Taste of Fear

Taste of Fear
Scream of Fear
Original British theatrical poster
Directed by Seth Holt
Produced by Jimmy Sangster
Michael Carreras
Written by Jimmy Sangster
Starring Susan Strasberg
Ronald Lewis
Ann Todd
Christopher Lee
Music by Clifton Parker
Cinematography Douglas Slocombe
Edited by Eric Boyd-Perkins
Production
company
Distributed by Columbia Pictures Corporation
Release date
 London: Jan 1961
New York: 4 April 1961
Running time
 78 minutes
Country United Kingdom
Language English
Box office $800,000 (Europe)[1]

Taste of Fear (US title: Scream of Fear) is a 1961 British thriller film directed by Seth Holt, shot in black-and-white by Douglas Slocombe, and released by Hammer Films. The film stars Susan Strasberg, Ronald Lewis, Ann Todd, and Christopher Lee, the latter, one of Hammer's most bankable stars, in a supporting role.

Plot

A young paralysed woman (Susan Strasberg) returns to her family home after the mysterious disappearance of her father. She has a cool relationship with her stepmother, while the chauffeur helps her to investigate the father's disappearance. During the investigations, she finds the father's corpse in various locations around the house, but it always quickly vanishes again before anyone else sees it.

Cast

Reception

The film was a success in the UK and US and was very popular in Europe, being one of Hammer's most profitable productions which led to a cycle of similar films.[1]

Production notes

  • Christopher Lee has been quoted as saying: "Taste of Fear was the best film that I was in that Hammer ever made... [...] It had the best director, the best cast and the best story."[2]
  • Lee recalled that, while shooting the dining-room scene, he suddenly realized he was being observed by Gary Cooper. Director Seth Holt remarked that Lee looked as though he'd "seen a ghost". Cooper was shooting what was to be his last film, The Naked Edge, at the studio. Lee recalls seeing Cooper having lunch every day by himself; the actor was dying of cancer.[3]
  • In March 2013, it was announced that the film will be remade for Sony, and directed by Juan Antonio Bayona, whose previous credits include the acclaimed 2007 Spanish horror film, The Orphanage.[4]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Marcus Hearn, The Hammer Vault, Titan Books, 2011 p61
  2. ↑ Hearn & Barnes 2007, p. 61.
  3. ↑ https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0055505/trivia?ref_=tt_trv_trv
  4. ↑ "'The Impossible' Director Juan Antonio Bayona To Remake 'Scream of Fear' For Sony".
Sources
  • Hearn, Marcus; Barnes, Alan (September 2007). "Taste of Fear". The Hammer Story: The Authorised History of Hammer Films (Limited ed.). Titan Books. ISBN 1 84576 185 5.
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