The Reptile

As part of John Gilling’s “Cornish Village” duo of films for Hammer Studios (along with Plague of Zombies), this time about a woman with an affliction that changes her into a *Reptile* (basically an actress wearing a grotesque snake mask, puncture-style teeth, and claw-hand gloves) that causes those bitten to become “victims of the black death”.

A doctor in the field of theology, Dr. Franklin (Noel Willman) forewarns a young man (who seems to be answering a letter written to him) to leave his mansion but he is bitten by the titular Reptile Woman which causes his face to darken, his mouth to foam, and his heart to stop. 

When his brother, Harry Spalding (Ray Barrett) and Harry’s young newly married wife, Valerie (Jennifer Daniel) take up residence at the deceased’s cottage, their lives will be threatened by an Indian “servant” (Marne Maitland, often hiding in the background with unkind, malicious intentions) who lives at the plantation with Franklin, a scientist whose research in the “primitive religions of the east” (where his travels took him in his studies), and seems to have a control over the doc’s daughter, Anna (the underutilized but striking Jacqueline Pearce, also treated with a less-than-stellar role in Gilling’s Plague of the Zombies). Anna’s snake cult curse is due to Franklin’s published work on their secrets not meant for public knowledge/eyes. The evil Indian who seems to delight in Anna’s affliction provokes Franklin often, enjoying how he reminds the doc that any interference in his command to rid themselves of the Spaldings would not be wise. There’s a bubbling sulphur pit underneath the mansion that keeps the temperature warm so Anna won’t perish (she cannot withstand the cold, the reptile inside her needing to function under warm conditions).

A lot of the horror fans who have that steady diet of Hammer on a regular basis (or watch them from time to time for entertainment value), recognize Michael Ripper as the consummate supporting actor’s actor. The way he could take even the smallest of roles and make them his own, leaving behind a distinct face and personality that impresses. The Reptile was that rarest of occasions where Ripper was treated with a sizable part that allowed him to actually showcase his talent with a meatier part, and those who believe a hard worker should be rewarded for his dedication to a studio will probably find Ripper’s role here most gratifying. His role is of a former seaman who set down roots at the Cornwall village (that is this movie’s setting), a bartender who is hospitable to the Spaldings while the village seems to give them the cold shoulder. John Laurie has a memorable part as the village’s rather eccentric, off-the-wall weirdo, “Mad Peter” who may know too much, that befriends (in a rather haphazard way) the Spaldings, giving them only tiny increments of what might be wrong with the village black death plaguing the locals.

This was, to me, a nice change of pace for Hammer, giving us little movies made dirt cheap like The Reptile, obviously done on short shooting schedules with a limited cast on studio sets already dressed and ready for use. Still, despite the limits the cast and crew faced, The Reptile surprisingly has its own unique story and monster. I think why I loved The Gorgon so much was because, like The Reptile, it uses a small cast and has a plot that deals with a totally different type of monster, deriving from a curse that plagues a female character, an innocent we get to know in human form, ultimately doomed as are anyone in her vicinity when under the influence of the affliction. Bodies are once again dug up or surveyed (like in Plague of the Zombies) by characters to determine what happened to victims of the Reptile Woman. 

The script and performances are careful in not revealing too much at the onset, except to identify what monster the film has for our heroes to deal with, giving details delicately until all is known regarding Franklin’s punishment, why he’s so difficult with his frustrated (but loyal) daughter, and the reasons behind his rather seemingly rude and enigmatic behavior in regards to Anna. I will say I do think it is noticeable that the film was a rushed production and had been dealt with next to nothing budgetary-wise, so I consider it an accomplishment The Reptile comes off so well.