Tower of Evil
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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Tower of Evil, also known by the title Beyond the Fog in the United States and Horror of Snape Island and Horror on Snape Island in Canada, is a 1972 British horror film. The film is regarded by horror fans as being ahead of its time, as it crosses old world Gothic themes (dark setting, mythical superstitions, gloomy atmosphere) with many elements of the modern slasher film (elusive killer, bloody murders, sexually active characters as victims). The film was shot at Shepperton Studios in Shepperton, Surrey, England, UK in 1971.
Plot
On Snape Island, a small isolated point off the English coast, a series of bizarre brutal murders have taken place. A team of archeologists decide to head to the island to uncover a possible Phoenician treasure, but instead they find a horrific mystery when someone, or something, begins to kill off the curious trespassers.
Cast
- Bryant Haliday ... Evan Brent
- Jill Haworth ... Rose Mason
- Anna Palk ... Nora Winthrop
- William Lucas ... Superintendent Hawk
- Anthony Valentine ... Dr. Simpson
- Jack Watson ... Hamp Gurney
- Mark Edwards ... Adam
- Derek Fowlds ... Dan Winthrop
- John Hamill ... Gary
- Gary Hamilton ... Brom
- Candace Glendenning ... Penny Read
- Dennis Price ... Laurence Bakewell
- George Coulouris ... John Gurney
- Robin Askwith ... Des
- Seretta Wilson ... Mae
- Fredric Abbott ... Saul Gurney
- Mark McBride ... Michael Gurney
- Marianne Stone ... Nurse
Critical reaction
The film was dismissed as mere exploitation fodder by many critics. Film critic Leonard Maltin gave the film a BOMB rating and mockingly said "One of the Horrors of Snape Island is the film itself".
However, over the years, the film has been embraced as something of an underground classic by the horror community. The Terror Trap horror review rated the film positively and said "Think the Brits are uptight, watch 'this' fun slasher flick...". Elite Entertainment released Tower of Evil on DVD for the first time in 1999. On December 12, 2008, Turner Classic Movies showed the film as part of their late night TCM Underground series.
