The Doctor and the Devils (1985)

User Rating:

5.9/10   

Director:

Freddie Francis

Writers:

Dylan Thomas (earlier screenplay)
Ronald Harwood (writer)

Release Date:

4 October 1985 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Drama

Plot:

Grave robbers supply a doctor with bodies to test on. |

Plot Keywords:

Grave Robber | Doctor | Mental Illness | Corps | England

Cast

Timothy Dalton	...	Doctor Thomas Rock
Jonathan Pryce	...	Robert Fallon
Twiggy	...	Jennie Bailey
Julian Sands	...	Dr. Murray
Stephen Rea	...	Timothy Broom
Phyllis Logan	...	Elizabeth Rock
Lewis Fiander	...	Dr. Thornton
Beryl Reid	...	Mrs. Flynn
T.P. McKenna	...	O'Connor
Patrick Stewart	...	Prof. Macklin
Siân Phillips	...	Annabella Rock
Philip Davis	...	Billy Bedlam
Philip Jackson	...	Andrew Merry-Lees
Danny Schiller	...	Praying Howard
Bruce Green	...	Mole
Toni Palmer	...	Rosie
David Bamber	...	Cronin
Nichola McAuliffe	...	Alice
Deirdre Costello	...	Nelly
Terry Neason	...	Kate
Paul Curran	...	Tom the Porter
Merelina Kendall	...	Mrs. Webb
Dermot Crowley	...	Mr. Webb
Sarah Melia	...	Nora Webb
Stephen Yardley	...	Joseph
John Horsley	...	Dr. Mackendrick
Jack May	...	Dr. Stevens
Rachel Herbert	...	Mrs. Stevens
Simon Shepherd	...	Harding
David Parfitt	...	Billings
Simon Adams	...	Green
Jeff Rawle	...	Lambert
William Morgan Sheppard	...	Landlord
Jennifer Jayne	...	Barmaid
Moira Brooker	...	Molly the Maid
P.G. Stevens	...	Priest
Roy Evans	...	Sewerman
Peter Burton	...	Customer
Leonard Maguire	...	Nightwatchman
Hedger Wallace	...	Doctor
Ray Dunbobbin	...	Tinker
Martin Herring	...	Messenger
Shaun Curry	...	Policeman
David Grahame	...	Old Man
Kevin Duffield	...	Daniel
Ray Armstrong	...	Prison Guard
Sam Bartlett	...	Prison Guard
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Harry Fielder	...	Thug (uncredited)
Samantha Meaton	...	Little Girl in Bar (uncredited)

Directed by
Freddie Francis

Writing credits
Dylan Thomas		(earlier screenplay)
Ronald Harwood		(writer)

Produced by
Mel Brooks	....	executive producer
Geoffrey Helman	....	associate producer
Jonathan Sanger	....	producer

Original Music by
John Morris

Cinematography by
Gerry Turpin
Norman Warwick

Film Editing by
Laurence Méry-Clark

Casting by
Maggie Cartier

Production Design by
Brian Ackland-Snow
Robert W. Laing

Set Decoration by
Peter James

Costume Design by
Imogen Richardson

Makeup Department
Naomi Donne	....	makeup artist
Sally Sutton	....	hair stylist

Production Management
Derek Whitehurst	....	location unit manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Peter Bennett	....	assistant director
Simon Haveland	....	third assistant director
Nikolas Korda	....	third assistant director
Andrew Warren	....	second assistant director

Art Department
Bob Cross	....	construction coordinator
Paul Laugier	....	draftsman
Tony Teiger	....	property master
Bryn Siddall	....	property buyer (uncredited)

Sound Department
Peter Bond	....	dialogue editor
Steve O'Brien	....	boom operator
Alan Paley	....	sound editor
Ken Weston	....	sound mixer

Special Effects by
Alan Bryce	....	special effects

Camera and Electrical Department
Wick Finch	....	gaffer
Gordon Hayman	....	camera operator
Tom Hilton	....	still photographer
Billy Merrell	....	electrician (as Bill Merrell)
George Parrish	....	best boy

Editorial Department
Jeremy Gibbs	....	first assistant editor

Music Department
Jack Hayes	....	orchestrator

Other crew
Pamela Davies	....	script supervisor
Jane Golding	....	unit publicist

Production Companies

• Brooksfilms
• Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Distributors

• Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation (1985) (USA) (theatrical)
• Fox Video (1996) (USA) (VHS)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (2005) (USA) (VHS)
• Key Video (video)
• TriPictures

Other Companies

• Joe Dunton & Company  camera equipment provided by
• Lee Lighting  grip and lighting equipment
• Peerless Camera Company  titles

Runtime:

93 min

Country:

UK | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | France:-12 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 (cut) | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Lee International Studios, Shepperton, Surrey, England, UK

Company:

Brooksfilms

Trivia:

Last film of Peter Burton.

Quotes:

Doctor Thomas Rock: I set myself up as a God over death.

Movie Connections:

Version of The Flesh and the Fiends (1960)

Soundtrack:

TAINTED HANDS

An excellent throwback to the Gothic horror movies of decades past.

Dr. Thomas Rock (Timothy Dalton) needs cadavers for medical study, and he prefers not to worry too much about morals and ethics; whatever the locals can obtain for him, he accepts. (The deciding factor is that the "fresher" the bodies, the better.) Scurrilous, creepy barflies Fallon (Jonathan Pryce) and Broom (Stephen Rea) get wind of this and figure to profit substantially. The problem is, these two don't hesitate to resort to outright murder to obtain bodies. As news of this breaks to the community, it threatens to destroy everything that Dr. Rock has worked for.

The story of real-life Victorian era fiends William Burke and William Hare has also been fodder for other film adaptations; one such example is the 1945 Val Lewton thriller "The Body Snatcher", starring Boris Karloff. The script, by Dylan Thomas, was completed back in the 1950's, yet remained unfilmed until the mid-80's, when old-style Gothic horror movies were no longer in vogue.

Although American-produced (comedy legend Mel Brooks, who is in actuality a big fan of old horror movies, presents it through his company), the very British feel of this movie is palpable. Old pro and Hammer Studios horror veteran Freddie Francis, with a long and distinguished career as both a director and cinematographer, guides this material with a very capable eye for detail and the visuals of this movie are, quite simply, extraordinarily stylish. The predominant color scheme of reds and browns gives it a great look; the re-creation of the time and place is equally strong. John Morris's score is magnificent and the pace is steady, with some striking images and sequences.

The top-notch British cast is compulsively watchable. Dalton has some wonderfully florid dialog to deliver and his performance is intense. Pryce is perhaps the standout of the movie as the morally bankrupt Fallon, who as accomplice Broom eventually points out, seems to be enjoying the act of murder too much. Both he and Rea make for a marvelous pair of scuzzy and greedy cretins. Julian Sands, Twiggy, Lewis Fiander, Phyllis Logan, Patrick Stewart, and Sian Phillips round out the cast.

The ethical dilemma posed here is interesting enough to provide some food for thought. Just what should be permissible in the name of study and progress? The other intriguing aspect of this story is the fact that Dr. Rock actually cares more for the impoverished and destitute people of his city than his colleagues. (The film-makers spare us nothing in depicting poverty on film.) The end result is that although we can admire Dr. Rock to a certain extent, ultimately his good intentions cannot justify his actions, although his own philosophy is that the ends always justify the means.

An unjustly overlooked and fine horror film, "The Doctor and the Devils" was a real change of pace in a decade known more for its excesses. It's worth checking out.

8/10