The Woman Eater
The Woman Eater | |
---|---|
Directed by | Charles Saunders |
Produced by | Guido Coen |
Screenplay by | Brandon Fleming |
Starring | |
Music by | Edwin Astley |
Cinematography | Ernest Palmer |
Edited by | Seymour Logie |
Production company |
Fortress Film Productions |
Distributed by | Eros Films |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 70 minutes |
Country | UK |
Language | English |
The Woman Eater (AKA Womaneater on its original UK release), is a low budget 1958 black and white British horror film.[1] It was directed by Charles Saunders, and starred George Coulouris and Vera Day. It recounted the story of a crazed scientist who feeds women to a flesh-eating tree, in return for a life-giving serum extracted from the plant.
The film was released in the UK in 1958 and was released by Columbia Pictures in the United States in 1959 on a double bill with the Japanese horror film The H-Man.
Plot
In the depths of the Amazon jungle, a carnivorous tree feeds on the blood of women, and generates a fluid that can bring the dead back to life. The giant plant is worshipped by natives, who perform sacrificial rites to appease it. A visiting scientist captures the plant and takes it home to his laboratory, where he subjects it to experiments. But in order to proceed, he must first find women to feed it.[2]
Cast
- George Coulouris as Dr James Moran
- Peter Wayn as Jack Venner
- Joyce Gregg as Margaret Santor
- Joy Webster as Judy Ryan
- Jimmy Vaughan as Tanga
- Robert Mackenzie as Lewis Carling
- Norman Claridge as Dr Patterson
- Marpessa Dawn as Native Girl
- Sara Leighton as Susan Curtis
- Edward Higgins as Sergeant Bolton
- Harry Ross as Bristow
- Alexander Field as Fair Attendant
- David Lawton as Man in club
- John Tinn as Lascar
- Maxwell Foster as Inspector Brownlow
- Peter Lewiston as Detective Sergeant Freeman
- Roger Avon as Constable
Critical reception
In The Radio Times, David McGillivray gave the film one star, and wrote, "fans of mad scientists and killer vegetables should on no account miss this little-known Z-grade affair, a British studio's successful attempt to match similar trash that was coming out of Hollywood in the late 1950s...Director Charles Saunders began his career with the charming wartime comedy Tawny Pipit and ended it with horror and cheap sleaze. Coulouris was in Citizen Kane. Their conversations in the studio canteen must have been particularly melancholic." [3] David Maine of PopMatters rated 6/10 stars and called it "campy fun".[4]
References
- ↑ John Hamilton, The British Independent Horror Film 1951-70 Hemlock Books 2013 p 56-61
- ↑ "The Woman Eater (1957) - Trailers, Reviews, Synopsis, Showtimes and Cast". AllMovie. Retrieved 2014-06-06.
- ↑ "The Woman Eater | Film review and movie reviews". Radio Times. Retrieved 2014-06-06.
- ↑ Maine, David (2012-10-18). "Don't Open That Door! #18: 'Womaneater' aka 'The Woman Eater' (1959)". PopMatters. Retrieved 2015-02-18.
External links
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