Night of the Big Heat

Hey guys! Whats the deal here? This film is one of my all time faves! The first time I saw it I loved it straight away. I love the Englishness of it all....the country pub....the warm beer!!!....feel that cheesy dialogue: "You were no untouched virgin when we met" etc.

Enjoy gawping at the stunning beauty of Jane Merrow in a wet bikini and more! This film is very similar to Fishers Island Of Terror,very much a companion piece. I never get tired of seeing this flick,I view my ancient tape every year. Dont expect a masterpiece and you will not be disappointed . Its corny,cheap but not tatty,with great photography,solid performances and lovely colour....ENJOY!!!

¨Island of the burning dead¨ or ¨Night of the Big Heat¨, or ¨Island of the Burning Doomed¨ is Terence Fisher's Sci-fi movie in which bizarre creatures from outer space threaten an isolated remote community at a Northern island called Fara . It begins with the Opening credits : All characters and events in this film are fictitious and any similarity to persons either living or dead is purely coincidental . Science-fiction thriller with fantastic elements , set at an island off the coast of Great Britain , there happens strange deaths of villagers , while suffering heavy sweat . Meantime , mainland Britain shivers in deepest winter and a freezing season , as the northern island of Fara bakes in the nineties . Authorities have no more idea what is happening than the regulars at the Swan Pub . Only a stand-offish visiting scientific (Christopher Lee) who has rigged up a laboratory in the security of the White Swan hotel has suspicious and dark conjectures . As he believes the heat's caused by energy starved aliens . Meanwhile , the new secretary (Jane Merrow) to the local best-selling author (Patrick Allen) is raising the temperature in her own way . As the island is overrun by strange whirring noises allegedly caused by weird beings . These fantastic creatures assault and attack citizens by heating rays and blasts , subsequently threatening to consume the world . Then , some brave people go into action to investigate and discover the rare origin of an alien invasion and what seems to be the source of the heat . From outer space ..came a devastating death!.Mysterious Invaders From Outer Space Create Their Scorching Heat Rays That Consume the People and an Island! Searing Terror! Burning In Its Intensity!

Moving picture from a science fiction novel by John Lymington , contains good interpretations , chills , thrills , and astonishing attacks by amazing creatures . Here carry the flick the following ones : Christopher Lee who suspects aliens are to blame the rare phenomenon going on , as well as Patrick Allen who married to Sarah Lawson falls for the seducer beauty Jane Merrow , in fact they were husband and wife in real life as well ; all of them , giving first-rate performances . Along with enjoyable secondaries , such as : the always charming and courteous Peter Cushing in a minor role as guest star playing the local doctor who is frazzled to death , Percy Herbert , William Lucas , Kenneth Cope , among others . All actors shot the film in cold conditions as they suffered from wearing very light dresses in a freezing season , that's why they had to be covered with glycerin to create the illusion of high temperature . The premise is the following : How can three people stop the devouring death that live and spread across the countryside and delivering mighty hot . This "Island of the burning doomed" 1967 concerning a brute heat wave accompanied by invading aliens bears certain resemblance to ¨Island of terror" regarding scientist experiments go wrong , also directed by Terence Fisher and equally starred by Peter Cushing and others as Edward Jud , Carole Gray and Eddie Byrne.

It contains a stirring musical score by Malcolm Lockyer , adding electronic soundtrack as the fantastic beings show up . As well as colorful and glimmering cinematography by Reg Wyer . Shot on location in Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire , The Swan Inn , Broughton Road , Milton Keynes Village, Milton Keynes , Dorset, England , UK and Pinewood studios , as usual . This British-made outing was competently directed by Hammer maestro Terence Fisher . Hammer mainstay Fisher made 3 films for the cheapjack Planet outfit of which this Night of the Big Heat was the last . This fine director made a lot of films for Hammer productions , usually terror genre . Outstanding his Dracula saga : ¨The horror of Dracula¨, ¨The Brides of Dracula¨, ¨Dracula prince of darkness¨ . About Frankenstein : ¨The curse of Frankenstein¨, ¨The revenge of Frankenstein¨, ¨Frankenstein created woman¨ , ¨Frankenstein must be destroyed¨, ¨Frankenstein monster from hell¨. Furthermore, other terror films as ¨The Gorgon¨, ¨The mummy¨, ¨The devil rides out¨, ¨The two faces of Dr Jekyll¨, ¨The curse of the werewolf¨. And other movies as ¨Sherlock Holmes and the deadly necklace¨, ¨Hound of The Baskervilles¨, ¨Black glove¨, ¨Robin Hood, Sword of Sherwood forest¨, ¨Island of the burning doomed¨ and ¨Island of terror¨ . Rating : 6/10 , acceptable and passable ; though neither notable , nor excellent , but decent entry in Science-Fiction genre . Interesting , thrilling scenes and suspenseful twists make for prickes up the spine.

Night of the Big Heat may not rank among the best sci-fi efforts by critics, but for this fan, it really does deliver the goods. Locals on the Island of Fera find themselves in the midst of a searing heat wave while the rest of the mainland of the UK is in the middle of a normal cold snap in November. As bodies begin to pile up, found burnt to a crisp, a scientist struggles to convince the locals that they may be the victims of an invasion from space.

A great cast that includes, Patrick Allen, Jane Merrow, Sarah Lawson and in guest roles, Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing. Directed by the great, Terence Fisher, this is another triumph in Fisher's library of films and to this viewer, ranks right up there with his Hammer horror films as well as the underrated, Island of Terror.

Certainly not as bad as some would have you believe and probably not as good as I think it is, it is definitely worth a look for fans of 60s British sci-fi films.

STILL you have the chance to see Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing together doing their respective things, and I for one value that above production quality, fx realism and other budgetry constraints. So what if the aliens ultimately look like fried eggs? and besides, they don't! Try mutated snails with an ammonite heritage? Its a Terence Fisher flick - perhaps not his best...its still way better than I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER...and PEARL HARBOR, come to that! I have a copy of this old faithful (known by the more widespread and infinitely better title of NIGHT OF THE BIG HEAT)and every now and then out she comes for another beloved squiz!

Continuity not the best for your tastes? Tad low on the production budget you think? Chris Lee just too insular and condescending by your standards? Boring love triangle? Well guys, I got a suggestion. DON'T WATCH THE DAMN THING - go rent 10 THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU! (actually, I quite LIKED that too!)

Yeah NIGHT OF THE BIG HEAT isn't "Amicus" or "Hammer" at its peak, but it is STILL a worhwhile piece of british scifi from the 60's! Live with it!

This is one of those films where it seems they wrote themselves into a corner & didn't know how to resolve it so they pulled something out of their ass at the last minute.

Viewer: Why should rain destroy the creatures? Writer: I dunno. Viewer: And where did the rain come from anyway? Writer: Don't ask. Viewer: Why did they think dynamite would destroy them when they didn't even know what they looked like until the final 2 minutes? Writer: Well...uh... Viewer: And if Fara Island was the only place in the UK experiencing unusual weather why didn't the government send someone to investigate? Writer: Look if you think you can do better then go ahead. Director: You tell 'em. We ran out of film & had to end it somehow.