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Oh dear. We chose this after scrolling through endless films in a quest to find something decent to watch. We came across this and recalled how good the first one as, so we chose it. Sadly, where the first one had something to say, this one is more like one of those 'holiday movies' that arrive for the Summer - you know the kind of thing, a family orientated action-with-comedy film complete with Mum, Dad and the obligatory teens. Throw in some thick-as-mince 'villains and a female (of course) head honcho and you've ticked all the boxes. I'm surprised Bob Odenkirk went for it. One observation - were some of the fight scenes computer generated? The very first one looked either speeded up or completely faked. Anyone know?

I first became aware of this story when I saw a TV production of it many years ago. It affected me then, but nowhere near as much as when my wife and I watched this original film version. The beautiful photography stands in direct contrast to the ugly reality of the story. Mrs Ross, the central character is abused and exploited by her husband, her son and the local chancers. It's a slow, non-stop series of visits to the local benefits office, in which Mrs Ross is so embarrassed to be claiming handouts that she invents stories about belonging to a high-born family, and that it won't be long before 'the money' comes through. In the meantime, she lives in a hovel piled high with old newspapers and junk and can barely afford to eat. Not a lot happens, except her low-life son hides a large amount of cash in her spare room and the local criminal family rip her off and leave her for dead. The end of this sad, sad film had us in tears as Mrs Ross seems destined to end up back in the same old boat. What a film this is, what an absolute masterpiece. Bryan Forbes made some excellent films in his career, but this one towers above them all.

Hammer Films got its teeth into the British film biz good and proper with this feature adaptation of Nigel Kneale's TV play 'The Quatermass Experiment' of 1953. The TV production was performed and broadcast mostly live, direct to air. An attempt was made to record the studio output on film, but the results were poor and only a few scraps remain, so we will never get to see it. Hammer's production does a good job of setting an eerie atmosphere and Richard Wordsworth is very good as the disfigured, tortured astronaut. Brian Donlevy was probably not the best choice for the investigating scientist, but no doubt Hammer had an eye on US audiences. Pretty darn good.