The Thirteenth Reunion

The second episode in the series is directed by a veteran (albeit a latter-day recruit) of Hammer Films. Again, while hardly outstanding, this is a more than adequate effort – even if, for the most part, the narrative follows a mystery-thriller pattern rather than outright horror. Then again, the studio has had its fair share of films in this style and, in any case, the final revelation is horrific (if not exactly unpredictable) – truth be told, it's more 'shocking' than most of their now rather quaint films! The casting is modest but nonetheless effective: Julia Foster overacts somewhat (particularly when supposed to show bewilderment) as the reporter heroine covering the goings-on at a newly-established diet clinic, Dinah Sheridan (best-known for her role in GENEVIEVE [1953]) is her newspaper editor, Gerard Kelly the young funeral attendant who alerts Foster to his employers' extra-curricular activities (which she discovers have a connection with the clinic), and Warren Clarke (Dim from A CLOCKWORK ORANGE [1971]) gets a nice role as an ill-fated patient who befriends Foster but ends up getting the wrong sort of raw deal!

The first of three episodes directed by Peter Sasdy in this series, "The Thirteenth Reunion" is an acceptable if slightly overlong horror-drama, with a surplus of recognisable faces that service a storyline that doesn't quite add up.

Ruth (Julia Foster) is a journalist tasked by her editor to investigate a controversial diet technique called Think Thin. At her first meeting she meets Ben (Warren Clarke) who has been attending for a while and they hit it off, but on the way back from their first date he's run off the road and dies. At the funeral, Ruth is approached by Andrew (Gerard Kelly) who works at the funeral home and who suggests that all at Think Thin is not above board.

It's funny, watching these anthology style shows that the pool of actors is such that people are reappearing. I'd seen both Warren Clarke and George Innes in recent episodes of "The Frighteners" I'd watched. This episode had a number of other recognisable actors, including James Cosmo, who still is in high profile projects in 2020, and Gerard Kelly who was a regular on TV until his untimely death in 2010. Julia Foster has the most to do in this one, piecing together the various threads of this story into one complete picture.

And that's perhaps my issue with this episode, it feels like three tangentially related stories pushed together in an attempt to form one, but it makes less sense the more you think about it. The storylines involving the undertakers and the stately home do sort of fit together, but why the Think Thin aspect is involved is less clear, as you'd think that their objectives would be against what the others want? (Sorry if that sounds vague, I'm trying to write without spoilers). An OK episode that struck a nice tone, particularly towards the end, but is perhaps a little longer and disjointed than it really ought to be.

THE THIRTEENTH REUNION is an odd little episode of HAMMER HOUSE OF HORROR because I think it's the only story which isn't supernatural. The storyline concerns a female reporter whose new story is a new-fangled diet club where the participants are subjected to ruthless condemnation by their diet coaches. Soon enough the reporter discovers something more sinister is going on when people start turning up dead and a local funeral home is involved...

I wanted to like this a lot, but I'm afraid the suspense just wasn't there for me, despite the presence of Hammer veteran Peter Sasdy as director. The mystery is never particularly mysterious and the storyline feels a bit bloated despite the short running time, and it doesn't help that the lead characters are rather unsympathetic. Still, there are early roles for James Cosmo (GAME OF THRONES) and Warren Clarke, and the scene in which Cosmo has a go at a dieting woman is unintentionally hilarious.

Ruth, the reporter of the women page of a magazine, is assigned by her editor to participate of a ten weeks course of a new weight organization called "Think Thin". In accordance with the letter of a reader, the system would be very masochist and depressive, destructing the self-esteem of the patient. Ruth makes a friend in the course, and he dies in a car crash. In the funeral, an employee of the funeral house discloses weird events that are happening in his job. In her investigation, Ruth finds dark and macabre secrets.

Although being predictable in a certain moment, I liked very much this short story of "Hammer House of Horror". This film is very well played and directed, has many outdoors scenes, very unusual in Hammer's movies, and is very dark. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "A 13a Reunião"("The Thirteenth Reunion")

Journalist Ruth is sent undercover to a clinic for weight loss, where strange goings on are occuring, and not just revolutionary weight loss.

If I had to pick a favourite episode from the series it would probably have to be this one. It is a wonderful mix of macabre, gory and just plain weird. The story is unique, the revelation comes as a big surprise.

It had some wonderfully memorable scenes, Warren Clarke's car chase is very creepy and sinister, I remember feeling unnerved that first time I watched it, however it's the ending that really does make this one stand out.

I think Julia Foster is great as Ruth, the inquisitive and brave journalist. Kevin Stoney is suitably sinister as always.

My favourite in the series, 9/10.