A good Film...even if it never quite becomes what it promises. This is The Creeping Flesh, a 1973 Horror Film with a great Title. Is that all though? Well, it features the all-star duo of Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing. At this point, the pair could have made a commercial for Peanut Butter and it would have been pretty good. Not as good as Vincent Price selling Monster Vitamins though. It's Plot is kind of weird. I know, you were expecting a Love Story with this Title. It involves a strange skeleton, a scheming brother, the biological root of all evil and a bar fight. Will it all make sense? Yes, but its more fun to describe the Movie like that. As you'll see, however, the Film introduces a big, interesting element...and diverts elsewhere for quite a while. To find out how it all plays out, read on...
A Doctor (Cushing) is trying to convince a fellow Doctor that he's discovered a source of evil.
To explain it, he has to tell a story...
***psst- you already figured out the twist, didn't you? Don't SPOIL it for the rest***
Cushing brings back a large skeleton from Papa New Guinea.
It's big and freaky, but what other secrets does it hold?
Him and his Assistant study the bones and discover some weird things about it.
The DNA is different and there's an old myth/story involving evil giants from the past.
Was it buried to keep it from coming back?!?
A finger on the skeleton is exposed to water and the flesh begins to grow back!
That...can't be good.
Well, forget about the weird skeleton...since we have to deal with Mental Illness.
We learn about how Cushing's Wife went crazy and he hid the truth about her from the Daughter.
When she starts to question things (after going into the forbidden room), he decides to test his 'cure for evil' made from the DNA of the fleshy finger.
Why not?!?
Shockingly, she goes crazy and all sorts of chaos ensues.
What role will Cushing's conniving brother (Lee) play?
Can he save his Daughter?
Will the skeleton be reborn in the flesh?
It all comes to a hand...er, head on a rainy night!
The creature gets some kills in, shows up on screen for like 5 seconds and, shock of all shocks, that guy in the beginning wasn't a colleague.
Nope- nobody believes Cushing's tale and he's locked up in Lee's Asylum. Dull surprise. The End.
A good Film that kind of loses its focus. As I've said before, it's often seen as a 'bad thing' to suggest that a Film should get a Remake. Well, here I am suggesting just that. No offense to anyone involved in this Film- especially since most of them are long-dead- but it could be done better. The set-up: strong and enticing. What will happen if this creature starts to be reborn? I can't wait to...hear more about Cushing's crazy wife and how it affected him. Yea? The family drama with him, the Daughter and Lee is also good...for another Film. The whole obsession with 'evil DNA' and stuff is good fodder- also for another Film. Don't give me a giant skeleton and then make it like a D-Plot in your Film! Was I expecting an '80s-style Creature Feature? No. For one thing, it was like 10 years too early. I just expected a Movie about, you know, creeping flesh and all that. That said, the Movie is still well-made. That whole 'good Film' thing is going to change next, so just hang on...
Next up, I cover a legit contender for worst Horror Film in the last 20 years. It takes a Colony to suck this bad. Stay tuned...
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