The Leech Woman (1960)

User Rating:

3.8/10   

Director:

Edward Dein

Writers:

David Duncan (writer)
Ben Pivar (story)

Release Date:

May 1960 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

Forever young! Forever deadly! She lived off the life blood of male victims!

Plot:

When a very old African woman offers an ambitious endocrinologist the secret of eternal youth, he decides...

Plot Keywords:

Murder | Africa | Eternal Youth | Doctor | Rejuvenation

Cast

Coleen Gray	...	June Talbot
Grant Williams	...	Neil Foster
Phillip Terry	...	Dr. Paul Talbot
Gloria Talbott	...	Sally Howard
John Van Dreelen	...	Bertram Garvay
Estelle Hemsley	...	Old Malla
Kim Hamilton	...	Young Malla
Arthur Batanides	...	Jerry Lando

Also Known As:

Leech (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

77 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

USA:Approved (Certificate #19277) | Finland:(Banned) (1960) | USA:Not Rated (DVD)

Company:

Universal International Pictures (UI)

Trivia:

Stars Coleen Gray and Phillip Terry were so into their performances as a feuding couple that they didn't even get along off-camera either.

Goofs:

Continuity: The stock footage used to portray the tribal celebrations shows several different African tribes in various different tribal dresses as well as various different kinds of celebrations.

Quotes:

[Confronting his alcoholic wife]
Dr. Paul Talbot: It's interesting to watch a "bottle baby" defend her weakness. One thing I can say for you, your approach is always different. Today, it's complete submission. I can't even get a rise out of you. You know, I think I like you better when you're sloppy drunk and violent. That's the real you, and that's the one I like, the one that hates me and gives me a chance to hate back.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living and Became Mixed-Up Zombies (#9.12)" (1997)

A movie designed especially for latecomers

Speedily put into production in order to offer exhibitors a second-feature lure with bookings of The Brides of Dracula, this little movie suffers from a tedious First Act. The initial scenes were obviously designed merely to fill in time, so that latecomers would not feel at any disadvantage. We're told absolutely nothing that doesn't develop later on in the plot. A bit of judicious trimming here would do wonders. And in any event, Coleen Gray doesn't seem nearly old enough in these early scenes to make her motives credible. Fortunately, she is marvelously made-up later on—and in these sequences she also gives by far the best performance of her career.

Despite Dein's flat-footed direction and the obvious constraints and inhibitions imposed by a tight "B" budget, interest is kept at a high level in the last half of the movie not only by Gray's forceful portrayal (and the skillful way she is lit and make-up) but by some neat yet unexpected plot twists

Alas, the film cheats on special effects, the transformations being accomplished without camera trickery in a most tame and disappointing manner.

Nonetheless, although horror devotees will find the going pretty dull until the halfway mark, the movie does eventually hit its stride. In fact, I'd describe it as a key item for any keen fan's personal collection.