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Peter Kosminsky's 1992 adaptation of Emily Brontë's Wuthering Heights goes to the extreme of casting Sinéad O'Connor in a brief bit as Brontë herself, but the film still doesn't approach the accomplishment of William Wyler's classic 1939 production (with Laurence Olivier and Merle Oberon) or subsequent versions by Luis Buñuel and Robert Fuest. That doesn't make it unwatchable, however: it still offers The English Patient costars Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche as doomed lovers Heathcliff and Cathy. Binoche is a bit washed-out, but Fiennes makes a strong impression as the rejected laborer who makes his fortune and exacts a vengeance. Unlike Wyler's film, this one covers all the chapters of Brontë's book, but it is sodden with misery and lacks all grace. --Tom Keogh ... Read more

Reviews (101)

An unforgettable rendition of this classic
I was amazed when I read that this British production was not well received upon its release in 1992. The highly talented pair of Juliette Binoche and Ralph Fiennes play the doomed Cathy and Heathcliff, supported by the equally fine Janet McTeer as Ellen Dean. The performances are exemplary--Fiennes' performance is said to have inspired Steven Spielberg to cast him as the Nazi commandant in "Schindler's List." And a diabolical Heathcliff he is, indeed--Fiennes plays this intense role faithful to Emily Bronte's original character. He is tormented, sadistic, manipulative, ruthless and brutal--and nonetheless hypnotically sexual and alluring. This is the genuine Heathcliff, with all apologies to the brilliant Laurence Olivier, who portrayed Heathcliff as a much more sympathetic character. Juliette Binoche plays both Cathy and Cathy's daughter by the ineffectual Edgar Linton, and brings great depth and appeal to both roles. The scenes of the bleak Yorkshire moors, and the haunting, shadowy quality of the Wuthering Heights house, lend this film a truly Gothic atmosphere. A jarring note is the casting of Sinead O'Connor (in a wig) as Emily Bronte, but this is a minor flaw. I found this version every bit as good as the original 1939 classic, to which this film has been unfairly compared. It is much more faithful to the brooding, doomed quality of the book. The scenes acted by Fiennes as the grief-stricken Heathcliff just after Cathy's death are alone worth the price of the film. For the many fans of these two brilliant actors, and of Bronte's novel, this film is well worth seeing. END

Wonderful adaptation of great book.
The English Patient costars Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche star in this brilliant adaptation of Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights.

Having just recently read and enjoyed the book, I had a look at this on the weekend. It's very well done. Wonderful cinematography, great acting by Fienne's as Heathcliff has a haunting music score and moves along very nicely. Unfortunately the copy I got was only pan and scan but this one is in widescreen which would look really good.

I'd recommend reading the book first so you have something to compare it to. Considering all the rubbish coming out these days, I'd rather watch Wuthering Heights anytime.

Thanks for reading.

For the love of god, avoid this film
This film has soiled the movie industry for me, with its sickening sentimentality, and total disregard for the text.

Wuthering Heights, the book, is not a straightforward love story. It's complex, dark, and intelligent. Cathy and Heathcliff are not textbook lovers. In fact, they are not lovers at all. Mostly, they're just mad people, who have a very deep connection.

This film, is a love story. The writers have taken the characters and plot, raped, pillaged, violated and completely mutated them, leaving only their names intact. Cathy is turned from a volatile, spoilt maniac, into a flailing heroine. Heathcliff is turned from a ferocious, abusive animal, into a romantic hero

It's an alright film, if you want a love story. If you've read the book, do not watch this film. The rich tapestry of human emotion, thought and sanity explored within the book is quite simply absent in the film.

