The Shout (1978)

User Rating:

6.6/10   

Director:

Jerzy Skolimowski

Writers:

Robert Graves (story)
Michael Austin (screenplay) ...
(more)

Release Date:

June 1978 (UK)

Genre:

Horror | Drama

Tagline:

A film of intense perversity - the madness of the mind.

Plot:

A traveller by the name of Crossley, forces himself upon a musician and his wife in a lonely part of Devon...

Plot Keywords:

Contemporary Composer | Mental Institution | Flashback | Supernatural Power | Bizarre

Awards:

1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Alan Bates	...	Crossley
Susannah York	...	Rachel Fielding
John Hurt	...	Anthony Fielding
Robert Stephens	...	Medical Man
Tim Curry	...	Robert Graves
Julian Hough	...	Vicar
Carol Drinkwater	...	Wife
John Rees	...	Inspector
Jim Broadbent	...	Fielder in cowpat
Susan Wooldridge	...	Harriet
Nick Stringer	...	Cobbler
Colin Higgins
Peter Benson

Directed by
Jerzy Skolimowski

Writing credits
Robert Graves		(story)
Michael Austin		(screenplay) and
Jerzy Skolimowski		(screenplay)

Produced by
Michael Austin	....	associate producer
Jeremy Thomas	....	producer

Cinematography by
Mike Molloy

Film Editing by
Barrie Vince

Casting by
Patsy Pollock		(as Patsie Pollock)
Mary Selway

Art Direction by
Simon Holland

Makeup Department
Betty Glasow	....	hair stylist
Wally Schneiderman	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Joyce Herlihy	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Kip Gowans	....	first assistant director
Arnold Schulkes	....	second assistant director
Peter Waller	....	second assistant director

Art Department
John Davey	....	painter
Bob Hedges	....	props (as Bobby Hedges)
W.C. 'Chunky' Huse	....	stagehand (as Chunky Huse)
John Leuenberger	....	props (as John Leunberger)
Keith Pain	....	assistant art director
Peter Verard	....	carpenter (as Peter Verrard)
Adrian Start	....	painter (uncredited)

Sound Department
Mike Basset	....	sound maintenance
Alan Bell	....	sound editor
Michael Crouch	....	dialogue editor
Tony Jackson	....	sound mixer
Gordon K. McCallum	....	dubbing mixer
John Relph	....	boom operator (as John Ralph)
Graham V. Hartstone	....	sound re-recording mixer (uncredited)
Nicolas Le Messurier	....	sound re-recording mixer (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Peter Biddle	....	camera loader
Peter Butler	....	camera grip
Nobby Cross	....	gaffer (as Edward Cross)
David Farrell	....	still photographer
Laurie Frost	....	camera operator
David Hughes	....	electrician
Eamonn O'Keeffe	....	focus puller
Terry Potter	....	electrician (as Terence Potter)
Bill Thornhill	....	generator operator (as William Thornhill)
Martin Evans	....	best boy (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Dave Paddon	....	wardrober (as David Paddon)

Editorial Department
William Diver	....	assistant editor
Sara Jolly	....	assistant editor
Tim Jordan	....	assistant editor
Michael Saxton	....	assistant editor

Music Department
Tony Banks	....	composer: theme & incidental music (as Anthony Banks)
Mike Rutherford	....	composer: theme & incidental music

Other crew
Dennis Davidson	....	publicity director
Sevilla Delofski	....	secretary to producer
Tony Hedges	....	accountant
Jane Moscrop	....	production assistant
Ann Skinner	....	continuity
Peter Van Praagh	....	project development

Production Companies

• Rank Organisation, The (as The Rank Organisation Ltd.)
• Jeremy Thomas Productions (as Jeremy Thomas Production)
• National Film Trustee Company
• Recorded Picture Company (RPC)
• National Film Finance Corporation (NFFC) (for)

Distributors

• J. Arthur Rank Film Distributors (1978) (UK) (theatrical)
• Carlton International Media (1999) (worldwide) (all media) (sales)
• Prism Leisure Corporation (2003) (UK) (DVD)
• Tuschinski Film Distribution (1978) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• Divisa Home Video (2006) (Spain) (DVD)
• Embassy Home Entertainment (USA) (VHS)
• F.J. Lucas (Brazil) (VHS)
• Films Incorporated (1979) (USA)
• RCA/Columbia Pictures Home Video (USA) (VHS)
• Trash Mountain Video - Epcott K.K. (2003) (Japan) (DVD)
• VidAmerica (USA) (VHS)

Other Companies

• Lee Lighting  lighting
• Pinewood Studios  post-production

Runtime:

86 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:12 | Netherlands:16 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | UK:15 | USA:R | Norway:16

Filming Locations:

Devon, England, UK

Company:

Rank Organisation, The

Trivia:

The first cinema film of Jim Broadbent.

Underrated mystery

I haven't watched this film in probably 20 years and I had forgotten a lot of the plot but I watched it again recently and it reminded me that this was one of the most unique and interesting mysteries I have ever seen. Story starts out with a young doctor named Robert Graves (Tim Curry) who comes to an insane asylum to help keep score of a cricket match between the inmates and the staff and sitting beside Robert is a man named Crossley (Alan Bates) who starts to tell him the story of how he ended up there. Crossley was in Devon, England and meets Anthony Fielding (John Hurt) who plays the organ in church but is always experimenting with music and sounds and Crossley invites himself over for lunch. He meets Anthony's wife Rachel (Susannah York) and during lunch he tells them he spent 18 years with the aborigines in the outback and that he had killed his own children and learned some of the aborigine black magic. He spends the night but early the next morning Crossley and Anthony walk out to a secluded area because Crossley mentioned that he learned "The Shout" that can kill anything in the general area. Anthony puts wax in his ears and Crossley does his "Shout". It kills a local sheep herder and the sheep and Anthony is saved by the wax. Crossley possesses Rachels buckle from her sandal which he uses to put a spell on her to possess her as well. These scenes are shown in flashbacks and we're not sure if this is just a made-up story from a crazy man or the real deal. We know some of it is made up because we see York's character as a nurse. The film is directed by Jerzy Skolimowski and along with the Jeremy Irons film "Moonlighting" he shows good patience in the way he tells the stories in his films. This is a very effective mystery and their are lots of images that flash during the film that are cause for discussion and one that pops in my mind is that in Anthony's work room there is a photo tacked to the wall of someone or something on all fours. Later, Rachel is nude in the bedroom waiting for Crossley and she gets on all fours that mirrors the image in the photo! The performances are excellent and Bates brooding nature is put to good use here. His quiet but demanding persona is totally believable. I really enjoyed York in this film and the nudity that she is asked to do here reminded me that English actress's have an entirely different attitude toward nudity in films. York was always an excellent actress and she was very popular in the sixties and seventies and her performance here shows why. This is a film that is intended for mature audiences who are not afraid to view something that leaves some questions. This reminded me of two other films, "Don't Look Now" and "The Wicker Man" which didn't cater to a less sophisticated mindset. Well made and extremely effective.