The Night Caller (1965)

User Rating:

5.5/10   

Director:

John Gilling

Writers:

Jim O'Connolly (screenplay)
Frank Crisp (novel)

Release Date:

November 1966 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Sci-Fi

Plot:

The inhabitants of Ganymede need to find mates from another world or they will become extinct. They...

Plot Keywords:

Commander | Mutant | Police | Laboratory | Alien

Cast

John Saxon	...	Dr. Jack Costain
Maurice Denham	...	Dr. Morley
Patricia Haines	...	Ann Barlow
Alfred Burke	...	Detective Supt. Hartley
Warren Mitchell	...	Reg Lilburn
Stanley Meadows	...	Det. Tom Grant
Aubrey Morris	...	Thorburn
Ballard Berkeley	...	Cmdr. Savage
Marianne Stone	...	Madge Lilburn
Geoffrey Lumsden	...	Col. Davy
Barbara Stevens	...	Joyce Malone (as Barbara French)
Tony Wager	...	Pvt. Higgins (as Anthony Wager)
David Gregory	...	Pvt. Jones
Douglas Livingstone	...	2nd R / T soldier
Tom Gill	...	Police Commissioner's secretary

Also Known As:

Blood Beast from Outer Space (USA)
Bloodbeast from Outer Space (USA) (promotional title)
Night Caller from Outer Space

Runtime:

85 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono | Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

UK:X (original rating)

Filming Locations:

Shepperton Studios, Shepperton, Surrey, England, UK

Company:

Armitage Film Productions Ltd.

Soundtrack:

IMAGE

Interesting camera work and atmosphere is not enough to save it.

Just having watched this film for the first time in many years (and not really recalling much of it) was an exercise in frustration. No need to cover the premise, as other reviewers have done so in detail. As a long-time sci-fi fan with a fondness for British made films, I expected a lot more from this than it delivered. As other reviewers note, the film does offer great atmosphere, reminiscent of the Quatermass films and other British sci-fi greats. Beyond that, it is a true mystery how others' can call this a 'gem'. More like a lump of coal.

There is some interesting camera work in this black & white effort, and the acting is generally pretty good (although John Saxon was pretty dull, turning in a perfunctory performance at best). In spite of these positives, it doesn't take long to see that this film is very, very lame. Crummy special effects (the alien's 'claw hand' looks like it came from a Halloween shop), the makeup of the 'night caller' at the end was inconsistent with his appearance during the rest of the film (and lousy makeup at that), the premise of having an alien from Ganymede transporting to earth with money, a refined British accent and the ability to drive a car, rent an office, etc. is never explained, nor is the fate of the '200 plus' girls abducted. The 'visitor' assures that they 'won't be harmed' but that's it.

This could have been a very good film. It certainly started out well enough, but as noted by others, the further into the film one got the worse it got. I felt cheated out of the 84 minutes I spent watching it. As a big fan of 50s and 60s sci-fi films, I'm not too picky. There are many low-budget films of those eras and of that genre that are immensely entertaining. This is not one of them.

And one final note: it would hardly be possible to find a more inappropriate title song for a science fiction film than the one used in this film. It was like something that might be used in a 'B' romance film, lyrics excepting. Awful. It nearly caused me to stop the film before it started. Regrettably, I sat through it all. Yawn.