Not a Period Piece
I'm quite familiar with the book, and I think the actors did a good job depicting its stormy and self-destructive passions. However, I was continually distracted by the poor quality of the sets, costumes, and hairstyles. The lintel of the Wuthering Heights house door--shown close up suspiciously detached from the rest of the house--bears a date of 1501. The house, when shot from outside as a whole, is late Victorian gothic fantasy gingerbread, probably a real mansion built by a wealthy industrialist. Although if the rock garden outside it is real the landscape artist should be shot. The interiors do not relate to the rest of the house, and some--particularly the rude stone fireplace in the kitchen--are probably purpose-built sets. Cathy Earnshaw's box bed appears to have been concocted from a circa 1905 oak wardrobe. The Art Nouveau decoration on the double doors is a dead giveaway. The female leads have purely late 20th-century faces, hairstyles, and mannerisms. "Shot on location on the moors" this film may be. But, although the moors are fine, the rest of the visual aspects will damage the film for viewers who are sensitive to such things.

The only film version of "Wuthering Heights" worth seeing
I waited YEARS for this film to be released on DVD, and it is now one of the brightest gems in my movie collection. If you're looking for the best adaptation of Emily Bronte's novel, then this is the film for you. Juliette Binoche and Ralph Fiennes are perfectly cast as Catherine and Heathcliff, and although they both do a superb job, Fiennes steals the show as Heathcliff. The scenes leading up to and directly following Catherine's death are absolutely heartbreaking, and I cry every time I watch it! Binoche is wonderful in her dual role, and this is the only film version of "Wuthering Heights" that manages to accurately depict the beauty of Bronte's novel. ... Read more

Reviews (9)

FIRST KISS
Since the plot has been described in several other reviews, I'd like to concentrate on the sumptious behind the scene areas this film does so well in. First, the coloring and use of it are marvelous; notice the brilliant red dress that sets the lovely Jennifer Daniels apart from the other party guests; the way Edward De Souza's hat matches his wife's riding outfit; the detail to the architecture in both the hotel and the chateau; the gorgeous and sinister music by James Bernard that director Don Sharp incorporates into the scene where Barry Warren plays its seduction to Daniels; and the effective use of wind and rain. This movie, first released in 1963 as Kiss of Evil, is not one of Hammer's best productions, but it is a rich, diffuse entry into the vampire genre, and Clifford Evans (looking a little like a middle-aged Sean Connery) has a malignant ferocity in his Van Helsing-like role.
Not a classic, but definitely for fans of the Hammer days!

Kiss of Evil
In Kiss of the Vampire, we have quite an interesting movie. Released in the early 60's by Hammer Studios, it's a gothic vampire movie without Peter Cushing or Christopher Lee.

The movie, set around 1905, starts off with a funeral scene, and then progresses to a young couple traveling by car. They run out of gas, and end up in a creepy little town staying in a creepy little hotel. The feeling that something is seriously wrong permeates the scenes, but the young couple, who we find out are on their honeymoon, seem to take little notice, but I think that can be explained to them being newlyweds.

They soon make the acquaintance of the Ravna family, a very well to do and prominent family within the small town. The Ravna chateau is full of opulence, almost to the point of decadence, in comparison to the surrounding environment. The head of the family, Dr. Ravna, played by Noel Willman, puts forth a sinister aura, one that seems to be the source of most of the unease within the movie. The secrets slowly begin to reveal themselves, and the audience, if patient, will find the rewards to be many within this film.

What I found most interesting in this movie was how vampirism was linked to not only venereal disease, but also the occult. In the film, we find a small society of vampires, while most vampire movies would suggest these creatures of the night to be more solitary, more territorial. Not so in this film. He we see a group come together and a definite hierarchy in place.

The sets, costumes, scenery...it all comes together nicely. The actors all play there parts very well, and the direction is excellent. There is not a lot of blood in this movie, but there is just enough and in the right places coupled with a slow build of tension and suspense to make this a very effective film. I felt throughout as I was watching a movie made by real craftsmen of their trade, an above average entry into the vampire film genre. The scene with the costume ball was really enjoyable as the suspense underlying the entire film really started to surface here for me. My only squabble was at the end. I was hoping for something a bit more spectacular, as the build up lent me to believe, but it was at least satisfying, none the less.

