Scream and Scream Again (1970)

A serial killer, who drains his victims for blood is on the loose in London, the Police follow him to a house owned by an eccentric scientist.

Director:

Gordon Hessler

Writers:

Christopher Wicking (screenplay), Peter Saxon (novel)

Stars:

Vincent Price, Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Vincent Price	...	Dr. Browning
Christopher Lee	...	Fremont
Peter Cushing	...	Major Heinrich Benedek
Judy Huxtable	...	Sylvia
Alfred Marks	...	Detective Supt. Bellaver
Michael Gothard	...	Keith
Anthony Newlands	...	Ludwig
Peter Sallis	...	Schweitz
David Lodge	...	Detective Inspector Phil Strickland (credit only)
Uta Levka	...	Jane
Christopher Matthews	...	Dr. David Sorel
Judy Bloom	...	Helen Bradford (as Judi Bloom)
Clifford Earl	...	Detective Sgt. Jimmy Joyce
Kenneth Benda	...	Prof. Kingsmill
Marshall Jones	...	Konratz

Storyline

A serial killer, who drains his victims for blood is on the loose in London, the Police follow him to a house owned by an eccentric scientist.

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Plot Keywords:

scientist | handcuffs | torture | acid | cutting off own hand | 

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Taglines:

He's going to make somebody out of every BODY he meets!

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Genres:

Horror | Sci-Fi | Crime | Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for some violence and brief nudity

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

13 February 1970 (USA)

Also Known As:

Screamer

Filming Locations:

Chertsey, Surrey, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

American International Pictures (AIP), Tigon

Technical Specs

Runtime:

95 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Vincent Price refused a stunt double for a scene where he submerges in bubbling yellow "goo".

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Goofs

In the chase, Supt. Bellaver's hair is sticking up in one shot and smoothed down in the next.

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Quotes

Professor Kingsmill: Fastest transition in the world: from human to corpse. It doesn't do to get the two confused, or you'll never be successful.

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Connections

References Frankenstein (1931)

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Soundtracks

"When We Make Love"
Written by Dominic Bugatti (as Dominic King)
Performed by Amen Corner (uncredited)

User Reviews

Weird, uneven, bizarre, but never boring

Gordon Hessler was not all that great a director. He wasn't particularly good at setting up interesting shots or getting good performances out of his actors, but occasionally he managed by default to create a movie that was so completely off-the-wall and bizarre that those shortcomings could be forgotten.

SCREAM AND SCREAM AGAIN is a good example of that. It is by no means a good movie; in fact, it's really pretty bad. But you literally have no idea where it's headed, and by the time you get there, even though it's a tad underwhelming, it's still just oddball enough to keep you hooked.

Basically, it's the story of a serial killer who preys on bar-hopping women, and who, incidentally, seems to have superpowers of some sort. Or, maybe it's the story of a military conspiracy of some sort? Or is it the story of some kind of body parts black market? Believe it or not, all these seemingly unrelated plotlines eventually come together, and it's a wacky ride all the way.

The biggest disappointment for me, is the scarce screen time of headliners Vincent Price, Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing. They literally have less than twenty minutes of screen time combined, and only Lee and Price even appear together, in one very brief scene. The main characters seem to be a disgruntled Scotland Yard detective, and a younger, less cynical police officer.

I recommend this movie to any fan of AIP or any of the three horror stars, but most people will not have the patience to sit through it. Fans will enjoy it, if only for it's sheer weirdness.