User reviews

When a young farmer(played by Barry Andrews) unearths the satanic-looking remains of an unknown creature, he gets the local judge(played by Patrick Wymark) to view them, but then a mysterious and deadly chain of events begins as the bones somehow regrow themselves into a furry claw that attacks a man in an attic. Meanwhile, local children led by Angel Blake(the beautiful Lynda Hayden) start practicing evil rites meant to fully resurrect the demonic being. Can the judge and townsfolk stop this threat in time? Though atmospherically directed by Piers Haggard, with a fine cast(including past and future "Doctor Who" actors Wendy Padbury, and Anthony Ainley) this is an otherwise most disjointed and unpleasant film, with gaping narrative holes, such as how this thing got started in the first place, and spread so quickly. The ending also feels truncated. Still, there are some effective sequences here and a spooky score, it's just a pity the script is so muddled.

After the discovery of some weird remains, a village in 18th century England succumbs, mostly through its children / young adults to a form of demonic possession resulting in various acts of unpleasantness. Local judge Patrick Wymark investigates.

Simplistic, but interesting 'folk' horror, featuring some genuine nastiness as locals are injured, even sexually assaulted. Films where isolated communities start believing in strange things were briefly popular in the late sixties / early seventies with The Wicker Man and Witchfinder General, the best of the bunch. This isn't half bad though and does provide a feeling of some discomfort in watching it. A wonderful array of British character actors are on display which we're more used to seeing in British TV programmes.

Not an especially wonderful movie but not half bad. There are a few very good moments. On the other hand, very dark shots of people cowering from the devil? a mouse? who knows what, can get very irritating. Linda Hayden is very attractive and the Reverend and Ralph are pretty good. Overall though, it's best for it's very old-school rough-hewn atmosphere. The movie feels very different, and the characters act very different, from what one has come to expect in a horror movie. Not a bad score, either.

This movie would be a real winner if it was 15 minutes shorter and the ending wasn't laughably cheap and crappy. It's a bunch of buildup to.....nothing. Yawn. At least i saw it for free on Youtube.

Filled with cheesy acting and obligatorily campy dialog, this British horror staple is a winner.

A tale of wicked children from a rural village transforming into beastly devil worshipers in 17th century England, and the religious fervor it spawns, it almost sounds like it could have been a true story. Authentic landscapes, excellent costuming and the generally gloomy atmosphere further adds to the sense of realism.

filled with ignorant peasants, bewigged judges, spooky children and icy, hatched-faced vicars, this classic is definitely worth viewing, whether you are a fan of cult films, camp, or horror in general.

Satan is (somehow) resurrected and starts up a coven of children in a remote village in England in the 17th-century.

Very low budget (it shows) but the film is very serious, well-acted and has an interesting music score. And there's some gore but it's used sparingly to good effect. But I didn't really like it.

SPOILERS!

First off, the print I saw had very faded color and little bits and pieces were cut out during the first half--very annoying. But most damaging is the plot--it doesn't make any sense! Why was Satan resurrected? Why go after children? What's this stuff about his skin? Why does one person grow claws (!!!) at the beginning of the film? All of these questions are brought up but not answered. I DID watch all the way through mostly because there was some beautiful scenery, it took itself seriously and the good acting (Linda Hayden is particularly good as Angel Blake). Still, the gaps in plot bothered me a lot. This is mostly a forgotten picture--it's easy to see why.

So, it's OK but no great shakes. However the Satan costume was pretty effective.

As of this writing, this thing has a 6.4 rating. Way too high, if you ask me. A five is more like it, and even that's being generous.

I was kind of enjoying it for the first half or so, not because it was good, but because it had interesting-looking faces, and because you could tell from the adult actors were good actors who just happened to find themselves filming a turkey.

But then torture and rape came into the picture, and I was out. Not to mention that what plot there was began going off in every which direction, and then just ended with a jolt. As if the camera had run out of film and nobody felt it was worth using any more.