Absolutely no extras here, not even a trailer, but there are atleast chapter stops, and the film looks excellent for its' age. The audio, also showing the films' age, did suffer just a little from the 'snap, crackle, pop' syndrome at some points, but was otherwise fine. I am glad I picked this up when I did, as it seems to be going out of print.

glorious Hammer
This is Hammer at their peak - quite simply, one of the finest vampire films ever made. Noel Willman is great as the evil Dr. Ravna as he exerts his will over the unsuspecting young couple played by Jennifer Daniel and Edward De Souza.
This is a very nice (though non anamorphic) transfer from an excellent source print displaying strong, bold colours.

PRETTY GOOD HAMMER HORROR....
Unusual Hammer outing has a honeymooning couple staying at a quaint inn and invited as guests to a mysterious count's castle. What they don't know is the count and his family are vampires. The count has his eye on the pretty wife(Jennifer Daniel from "The Reptile") and hypnotizes her to come to him when he summons her. The count presides over a cult of vampires who meet at the castle at night. Adequate production values and haunting theme music make this odd vampire tale quite eerie. Interesting aspect of vampirism as a "cult" is a nice touch. Ending has often been cut for TV and some other prints as "Kiss Of Evil" but the tape and DVD are the original uncut British versions.
The reason being the cult are attacked by bats and it's quite effective. Highly watchable.

Using black magic to take down a cult of vampires
"Kiss of the Vampire" is another one of those Hammer films where a hapless couple becomes entangled with the blood-sucking undead. This time around it is Harcourts, Gerald (Edward de Souza) and Marianne (Jennifer Daniel), an English couple on their honeymoon just traveling through Bavaria when they run out of gas. The Harcourts are rescued by Dr. Ravna (Noel Willman), who sets them up in a local inn amongst the nervous natives and invites them for dinner at his chateau, where we meet his children Carl (Barry Warren) and Sabena (Jacquie Wallis). Of course, all of the Ravnas are vampires, even though they apparently can run around during daylight hours and eat regular food. When the Harcourts attend a masked ball at which all the other guests are members of Ravna's vampire cult, Gerald is drugged and Marianne spirited away. Fortunately, Professor Zimmer (Clifford Evans) is on the scene to do battle with the vampires. "Kiss of the Vampire" begins with its best scene, in which the Professor interrupts his own daughter's burial to ensure she does not rise again. Unlike his colleague Van Helsing, Professor Zimmer is not above using black magic to give the vampires back a little of their own.

Certainly the script for "Kiss of the Vampire" is one of the most cliched produced by Hammer. What hurts the film the most is that Noel Willman just underplays the role of the head vampire way too much. In contrast, Isobel Black in the minor role of Tania, steals her brief scene. Don Sharp, who directed this 1963 film, starts off the film with a great scene and wanted to end with something equally shocking, but rubber bats are never going to cut it, even with Hammer's reputation for low-budget effects. "Kiss of the Vampire" is an above average vampire movie from Hammer despite the fact it offers neither Christopher Lee's Dracula of Peter Cushing's Van Helsing. ... Read more

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John Gilling shot this supernatural thriller after wrapping Plague of the Zombies, using that film's locale and even some of the same sets. Noel Willman stars as the mysterious Dr. Franklyn, a reclusive nobleman with a beautiful daughter (Jacqueline Pearce) he keeps hidden away--and for good reason. His daughter carries a curse, the result of his forays into forbidden knowledge in the Far East, and transforms into an uncontrollable, snakelike creature who preys upon the local villagers. Gilling's spooky, mist-enshrouded countryside and foreboding interior atmosphere is undercut somewhat by Pearce's unconvincing makeup, but her freakish appearance is still startling and the gruesome corpses she leaves in her wake are genuinely unsettling. The film has been remastered from the original 35mm negatives in the Hammer vaults and letterboxed to its original aspect ratio. --Sean Axmaker ... Read more

Reviews (18)

