Quatermass and the Pit (1967)

User Rating:

7.4/10   

Director:

Roy Ward Baker

Writer:

Nigel Kneale (original story and screenplay)

Release Date:

16 February 1968 (USA)

Genre:

Sci-Fi | Horror

Tagline:

All Earth Stands Helpless! Spawned in the depths of outer space -- a monster so horrible, so vicious, so incredible -- even when you see it you won't believe it could be! (U.S. poster)

Plot:

An ancient Martian spaceship is unearthed in London, and proves to have powerful psychic effects on the people around.

Plot Keywords:

London | Martian | Subway | Church | Sequel

Cast

James Donald	...	Dr. Mathew Roney
Andrew Keir	...	Prof. Bernard Quatermass
Barbara Shelley	...	Barbara Judd
Julian Glover	...	Colonel Breen
Duncan Lamont	...	Sladden
Bryan Marshall	...	Captain Potter
Peter Copley	...	Howell
Edwin Richfield	...	Minister
Grant Taylor	...	Police Sergeant Ellis
Maurice Good	...	Sergeant Cleghorn
Robert Morris	...	Jerry Watson
Sheila Steafel	...	Journalist
Hugh Futcher	...	Sapper West
Hugh Morton	...	Elderly Journalist
Thomas Heathcote	...	Vicar

Also Known As:

Five Million Years to Earth (USA)
The Mind Benders

Runtime:

97 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Certification:

Italy:T | UK:15 | UK:12 (re-rating) | USA:Approved (PCA #21860) | West Germany:16 | Australia:PG

Filming Locations:

London, England, UK

Company:

Associated British-Pathé

Trivia:

Early UK posters featured an illustration of John Neville as Quatermass, suggesting that he was a one time candidate for the role.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: A minute or so before the end credits roll, as Quatermass is walking away from the devastation, a crew member's hand swings into the right-hand side of the frame and back out again.

Quotes:

Minister of Defense: You realise what you're implying? That we owe our human condition here to the intervention of insects?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Torchwood: End of Days (#1.13)" (2007)

Still scary even today...

I first saw this film when I was about 7. Although we lived in the Central region I saw this on HTV. My memory of it is there for fuzzy. I have seen it again on DVD since.

And this film is great. Unlike many Hammer films story and performance is key here. The story as often been imitated but never topped.

Its a very intelligent horror film which is something we don't get very often anymore. Or at all.

I also recently saw the original BBC TV show and that too is well worth picking up. Its just as good if not better.

This is definitely worth a watch. British cinema at its finest...