I must say, I enjoyed this film. I have a soft spot for Gothic horror films from Britian, the legendary giallos and American drive-in flicks, so this appealed to me. However, the title would have you believe this to be in the vein of Re-Animator or Tower of Evil, but it really isn't. There are a handful of murders but all take place off screen. That appeals to me - since I'm not much of a gorehound, but with a title like this, you'd expect to see some blood and on screen murders.
The plot centers on a group of struggling actors getting lured to an abandoned theater to rehearse for a play. Ray Brooks plays the director and gets something he didn't bargain for when he finds one of his actress' heads placed on a ledge. John, the practical joker of the film, thinks Brooks is pulling a fast one, but the police are called out. While Brooks went off to fetch the fuzz, the killer disposes of the actress' corpse and replaces it with a mannequin. The cops are less than amused and label the actors as troublemakers. Later, Luan Peters is attacked but Ray Brooks opts not to inform the police right-away since he knows they won't believe him. So he looks into the deviant undertakings on his own, with the help of actress Jenny Hanley. They realize that their abandoned theater may not be as abandoned as they were led to believe.
STORY: $$$ (I'm a sucker for the isolation theme in horror films - put a group of people in an isolated setting and I'm sold. Theatre folk might like this, but then again, it has a sort of anti-theater theme going for it. The screenplay is written well but the characters aren't fleshed out (at least regarding their backgrounds) to the degree I'd like. At the beginning, Luan Peters and Judy Matheson are in bed together at Luan's residence, but when they venture off to the theater, Luan shacks up with Australian stud Tony. Judy wasn't too concerned, so I guess they really didn't have a lesbian relationship).
VIOLENCE: $$ (There is some violence, but there isn't any gore, so don't let the title mislead you. Granted, an actress gets decapitated, but it is off screen. Luan Peters is attacked at night and this scene is graphically done, but it wasn't a murder, so there isn't any fake blood tossed around).
ACTING: $$$ (David Howey, who played the joker John, seems to do the best job here but he gets ample support from Ray Brooks as the director, Luan Peters as the sexpot and Jenny Hanley as the theater natural. The old fellow who plays Major Bell was very good as was Candace Glendenning in her cameo. Robin Askwith fans need not apply - he is the most underdeveloped actor in the group).
NUDITY: $$$$$ (You won't be letdown here. Luan Peters seems to relish the moments she is topless on screen, which is quite often at the beginning. Jane Cardew and her man are fully nude back stage while Judy Matheson gets undressed and Major Bell ogles Candace Glendenning while she changes. Needless to say, the Flesh from the title was there but the blood was wanting).
The plot centers on a group of struggling actors getting lured to an abandoned theater to rehearse for a play. Ray Brooks plays the director and gets something he didn't bargain for when he finds one of his actress' heads placed on a ledge. John, the practical joker of the film, thinks Brooks is pulling a fast one, but the police are called out. While Brooks went off to fetch the fuzz, the killer disposes of the actress' corpse and replaces it with a mannequin. The cops are less than amused and label the actors as troublemakers. Later, Luan Peters is attacked but Ray Brooks opts not to inform the police right-away since he knows they won't believe him. So he looks into the deviant undertakings on his own, with the help of actress Jenny Hanley. They realize that their abandoned theater may not be as abandoned as they were led to believe.
STORY: $$$ (I'm a sucker for the isolation theme in horror films - put a group of people in an isolated setting and I'm sold. Theatre folk might like this, but then again, it has a sort of anti-theater theme going for it. The screenplay is written well but the characters aren't fleshed out (at least regarding their backgrounds) to the degree I'd like. At the beginning, Luan Peters and Judy Matheson are in bed together at Luan's residence, but when they venture off to the theater, Luan shacks up with Australian stud Tony. Judy wasn't too concerned, so I guess they really didn't have a lesbian relationship).
VIOLENCE: $$ (There is some violence, but there isn't any gore, so don't let the title mislead you. Granted, an actress gets decapitated, but it is off screen. Luan Peters is attacked at night and this scene is graphically done, but it wasn't a murder, so there isn't any fake blood tossed around).
ACTING: $$$ (David Howey, who played the joker John, seems to do the best job here but he gets ample support from Ray Brooks as the director, Luan Peters as the sexpot and Jenny Hanley as the theater natural. The old fellow who plays Major Bell was very good as was Candace Glendenning in her cameo. Robin Askwith fans need not apply - he is the most underdeveloped actor in the group).
NUDITY: $$$$$ (You won't be letdown here. Luan Peters seems to relish the moments she is topless on screen, which is quite often at the beginning. Jane Cardew and her man are fully nude back stage while Judy Matheson gets undressed and Major Bell ogles Candace Glendenning while she changes. Needless to say, the Flesh from the title was there but the blood was wanting).