Pardon Me While I Shed My Skin...
Harry and Valerie Spalding (Ray Barrett and Jennifer Daniel) have just moved into a nice little cottage in a nice little town. Well, Harry's brother Charles (David Baron) used to live in the nice little cottage before his sudden death from... what?? The coroner calls it "heart failure", but the townsfolk know that Charles actually died from the mysterious "black death"! We know they're right, as we get to watch Charles die by turning black and foaming at the mouth Cujo-style! Soon, Harry and Valerie encounter Dr. Franklyn (Noel Willman) and his shy, beautiful daughter Anna (Jaqueline Pearce), who live in a huge mansion with a menacing indian guy. This man seems to have a strange hold on the Franklyns, especially Anna. When another man called Mad Peter falls victim to the "black death", Harry and newfound friend Tom (Michael Ripper) find two small holes on old Pete's neck. Putting things together, they dig up Harry's brother, and discover the same bite-marks on his neck as well! Harry pays another visit to the Franklyn estate, only to be attacked by the now fanged and bug-eyed Anna, who bites through Harry's shirt collar, sparing him from the full effects of her venom. While Harry lies in bed recovering, Valerie goes to help Anna, who has sent a note asking for help. Anna is in her secret lair beneath the house, recooperating from her latest molting. Her father has come down there to kill her, but is interrupted by Valerie's screams. Somehow, Dr. Franklyn manages to catch the house on fire, waking Anna from her slumber. We finally get a good look at snake-gal and boy is she ugly! All green and whatnot! Anyway, Anna attacks dad and does him in, while Valerie tries to escape the burning mansion. Snake-Anna and Valerie meet at last! I'll leave you hanging there. THE REPTILE is a well made gothic with loads of atmosphere and good characters. Check it out...

A rare horror film in which the monster is a woman
"The Reptile," the 1966 film directed by John Gilling, is set in the turn-of-the-century Cornish village of Clagmore Heath, where the superstitious villages are once again succumbing to an unknown malady after a wealthy stranger has moved into the local mansion. Even when a local man is attacked and his throat bitten, the village officials call in heart failure despite the fact the victim foams at the mouth and turns green. What makes this particular monster mystery interesting is that this time we are dealing with a female! Again, it is painfully obvious that is it is the reclusive Anna (Jacqueline Pearce in her most sensual role) who is the snake-woman in question. As the father who tries to protect her, Noel Willman provides one of the better and even complex roles in a Hammer film as it heads towards its inevitable tragic outcome. But the star of the show is Roy Ashton's makeup for the title creature, in what proved to be his final film for the studio. "The Reptile" makes an excellent double-bill with "The Plague of Zombies" since they are made by the same studio, same director, in the same setting, using the same sets, with obvious parallels to the stories as well.

Great Atmosphere In Highly Effective Hammer Horror
In any discussion of this 1966 Hammer production mention almost always is made of the fact that this film was made almost along side Hammer's other big effort of that time "The Plague of the Zombies", using alot of the same sets and cast and employing the same director, John Gilling. "The Reptile", usually comes off the worse when the two are compared but I've always had a great fondness for this film which incorporates a very sinister premise with great photography and an extremely interesting and I might add quite, frightening central creature of the title. Hammer's seemingly favourite locale for their films, the moors of Cornwall, serves ideally as the backdrop for this tale of far eastern curses and underlying menace. The slow build up to what is really happpening also adds greatly to the tension as a number of red herrings are put in place to distract the viewer from finding out why things are happening. The eventual full appearance of the "reptile" of the title comes well into the running time and certainly comes off as one of Hammer's most effective horror creations.

