Tower of Evil (1972)

Good , But It Is Overrated By Some

Absolutely amazing

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

Blistering performances.

I'm writing this review a couple weeks after having watched the film and I can barely remember it. However, IMDB refreshed my memory and it was about a group of archeologists uncovering an ancient and cursed treasure underneath the titular tower. The film was more gruesome than I was expecting and had a decent amount of atmosphere given it's meager budget, but the story and characters were all pretty dull which really drug the film down. Okay viewing for people wanting something along the lines of a lesser Hammer Horror film.

Classic British exploitation with overblown melodrama, sex, nudity, violence, amputation, blood, an explosive climax, dynamite, mystery, thrills, chills, and lots of pretty British babes. Well and competently acted, this is clearly a groundbreaking slasher, as only The Bay Of Blood (1971) came first, while other more well known movies , Black Christmas (1974), The Hills Have Eyes (1977), and Friday The 13th (1980) all came later. This also one of the few over-the-top exploitation movies to feature inbreed nutjobs, at least in British cinema. I saw this movie at a drive-in years after its initial release and loved the gothic atmosphere of it. It's not great cinema, but it IS great fun. Well worth seeing for fans of the genre. I'm giving it nine stars because I have a soft spot for this flick, results for others may vary. Would not have been out of place in the old American pulps of the thirties and early forties. Get a couple of cold ones and just sit back and enjoy the mayhem.

A group of sex-starved,pot-smoking and constantly quarreling archaeologists travel to a lighthouse-island called Snape Island,where three American teenagers were butchered by unknown killer.It's reported that there is a treasure hidden in the Phoenician tomb on wind-swept isle.When they reach the shore of Snape Island they quickly become hunted and murdered by elusive killer.Ugly and gory British shocker set on an abandoned island with creepy looking lighthouse.The characters are often unpleasant and irritating,so I had fun watching them die.There is plenty of sex and nudity and the gore is quite nasty."Tower of Evil" aka "Horror on the Snape Island" will surely creep you out.8 out of 10.

Snape Island, containing a lighthouse, with caves underneath containing artifacts/treasure(..basically a few necklaces, ancient sword, sarcophagus, & idol statue) of a Phoenican god, is the setting for this horror film(..which also goes under the title, "The Tower of Evil")from director Jim O'Connolly(The Valley of Gwangi). This island is supposedly accursed and a group of young adults are found there, three brutally murdered with a fourth in a state of catatonic shock, having stabbed a fisherman's father out of hysteria. An archaeological team, along with a detective, and the fisherman(..with a new assistant, a hippie family member whose the kind of person who likes to move around a lot with no goals or care for what the future holds)decide to boat to Snape Island to seize the Phoenician artifacts, but run into the very one responsible for the previous murders. The fisherman, Hamp(Jack Watson)tells the group of his kin, a relative who was not right in the head, his kind, doting wife and their child who lived on the island which ended in tragedy. Ambiguous regarding his relative's fate, the others wonder what happened to him, finding out the hard way that this lunatic resides in the caves below, surfacing to possibly coordinate attacks on them. Dan & Adam(Derek Fowlds & Mark Edwards) are at odds with each other over the pretty, slender, tender-voiced Rose(Jill Haworth). Adam was once attached to Rose, but she broke off their engagement. Rose has been having an affair with Dan, but he's married to luscious nymphomaniac Nora(Anna Palk, who is quite a lusty, tasty dish)who won't grant him a divorce. Brent(Bryant Haliday) is a detective hired to prove that the only witness to the killings was indeed innocent of the crimes, committing the one murder because she was in total shock believing she was defending herself against a madman out to kill her. Hamp's nephew Brom(Gary Hamilton)eyes Nora, hoping to score with an older, experienced woman, and I certainly can understand the logic considering she's a total babe. Not long after landing ashore, they begin hearing a flute and perhaps whimpering. They know someone is on the island and this could very well be the real killer. Considering the power it'd take to stick a young man through a wall with a golden sword, the suspect, a gentle, beautiful virginal innocent(Candace Glendenning)seems to be unable of such a feat of strength. We watch as the group attempts to find the location of the caves and the killer. After their boat has been dynamited and radio smashed, the group are in dire shape, needing to survive first and then find a way of getting off the damned island.I was startled at the sexually frank dialogue and overall nature of the film. Being that it was British(..normally reserved filmmakers)I was taken aback at how naughty Nora was in her approach to men, both her downgrading of husband Dan and subtle seduction of young stud Brom(..she doesn't have to do much, but has a keen way of inviting lust). The film features a great deal of nakedness and graphic violence. The traumatized girl, Penelope, for instance, is naked on the Snape beach with her new boyfriend, both battling the temptation of sexual activity. When Penelope attacks Hamp's father, she's naked with a knife. A curving dagger, a Phoenician weapon, is used to stab and sever heads. The film yields an entertaining twist regarding who might actually be the killer, although I think astute viewers will see it coming. When a possible suspect unveils his hideous condition after living in the caves for such a long time(..carrying the appearance of a Neanderthal with a speech impediment)we get a sense of his power when provoked by a flaming torch..he snaps a victim's head like a twig once he gains an advantage. The island and tower are clearly studio built losing a bit of authentic realism I feel was needed for atmospheric purposes. Still, I had some fun with this one but wouldn't call it a good film by any stretch of the imagination. It sure isn't boring, though. Great scene where a female corpse features prominently in moving towards the direction of who the killer(s)might be.