mark.waltz Stubbornly boring from beginning to end, this seems to be a metaphorical science fiction film that expresses far too many themes for viewers to agree on. Scientifically talky and tediously boring, this is trying far too hard to be artsy while sticking to modern trends. It mixes the lust over beach party movies with a moral outrage that has so-called bikini beauties being attacked by a rather effete male creature who may be from outer space. Is this creature some modern Jack the Ripper with an eye for blondes he considers amoral or an alien with judgment issues acting as if he was God, brought down to earth to pass on a warning of some kind. Certain elements of this character makes him seem like a strong but prissy woman hater, and of course some might constrew that as an attack on the visibly rising gay population. Whatever it's theme is, it's dreary as all get out and badly acted and photographed. There's not one bit of comedy, and the only name going for it is John Saxon whose career wasn't finding any great shakes after a few early hits.

DPMay A curious film. It starts off very much as a Quatermass-style mysterious-alien-object-lands-on-Earth science fiction tale, with a trio of likeable scientists trying to get on with their job of working out exactly what the strange meteorite is whilst being both helped and hindered by the military. Then, after about half an hour, the film suddenly does a volte-face and turns itself into a detective yarn as Scotland Yard's finest attempt to unravel the mysterious abductions of numerous young women. Along the way there's also a comedy interlude where the parents of one of the missing girls are interviewed by the investigators, an extended scene which feels somewhat out of place and serves to slightly undermine the drama of the whole piece.In spite of straddling different genres the overall narrative does hang together (just) and it is, of course, an alien visitor that is abducting the women. The purpose behind this has some logic but the methodology is rather ludicrous. And that's the main problem with this film: the script. For all its good intentions and, it has to be said, some bold thinking, it's very hit-and-miss with some ideas working well and catching the viewer off-guard, and other ideas so banal that they leave the viewer wondering how they could possibly have ever got off the drawing board.Usually a film based on such shaky foundations fails in most other respects too but this is a rare exception when everyone else helps pull it out of the mire: the direction (by John Gilling) is good, the lighting very considered, achieving a wonderfully gloomy atmosphere to key scenes, and the special effects, though cheap, are generally competent with glimpses of the visitor wisely kept indistinct for the most part. Best of all, the film boasts a stellar cast, drawing on the cream of British character actors of the day for both the major parts and the minor ones. True, the cast is headed by a token American, as was so often the case in order to help sell the film to overseas markets, but when the American happens to be the wonderful John Saxon that's not such a bad thing. And I'm pleased to report that his role doesn't suffer from the usual stereotypical failings of a dashing American hero being written in a manner of how British writers think a dashing American hero would speak and behave. It is Saxon's character Dr Costain who is initially involved in the recovery of investigation of the alien sphere who then goes on to advise the police investigation, thus being the constant through the film's duration. Maurice Denham gives one of his trademark authoritative performances as Costain's senior colleague, and Alfred Burke, just before his memorable ten-year stint playing Frank Marker in TV's Public Eye, excels as the dour but determined police superintendent. For me, the highlight was a scene where Burke's Superintendent Hartley questions a rather fey, effete character richly brought to life by Aubrey Morris, just for a glimpse of two great actors at the top of their game playing off one another superbly.In conclusion, this is a very ropey film that still has much to commend it, and is well worth a look. However, as a word of warning, when you have that look please make sure you avoid the ghastly colourised version. Unlike many purists I am not actually against the notion of adding colour to black and white films per se, but this is a film that carefully uses its monochrome medium to maximum advantage, so it is an odd choice to undergo such a process. Furthermore, the colouring job is surely the very worst I have seen applied to a film with everything painted in very flat, unnatural hues and some things, such as Alfred Burke's hair and jacket, not even coloured at all. So if this is the version that comes your way, do yourself a big favour and turn down the colour on your TV!

ferbs54 Whether you refer to it as "The Night Caller From Outer Space" or by its alternate title, "Blood Beast From Outer Space" (OR, as it simply appears on this great-looking Image DVD under its original British appellation, "The Night Caller"), this sci-fi film from 1965 is an intelligent, restrained, moody and highly effective winner. In it, scientist John Saxon, working at England's Falsley Park research station, grapples with a mysterious sphere that has touched down on the moors, direct from the Jovian moon Ganymede. The film cleaves fairly evenly into two discrete sections. In the first, Saxon and his Falsley coworkers (including blond, no-nonsense Ann Barlow, played by the excellent Patricia Haines) conduct tests on the sphere and endeavor to puzzle out its mysteries. In the latter half, Saxon assists Scotland Yard in its investigation of the disappearances of several dozen young women, all of whom had answered an ad for a modeling job in "Bikini Magazine." Whereas the film's first segment suggests nothing less than a British variant of the classic TV program "The Outer Limits," the second half turns quite noirish as director John Gilling (who, the following year, would helm, for Hammer Studios, the psychotronic greats "The Plague of the Zombies" and "The Reptile") utilizes moody nighttime photography, deep shadows and disorienting camera angles; call this film sci-fi Brit noir. "The Night Caller" is fairly reminiscent of another Shepperton Studios film that I recently saw, 1964's "The Earth Dies Screaming." Both are modestly budgeted but well-done films featuring stunning B&W photography and helmed by directors more often associated with Hammer (Terence Fisher, in "Screaming"'s case). With the exception of "Night Caller"'s very odd opening theme song--a tune sung by Mark Richardson, and more suitable for a Western or romance movie--and a somewhat weak ending, the picture is a surprisingly gripping entertainment throughout.

ace-150 Almost intelligent British sci-fi with a Mod theme. The black and white cinematography is stylish and some of the sets and clothes have a nice Mod feel, but it never turns into a full style fest. There is one quite odd scene with two distraught parents doing a sort of Stiller and Meara routine for the police and scientist. John Saxon is as hot as can be, but alas, never gets around to removing his shirt or even unbuttoning his collar. What a waste of his greatest talent. The one thing that makes this worth watching is the gay character. Aubrey Morris, best known as the long-suffering but sadistic quasi-pedophile caseworker from "A Clockwork Orange", plays Mr. Thorburn, a purveyor of used books, and, I suspect, naughty magazines, perhaps even male physique pictorials. When the police superintendent comes to question him, he gives the cop hell. The subtext makes it obvious that he has been harassed and probably jailed for his proclivities, but he doesn't let that stop him. Commenting on the unearthly green eyes of the alien, he says "I love men with fine eyes, don't you superintendent?" then blows him a kiss when he leaves. Four years before Stonewall, he's still getting busted, but he's very much in control of his interaction with the cop. The ending of the movie is utterly cheesy but what did you expect from a movie called Night Caller from Outer Space?