"The Reptile", begins with the strange death of Charles Spalding a newish resident of a small Cornwall village. He is attacked by an unknown creature while in the home of the mysterious Dr. Franklyn. As his funeral is quickly conducted in the village graveyard we find out that he is not the first resident to die a horrible death in recent times. Charles' brother Harry (Ray Barrett) inherits all of his property including his small cottage on the edge of the moor and along with his wife Valerie (Jennifer Daniel) decides to travel down to Cornwall and set up residence there. Their arrival in the village however produces some strange reactions among the locals and only the local innkeeper Tom Bailey (Hammer veteran Michael Ripper), befriends the couple and tries to warn them of what might be in store for them in the village. Harry and Valerie make the acquaintance of "Mad Peter", the local eccentric who soon after dies a horrible death with the same symptons, always passed off simply as "heart failure", that Charles had. Each victim has the same strange wound on the neck and blackened face that seemingly comes from some fanged animal and spreads a strange poison throughout the body causing almost instant death. Harry suspects their very strange and inhospitable neighbour Dr. Franklyn is behind the mysterious deaths and his curiosity is further aroused when the doctor's heavily dominated daughter Anna (Jacqueline Pearce),is seemingly kept away from contact with others. The presense in the doctor's house of a mysterious man servant (Marne Maitland) who seems to have an unexplained hold over the household adds further to the Harry's suspicions about the doctor. After investigating Dr. Franklyn's house late at night for clues Harry is attacked and nearly dies from the same wound as the earlier victims. While Harry is recovering Valerie is lured to the house by a note from Anna asking for help. It is revealed that Dr. Franklyn is not the guilty party afterall as he is the one cursed by an ancient religious cult from South East Asia that worships snakes and has turned his daughter into a half woman, half reptile as punishment for him interfering in their secret society. Anna now awakens from her reptilian slumber and attacks Valerie in the house after she has already killed her father. However in the fight with her father a fire begins which destroys not only the house but Anna as well.

John Gilling reveals a sure hand in his direction of "The Reptile", and wisely doesn't allow the audience to see clearly the creature in question till well into the film's running time. The film has a most suitable air of anticipation and uncertainity about it and about who actually is doing the murders. The whole scenerio of the secret snake worshipping cult taking revenge on outsiders by turning them into part reptiles is certainly an intriguing one and is well employed in this story set in Victorian England. Special effects wise the film may not be as spectacular as Gillings other effort "The Plague of the Zombies", however the reptile's makeup created by Hammer's resident makeup artist Roy Ashton is really first class for the time and makes for one of Hammer's more memorable creature creations. The vivid use of half light and strange far away music usually heard just before one of the horrific murders is eerily appropiate. Performances are all first rate with Ray Barrett who was not a regular Hammer productions regular a stand out in the pivotal role of Harry Spalding. Noel Willman as the supposedly sinister Dr. Franklyn is excellent and his character is one of the most interesting in the cast changing as it does from being the villian to being a man trying to save others from the curse that has wreaked his family. The always reliable Michael Ripper a veteran of countless Hammer Studio productions, for once is given a role of some substance as the innkeeper who helps Harry solve the mystery of who is committing the murders in the village. As with all Hammer efforts the strong period flavour is first rate and use of actual locations in the moors and in the stately but sinister looking mansion adds hugely to the horror element in the story.

If Gothic horror of the old school is your forte then "The Reptile", is a perfect piece of viewing. Hammer studios had a way with bringing these types of stories to the big screen and this film in particular allows the viewer to guess for quite awhile about what actually is going to happen before revealing all. This 1960's type of horror story telling sadly is a definite thing of the past and stories like that of "The Reptile", would possibly appear too slow moving for most modern audiences. I however feel this is a most interesting horror tale enlivened but sincere performances by a professional cast. Enjoy Hammer's excursion into curses and secret religious intrigues in John Gilling's "The Reptile".

Curse of the Deadly Reptile Hickey
The Reptile (1966) is directed by John Gilling, who was also responsible for much better known film, The Plague of the Zombies (1966), released in the same year. One thing I've noticed about his style of direction is that the pacing is methodical and steady, drawing out the story, focusing on building up to a climatic finish. That is certainly the case with The Reptile.

The film takes place in a small English village and starts out with a brutal attack that leads to a grisly and violent death of a local man. The man's brother, Harry George Spaulding (Ray Barrett) arrives with his new wife, Valerie, played by Jennifer Daniel, to take possession of his brother's cottage. As they arrive to the small town, they notice an underlying sense of dread permeating the air. The townspeople are wary of strangers, partly due to the number of recent deaths attributed to 'heart failure' for lack of a proper autopsy.

