When I first learned of the existence of this film during the early seventies I assumed that I would catch up with it on TV in due course along with other titles from the late sixties then turning up on the telly. Having finally caught up with it on YouTube I can now see why it has never been shown on British TV, since it belongs to the extremely nasty genre of the home invasion film. Two earlier examples, 'Private Property' and 'Lady in a Cage' had already been denied circuit releases in Britain in the early sixties, and in 1967 'The Penthouse' was following close on the heels of 'Dutchman' and 'The Incident', which had both located the same situation in railway carriages. Far and away the most frightening of these films was 'The Incident', the power of which is attested to by the fact that it too was never released in Britain. Later films that have been structured around similar situations include 'A Clockwork Orange', 'Straw Dogs' and 'Funny Games', while real life, alas, got in on the act during 1968-69 with the hideous murders of Ramon Novarro and Sharon Tate.Pretty obviously based on a play ('The Meter Man' by C.Scott Forbes), and directed for all it's worth by first-timer Peter Collinson with Gothic lighting by Arthur Lavis (and occasional strident intrusions by John Hawksworth's score), 'The Penthouse' draws strongly for its content on 'Private Property' and for its ambiance & dialogue on Harold Pinter. In reality, Tom (Tony Beckley) and Dick (Norman Rodway), the pair of gurning cretins who invade the adulterous couple's luxury penthouse suite (£15,000 at 1967 prices we're told!) would never talk so much or be so articulate; and both their bizarre behaviour and that of the girlfriend (Suzy Kendall) who loses her fear and then her inhibitions remarkably quickly after being plied with booze and marijuana suggests that gritty realism is not exactly what the film's makers were striving for. The film becomes more unbelievable still when less that twenty minutes from the end the couple actually let in Harry, who proceeds to bring the two goons back into the apartment to continue their mind games. But since Harry is played by Martine Beswick at her most fabulous (which is saying something!) I can forgive the film a lot. Well, a bit.

If Peter Collinson's intention when writing and directing this film was to present the most bizarre characters imaginable, then he has succeeded admirably. If, however, he was trying to make a serious thriller with genuine excitement, realistic situations and a meaningful underlying moral subtext, then he has failed utterly. The story has married estate agent Bruce Victor (Terence Morgan) and his secret lover Barbara Willason (Suzy Kendall) shacking up in a penthouse suite in an unfinished tower block. A pair of knife-wielding hoodlums turn up, posing as meter readers, and proceed to hold the adulterous lovers at knifepoint. Bruce is tied up and forced to look on as the lecherous intruders get Barbara well-and-truly drunk and then degrade her for their entertainment. The film is based on a stage play, and it comes across - unsurprisingly - as a very stagy, talky affair. This is not necessarily a weakness (films like Sleuth, made five years after this, proved that stagy and talky films can actually be very good). However, The Penthouse is not only stagy and talky - it is very unpleasant too. The characters are awfully hard to like and their predicaments are extremely difficult to care about. Director Collinson frequently demonstrated a fascination with violence and aggression during his career, and this is a perfect vehicle for his favourite two themes. Collinson also had a fondness for stylistic flourishes in his movies, but here his outlandish camera angles and visual/aural tricks seem merely self-indulgent and meaningless. For the first twenty minutes, the film's surreal style is oddly enjoyable, but it pretty soon becomes wearisome. On the whole, The Penthouse is a failure and the fact that it is rarely-seen ought to be viewed as a blessing in disguise!

This is a superb and prescient little thriller by Peter Collinson that predates such films as FUNNY GAMES and other "extreme cinema" projects, and is much better, and much more restrained, in every way. I'm amazed that the film hasn't gotten better distribution, and that it seems to have slipped between the cracks of cinema history. A great film; see it if you can.

This is the only movie I regret not having got up and walked out! Although it is some 30 years since I had the misfortune of seeing this film in the cinema, I have never forgotten what a thoroughly unpleasant experience it was -- with unlikeable characters and stupidly unbelievable circumstances. I can forgive all sorts of things in a film if there is at least one redeeming quality, but you can look in vain for it here. I am amazed that its rating is as high as it is since I would have given it a minus rating were this possible.