1964: Newlyweds Eli (Ronny Cox) and Caroline (Bibi Besch) drive through the Mississippi town of Nioba on their way to their new home in Jackson. They miss a turning and their car suffers a blowout when Eli tries to hastily turn around. Having just a passed a gas station, he suggests Caroline wait in the car with their dog Thor while he walks there for assistance.
Unfortunately Thor jumps out of the car and runs off into nearby forestry, prompting Caroline to give chase. It's here that the canine is killed by a hulking hairy man, which then proceeds to knock Caroline out and rape her.
By the time Eli returns with a tow truck, he finds his wife naked and battered. The beast is nowhere to be seen although, as the tow truck takes the young lovers off into the night, gunshots are heard in the distance.
Fast-forward 17 years, and the couple's son Michael (Paul Clemens) is hospitalised suffering from what Jackson doctors believe to be an overactive pituitary gland. The medics are baffled, and fear that without Michael may die. Having kept the details of Michael's conception a secret, Eli and Caroline decide to drive to Nioba and investigate the events of that fateful night 17 years earlier in a bid to find out details of Michael's father. Perhaps the condition is hereditary, they hope. and his biological father will be able to help?
They're met with a wall of secrecy, the elderly townsfolk denying all knowledge of any crime having taken place back then. However, Caroline unearths evidence in an archive newspaper at the local library suggesting the culprit was a local scoundrel by the name of Lionel. They determine to stay in town a little longer and probe the likes of slimy Judge Curwin (Don Gordon) some more.
In the meantime, Michael perspires heavily in his hospital bed while suffering nightmares that eventually compel him to get up and track down a Gothic house on the outskirts of Nioba. It's here that his killing spree begins.
Oblivious to Michael's nature, neighbour Amanda (Katherine Moffat) finds him when he collapses outside her home and helps him to the safety of Nioba's hospital. He's placed under the care of Dr Schoonmaker (R G Armstrong), and reunited with his parents who rush to be at his side.
But Curwin and his cronies are never far away, desperate to keep concealed the truth behind Lionel's violent outbursts and Michael's unholy heritage.
As Michael health seemingly improves but, unbeknownst to those closest to him, his inhuman cravings heighten, the scene is set for a small town bloodbath...
I vividly remember being desperate to see THE BEAST WITHIN when it was first released on to UK video by Warner in the mid '80s, pre the Video Recordings Act that dictated all titles had to carry BBFC certification notices on front, back and spine covers. The cover art, along with the title, captured my imagination - and that was further fuelled by a mate of mine assuring me that the last third of the film was "gory as fuck".
And gory it was, despite this release actually being trimmed by 67 seconds by the BBFC. I was let down by the film, not because it was cut but possibly because I'd allowed expectation to get the better of me. At that time, there was no internet to temper my anticipation with contrasting reviews and I was hard-pushed to find writings on the film. So my imagination did all the work, and it built this up to be something it wasn't. Over the years since then, memory has kept reassuring me that THE BEAST WITHIN was a tedious non-event.
However, I've now had the opportunity to revisit it thanks to the screener disc sent to me from Arrow. And my memory, just like my overactive imagination back in the '80s, failed me. It turns out that THE BEAST WITHIN is a pretty nifty little fright flick, boasting an above-average cast all performing well and competent direction from the guy who gave us THE HOWLING PART 2, Philippe Mora.
Mora starts off well but does falter with the pacing during the under-achieving mid-section of the film. And, yes, the gory transformation scene that everyone remembers in the latter third does go on for too long. So long, in fact, that the joins in Thomas R Burman's otherwise brilliant FX work start to show and the incredulous faces of the beast's onlookers grow increasingly stupid as time wears on (Mora insists the length of this show-stopping sequence is just right in the disc's commentary track).
These failings aside, the film actually moves ably thanks to Tom Holland's efficient and unfussy screenplay, which manages to weave in gentle allusions to the physical change and identity crisis that comes with adolescence, and the efforts of the aforementioned cast. Les Baxter's score is sweeping and melodramatic where it needs to be; Jack L Richards' cinematography is a true asset, bringing a striking quality to most scenes.
Though the film is too marred by its flaws to be considered a classic of the genre, it still rates well when held aside other monster films of its time (1982) and to this day is surprisingly gory on occasion. Just behind Scream Factory's region A blu-ray release in the US, Arrow Films Video bring Mora's film to the UK in a sterling 2-disc blu-ray and DVD combo pack. The blu-ray disc was provided for review purposes.
THE BEAST WITHIN is presented fully uncut and uncensored here, in its original 2.35:1 aspect ratio and enhanced for 16x9 televisions. Housed as an MPEG4-AVC file, the 1080p transfer proffered is very nice indeed. A little soft in the opening night scenes, the picture soon gets sharper and the colours really burst through during the subsequent day footage. The print is extremely clean, fine grain assures us that no ugly DNR is going on, and detail is significantly heightened above all previous home video releases. Finally, for example, you can clearly see what's happening in the opening minutes. The gore-soaked later set-piece sequence benefits from remarkable clarity.
English audio is provided in LPCM stereo, and is a solid mix throughout. Optional English subtitles for the Hard-of-Hearing are well-written and east to read at all times.
A fine selection of bonus material gets underway with an enlightening commentary track from Mora. He has a laconic Australian drawl which is warm and welcoming as he chats away with ease. Mora's funny, blessed with a good memory for names and situations, and realistic enough to point out what did and didn't work with his film.
Next up is the excellent 46-minute documentary 'I Was a Teenage Cicada', which looks at the inspiration behind the story, the "Lovecraftian" locations used, the cast and, naturally, the infamous special effects. This makes for a solid proposition, and is a great accompaniment to the main feature. It's riddled with spoilers and clips from the film though, so don't watch it before you've experienced the BEAST!
"Storyboarding the Beast" is a nice 13-minute inclusion of pages from Mora's original storyboards. He narrates through his rudimentary sketches, and again proffers a lot articulate, intelligent advice.
The film's original trailer clocks in at 87 seconds in length. Despite its VHS quality, it's great fun in its use of the old "Warning: we cannot show you the horrific scenes from this film.." guff. Can you survive the "final horrifying 30 minutes" of THE BEAST WITHIN?!
Finally we get a gallery of stills, lobby cards, release artwork from around the globe and more. This generous selection runs for just shy of 5 minutes.
As is the norm, Arrow are also furnishing this release with double-sided reversible cover artwork (the alternate cover employs the same design as the Scream Factory release) and a collectors' booklet. Neither of these were available to comment upon.
All in all, THE BEAST WITHIN gets a marvellous release from Arrow and proves itself more than ripe for re-evaluation as a result.
By Stuart Willis
Released by Arrow Video |
Region B |
Rated 18 |
Extras : |
see main review |