Quatermass and the Pit (AKA 5 Million Years To Earth)shows the viewer why Hammer was (And in my mind, IS)the King of British Cinema.
While doing construction in the London Underground in Hobbs End, some skeletal remains are found that are clearly not human. They also find a strange metal object. Dr. Mathew Roney (James Donald),assistant Barbara Judd (Barbara Shelley) and Professor Quatermass (Andrew Kier)are on the scene to investigate the find. They soon discover that the remains are not of this earth. The military, lead by Col. Breen (Julian Glover)are unimpressed by the findings and are unwilling to listen to the scientists' pleas. To make matters worse, the object has strange powers that causes weird things to happen, and shows the fate of the creatures from another planet: a fate which will soon repeat with the London inhabitants.
To this day, the last part of the picture in which we see what happens when the ship comes alive and reveals itself to be the devil incarnate, STILL creeps me out. Recently watching it at 2 in the morning caused me unable to sleep. I mean, how would YOU react to seeing the ghostly image of the devil floating around YOUR town? It's too bad that it's not available on DVD (Unless you're REALLY willing to spend almost $200 for it). It's dated (The 60's after all, before CGI), but it still has the power to creep and freak you out. And that's the power of Hammer: the ability to still chill years later.
If you can catch it on TV, make a copy. Worth checking out.
While doing construction in the London Underground in Hobbs End, some skeletal remains are found that are clearly not human. They also find a strange metal object. Dr. Mathew Roney (James Donald),assistant Barbara Judd (Barbara Shelley) and Professor Quatermass (Andrew Kier)are on the scene to investigate the find. They soon discover that the remains are not of this earth. The military, lead by Col. Breen (Julian Glover)are unimpressed by the findings and are unwilling to listen to the scientists' pleas. To make matters worse, the object has strange powers that causes weird things to happen, and shows the fate of the creatures from another planet: a fate which will soon repeat with the London inhabitants.
To this day, the last part of the picture in which we see what happens when the ship comes alive and reveals itself to be the devil incarnate, STILL creeps me out. Recently watching it at 2 in the morning caused me unable to sleep. I mean, how would YOU react to seeing the ghostly image of the devil floating around YOUR town? It's too bad that it's not available on DVD (Unless you're REALLY willing to spend almost $200 for it). It's dated (The 60's after all, before CGI), but it still has the power to creep and freak you out. And that's the power of Hammer: the ability to still chill years later.
If you can catch it on TV, make a copy. Worth checking out.