Somebody had already pipped me to my review title but I'll be Damned if I have to think of a new one!
Oliver Reed, one of England's finest, plays King, the psychotic leader of a gang of thugs in Weymouth. When his 20 year old sister falls for the charms of a middle aged American he is not happy and sets about splitting them up, at any cost, but this leads the three to become mixed up in a top secret British programme about raising radioactive kids for the inevitable nuclear holocaust!
Yes, it may sound a bit daft but Hammer have done a great job here. It's a far cry from the gothic horror that the studio are most famous for but this is more scary on the grounds that this is far more believable and was made at a time when the real threat of WW3 was high. I think filming it in b&w instead of colour adds to the believability as many similar sci fi thrillers - and of course newsreels - were also b&w at the time. Acting is generally good and fantastic use is made of the coastal locations. It's a pretty bleak film but full credit to Hammer for this one.
Review of The Damned
