I remember watching the original TV series as a young lad with great interest, excitement and not a small element of fear. As I recall it was the fact that there was sufficient intelligent input to properly engage the viewer and to cause one to continually assess and re-assess what was going on and whether what was being shown really could happen. Enough real locations or real enough looking was very helpful in this respect and this much later colour film still pertains to those principals and so although far fetched, not silly. To be honest I only picked this up for nostalgia reasons and because it was a very reasonably priced Blu-ray but I was pleasantly surprised. It gets off to a good start and never really pauses until the courageously downbeat and wild ending. I was as pleased to see a Watneys Red Barrel on the bar counter as the sci-fi special effects but never mind. Worth seeing, particularly in this day of CGI as God, perhaps to help decide whether story or effects should be paramount.

Hammer Films have a lot to thank writer Nigel Kneale and his most popular character Bernard Quatermass for. When the BBC originally broadcast The Quatermass Experiment to a terrified audience, Hammer producer Anthony Hinds saw the potential for a movie adaptation and quickly snapped up the rights. At the time, Hammer were enjoying modest success making low-budget second features, but 1955's The Quatermass Xperiment (named so to highlight the X rating dished out by the BBFC), known as The Creeping Unknown in the U.S., became a hit and put the company's name on the cinematic map. Quatermass 2 (a.k.a. Enemy From Space) followed shortly after, and the rest is history.It seems like they were saving the best for last, and waited a whopping 10 years to deliver it. When skeletal remains are dug up during an extension to the London Underground, Palaeontologist Dr. Mathew Roney (James Donald) is called in, who concludes that the remains are that of an ancient race of 'apemen', possibly from 5 million years ago. Bernard Quatermass (Andrew Keir) disagrees however, and when further digging reveals a large metallic object, he believes it may be of alien origin. Colonel Breen (Game of Thrones' Julian Glover) insists that it is an unexploded bomb from World War II, and refutes Quatermass' claims. As the mystery unfolds, the discovery may lead to shocking revelations regarding man's evolution, and one that we are not ready to face.Quatermass and the Pit may feature some incredibly dated effects, but this is sci-fi as complex and intellectual as 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968); a film it is often compared to. Based on the six- part series, Pit's main issue is the difficulty in condensing hours' worth of material into a 98-minute movie, hitting the audience with one theory and revelation after another. But great sci-fi is primarily built on a singular great idea, and this is up there with the best. While the twists and turns are often a struggle to keep up with, the frantic pace created by the lack of running time means that we're kept on the edge of our seats for the duration. Keir is also an improvement on American Brian Donlevy (who played the professor in the previous two films), infusing Quatermass with warmth and a distinct Britishness.

Despite having heard about the series for a number of years,I have somehow never got round to seeing any of the films/TV shows that feature the Quatermass character.Taking a look on Amazon UK for Hammer Horror DVDs,I was delighted to spot Studio Canal's DVD/Blu edition of a Hammer Quatermass film,which led to me getting ready to jump in the pit with Prof. Bernard Quatermass.The plot:Working on an extension of the London Underground,I group of workers uncover a number of strange looking skeletons.Called in to identify the mysterious remains, Paleontologist Dr Matthew Roney announces that he believes that the bones are 5 million years old,and that they belong to an extremely early version of the apemen.As Roney and his assistant Barbara Judd recover the skeletons,they find a large metal object,which appears to be an un-exploded bomb.Dismayed over his plans for the colonisation of the Moon having recently been taken over by the army, Professor Bernard Quatermass visits the "bomb site" with Colonel Breen watching over his shoulder.Pushing aside the bomb theories,Quatermass tells everyone that he believes the object is of alien origin.Reserching the area with Judd,Quatermass finds out that strange historical events have taken place in the area,which has involved residences seeing creatures that look similar to the skeletons that Roney has recovered.Fearing that something has been uncovered which should have remained buried,Quatermass is horrified to find the army determined to open the strange object.View on the film:Before I get to the film,I to say that Studio Canal give the title a perfect transfer,with the audio being sharp & the vibrant colours popping across the screen.Showing remarkable restrain from showing the monster until the very end,director Roy Ward Baker & cinematographer Arthur Grant create a superb,tense Hammer Horror atmosphere.Placing most of the movie in t'pit,Baker and Grant use excellent tracking shots to fully display the claustrophobic location,and to also create a deep feeling of dread,as Baker closely follows the team digging up the secret.Although some of the special effects do have a rubber "bounce",Baker covers the screen in bright golds and shining greens,which along with giving the effects a nice slimy texture,also makes the teams increasingly dangerous discoveries stand out in the pit.Adapting his TV creation for the big screen,the screenplay by Nigel Kneale offers a tremendous mix of Sci-Fi chills and tense Adventure movie investigation.Slowly revealing the hidden terror,Kneale cleverly puts Quatermass in an explorer position,which along with letting each new discovery build on the chilling atmosphere,also gives Kneale the chance to give the terror a strong foundation,as Quatermass finds himself unable to stop the army opening the object,and pushing the film into an explosive, bravely tragic Disaster movie final.Despite not being Baker's first choice for the role, (with the studio rejecting his suggestion of Kenneth More) Andrew Keir gives a wonderful performance as Quatermass,thanks to Keir giving Quatermass a perfect balance of excited single-mindedness over the discovery,and a burnt at the edges, frantic desperation,over stopping the mystery from being unleashed.Giving the film a touch of elegance,the very pretty Barbara Shelly gives a charming performance as Barbara Judd,who Shelly shows is unable to withstand the strange attraction that the object has on her,whilst Julian Glover (who did his own stunts!) strikes the film with a stiff upper lip shine as Colonel Breen,who is desperate to join Quatermass in t'pit.

A mysterious artifact is unearthed in London, and famous scientist Bernard Quatermass (Andrew Keir) is called in to divine its origins and explain its strange effects on people.This is the film that inspired John Carpenter. Okay, so not "the" film, as he also was strongly influenced by the films of Howard Hawks. But you can see this film in "Prince of Darkness", and also in "In the Mouth of Madness". And, of course, it stands on its own.Some of this is a little silly. The alien / arthropod corpses are a bit less than believable as living creatures, but at least they tried to make up for that with goo blood and other touches. And the images from Mars... a bit weird. But, hey, still a fine film.