This was not one of the BBC's 'Ghost Stories for Christmas' (it was broadcast as part of the 'Omnibus' series), but it could easily have been one as it had the necessary eeriness and unforgettable imagery of those wonderful mid-70's adaptations.
In fact this was an hour's worth of art history combined with J. Sheridan leFanu's short story 'A Strange Event in the Life of Schalcken the Painter'. It doesn't stick exactly to the story (not a criticism) but chooses to spend additional time on Schalcken's work as a painter. The background imagery is reminiscent of Vermeer's work and I'm sure I saw a Rembrandt double in there someone. In short, it is beautiful to look at and yet retains the necessary darkness of the original story.
One of the things that struck me about this after all these years is quite how little dialogue there was, and yet this this seems to enhance the piece rather than detract from it. The cast are excellent, particularly Jeremy Clyde as the laconic and moody painter, and the beautiful Cheryl Kennedy (whatever happened to her?) as Rose Velderkaust. Who can forget that final scene in the crypt? I bet John Justin didn't.
Criticisms? This may be a bit harsh on a wonderful piece of work that only the BBC seemed capable of producing, but I thought that Vanderhausen wasn't nearly as scary as in the story. In the book, we read of a white faced, black lipped, cadaverous figure whose stilted movements are reminiscent of a "spirit unused to the management of bodily machinery". By the lack of both blinking and evident chest movements indicating breathing, we know Vanderhausen is clearly an animated corpse. In the film, we get a dark-skinned staring madman whose mortality is never questioned, and this, while creepy, lessens the ending which should have been terrifying and ended up as merely disturbing (boy, am I difficult to please).
All in all, fabulous. Please BBC, make this available on DVD. This is one of the best things you've ever done. Be proud of it.
In fact this was an hour's worth of art history combined with J. Sheridan leFanu's short story 'A Strange Event in the Life of Schalcken the Painter'. It doesn't stick exactly to the story (not a criticism) but chooses to spend additional time on Schalcken's work as a painter. The background imagery is reminiscent of Vermeer's work and I'm sure I saw a Rembrandt double in there someone. In short, it is beautiful to look at and yet retains the necessary darkness of the original story.
One of the things that struck me about this after all these years is quite how little dialogue there was, and yet this this seems to enhance the piece rather than detract from it. The cast are excellent, particularly Jeremy Clyde as the laconic and moody painter, and the beautiful Cheryl Kennedy (whatever happened to her?) as Rose Velderkaust. Who can forget that final scene in the crypt? I bet John Justin didn't.
Criticisms? This may be a bit harsh on a wonderful piece of work that only the BBC seemed capable of producing, but I thought that Vanderhausen wasn't nearly as scary as in the story. In the book, we read of a white faced, black lipped, cadaverous figure whose stilted movements are reminiscent of a "spirit unused to the management of bodily machinery". By the lack of both blinking and evident chest movements indicating breathing, we know Vanderhausen is clearly an animated corpse. In the film, we get a dark-skinned staring madman whose mortality is never questioned, and this, while creepy, lessens the ending which should have been terrifying and ended up as merely disturbing (boy, am I difficult to please).
All in all, fabulous. Please BBC, make this available on DVD. This is one of the best things you've ever done. Be proud of it.