‘Murder was their business!’
The Flesh and the Fiends is a 1959 British horror film about Doctor Robert Knox, who purchases human corpses for research from an obliging pair named Burke and Hare.
In the UK, the film was released on 2nd February 1960. In the US, the film was initially released as Mania and then by Pacemaker Pictures as The Fiendish Ghouls.
Directed by John Gilling (The Plague of the Zombies; The Reptile; The Night Caller; The Gorgon) from a screenplay co-written with Leon Griffiths (Ghost Squad TV series; The Hellfire Club).
The Triad Productions movie stars Peter Cushing, June Laverick, Donald Pleasence, George Rose, Renee Houston, Dermot Walsh, Billie Whitelaw (The Omen), John Cairney and Melvyn Hayes.
Gilling has previously tackled the same story as The Greed of William Hart (1948) which stars Tod Slaughter. Producer Robert S. Baker and Monty Berman also made What a Carve Up; Jack the Ripper; The Crawling Eye and Blood of the Vampire. A stronger Continental unclothed version was also shot.
Blu-ray release:
The Flesh and the Fiends will be released on Blu-ray and DVD on July 7th 2020 via Kino Lorber Studio Classics, newly mastered in 2K. The alternate U.S. cut, as Mania, is also included. Special features:
Mania alternate cut
Audio commentary by film historian Tim Lucas
Trailers
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” …it raises intriguing questions about morality, hypocrisy, class consciousness, and the conflict between religion and science. To its credit, this movie does touch upon all of those subjects at one time or another and manages to be a horror movie and a compelling drama at the same time.” Fantastic Movie Musings and Ramblings
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Choice dialogue:
Martha: “I exercised a woman’s privilege. I changed my mind.”
“Excuse me, sir, there are two gentlemen here with a stiff.”
Doctor Knox (Peter Cushing): “Is the feeding of worms more sacred than the pursuit of truth?”
William Hare (Donald Pleasence): “This one’s as fresh as a new cut cabbage.”
Trailer:
Cast and characters:
Peter Cushing … Doctor Robert Knox
June Laverick … Martha Knox
Donald Pleasence … William Hare
George Rose … William Burke
Renee Houston … Helen Burke
Dermot Walsh … Doctor Geoffrey Mitchell
Billie Whitelaw … Mary Patterson
John Cairney … Chris Jackson
Melvyn Hayes … Daft Jamie
June Powell … Maggie O’Hara
Andrew Faulds … Inspector McCulloch
Philip Leaver … Doctor Elliott
George Woodbridge … Doctor Ferguson
Garard Green … Doctor Andrews
Esma Cannon … Aggie
Geoffrey Tyrrell … Old Davey
George Bishop … Blind Man
Beckett Bould … Old Angus (as Becket Bould)
George Street … Publican
Michael Balfour … Drunken Sailor
Steven Scott … Grave Robber (as Stephen Scott)
Raf De La Torre … Grave Robber
Steven Berkoff … Medical Student (uncredited)
Filming locations:
Shepperton Studios, Shepperton, Surrey, England in May 1959
Technical specs:
94 minutes (uncut) | 93 minutes (cut)
Black and white
Aspect ratio: 2.35: 1 – Dylascope
Audio: Mono (Westrex)
Film Facts:
Some crowd scenes were reused footage from David Lean’s Oliver Twist (1948).
