following morning. Before he departs
the judge assures Ralph that he will not forget them and will return
when the time is right. If the evil is to be destroyed it must be
allowed to grow first.
Not long after this a local schoolgirl, Angel Blake, also makes a
discovery in the field and begins behaving strangely.
Soon many of her class-mates are following her example, while others
die
horrible deaths, and it is clear that an evil influence has been
exerted over the children.
The local preacher,
Reverend Fallowfield, is also the schoolteacher and he becomes
concerned when he arrives at school to find half his class is absent,
while the rest show ‘insolent
ungodliness.’ "Where is Angel Blake?” he
demands only to be told that she is teaching the other children some
‘new games.’
Angel Blake is the focal point of the evil that has come to the village
and when the sight of her naked body is not enough to turn
Fallowfield's head, and get him to join her, she becomes angry and
tells the
local Squire that Fallowfield has assaulted her. The squire believer
Angel's lie and the Reverend is
taken away to be questioned. Too many children are dying though, and
when Ralph finds the body of his young sweetheart in the woods he tells
the Squire that Angel Blake is responsible. Fallowfield is released
immediately and Peter Edmonton rides off to get the judge, who warns
Peter that they are dealing with something worse than witchcraft. He
is, however, ready to return to the village, but will use
‘undreamed of measures.’
Blood on
Satan’s Claw was
made back in the 1970s and special effects
are not included. It is also a little slower paced than most modern
horror films, which may annoy some viewers, but in my opinion it still
knocks the spots off a lot of modern efforts. The producers have
managed to create an atmosphere of brooding evil throughout the film
that makes it strangely unsettling to watch, but nevertheless very
enjoyable. The entire cast of the film are excellent and the
choice of backing music is first rate and adds a good deal to
the inherent creepiness of the film. Blood
on
Satan’s Claw is
one of my favourite horror films, it always has been, it always will
be, and I had to wait far too long for it to come out on DVD, but that
is okay because some things are worth waiting for.
CAST
Patrick
Wymark
Linda Hayden
Barry Andrews
Michele Dotrice
Wendy Padbury
Anthony Ainley
Charlotte Mitchell
Tamara Ustinov
Simon Williams
James Hayter
Howard Goorney
Avice Landone
Robin Davies
Geoffrey Hughes
The
Judge
Angel Blake
Ralph Gower
Margaret
Cathy Vespers
Reverend Fallowfield
Ellen Vespers
Rosalind Barton
Peter Edmonton
Squire Middleton
The Doctor
Isobel Banham
Mark Vespers
Drinking Villager
Steve-Calvert.co.uk