As the young couple moves into the small cottage despite the warnings of a number of local individuals, strange noises are heard, and another death occurs literally at their front door. The Spaulding's meet their affluent neighbor, Dr. Franklyn (Noel Willman) and his daughter Anna (Jacqueline Pearce). They soon discover the death of Harry's brother is somehow linked to the Franklyns.

While watching this film, I had an idea of what happening and who the killer was, but I didn't know the circumstances behind why the murders were taking place. This information is revealed much later, near the end of the film, in a rather clunky chunk of exposition. I was expecting a much larger conspiracy, something to do with a cult or a little known sect, so I was a little surprised and a little let down when the truth was finally revealed. It just seemed to me the way the plot played out that this was where it was headed.

Some viewers may consider the pacing to be slow, and it was, but I thought it more deliberate, allowing for us to really get involved with the characters, and I did appreciate it. There were some minor holes in the story along the way, but they did little to quash my enjoyment of the movie. The sets, locations, costumes, all worked really well, creating a sense of the time period and atmosphere common to many earlier Hammer releases. The actors all performed well, really bringing their characters to life. I would have liked to learned more of the Franklyn's mysterious Indian butler, played by Marne Maitland, who turned out to be much more than a mere servant, as he was a critical character but had little development. His connections to the Franklyn's was merely touched on, but never truly illuminated.

Roy Ashton's makeup for the snake creature is quite good, and is shown fairly well on the cover of the DVD. The effect of the snakebite on the various victims was very hideous, involving a darkening of the skin by the bite and foaming at the mouth. The townspeople, unaware or too scared to look into it further, called the effects the 'black death' for lack of a better diagnosis.

Anchor Bay does a wonderful job releasing this lesser known Hammer movie, providing an excellent print and a number of special features. Included are theatrical trailer and TV spots, a featurette on Hammer films called 'Vamps' narrated by Oliver Reed, and a nice mini card reproducing a movie poster for the film along with Rasputin - The Mad Monk (1966) which led me to believe maybe these two films were released as a double feature. Not a bad Hammer film, certainly better that some of the other films they released at the end of the 60's and into the 70's as their productions became cheaper and quality suffered.

Cookieman108

Eve, The Serpent, and The Punishment...what, no Apple!
Warning!!! Thematic Spoilers Ahead

The similarities in plot point and theme to Hammer's "The Gorgon" make "The Reptile" less effective than it would have been if I hadn't have seen the other film first. Actually, "The Reptile" is the better of the two films with better acting, a more clever plot, better plot development, a more shocking monster/Monster's First Scene, and it's rather humorous retelling of the Adam and Eve tale.

In this version, it is a Professor of Old Religions and Cults rather than Eve who goes out in search of Knowledge and encounters a secret Snake Cult. He digs too deeply into their mysteries and the Cult takes out their vengeance in a particularly nasty way. In this retelling, his penance is exacted from the daughter. She becomes half-snake, half-human, shedding her skin yearly and using her fangs and venom regularly and without provocation anytime the cult deems her in need of a journey to the depths of her demonic and lesser half.

And when the brother and sister-in-law of a recent victim decide to move into a cottage nearby the Professor's home, his daughter, in her better form, kindly decides to invite them to their last supper just when it is time for her to slither out her role as belly-crawler and redeemer of her father's sins. The depiction of her penance and eventual death without the usual resurrecting sequel continually fills me with thrills and chills of horror and delight, doing for me in ten minutes what "The Passion" does to Believers in two hours.

I only have one complaint...the DVD is too expensive for an old 60s film. At almost 30 dollars, it is ten dollars more than most all other DVDs available, almost as if it's reserved for the viewing pleasure of only a special, privileged few. Sort of like porno, yet it's not even incredibly gory or indecent, just an interesting and rare portrayal of an old, important, yet truth-filled theme. Overall, I love it, it's a fave and a royal hoot of a good time. Buy it on sale or on special so you won't be disappointed. It's low production values are why I gave it 4 stars. ... Read more