''Doomwatch'' is a 1972 British

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...

film directed by Peter Sasdy and starring

Ian Bannen Ian Edmund Bannen (29 June 1928 – 3 November 1999) was a Scottish actor with a long career in film, on stage, and on television. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his performance in '' The Flight of the Phoenix'' (1965), the first ...

Judy Geeson Judith Amanda Geeson (born 10 September 1948) is an English film, stage, and television actress. She began her career primarily working on British television series, with a leading role on '' The Newcomers'' from 1965 to 1967, before making he ...

and John Paul. Described as both a

thriller Thriller may refer to: * Thriller (genre), a broad genre of literature, film and television ** Thriller film, a film genre under the general thriller genre Comics * ''Thriller'' (DC Comics), a comic book series published 1983–84 by DC Comics i ...

and a

horror film Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit fear or disgust in its audience for entertainment purposes. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements include monsters, ap ...

, it is based on the BBC's

science fiction television Science fiction first appeared in television programming in the late 1930s, during what is called the Golden Age of Science Fiction. Special effects and other production techniques allow creators to present a living visual image of an imaginary ...

series '' Doomwatch'' which ran between 1970 and 1972. The screenplay was written by

Clive Exton Clive Exton (11 April 1930 – 16 August 2007) was a British television and film screenwriter who wrote scripts for the series ''Poirot,'' ''Jeeves and Wooster,'' and ''Rosemary & Thyme.''Embassy Pictures Embassy Pictures Corporation (also and later known as Avco Embassy Pictures as well as Embassy Films Associates) was an American independent film production and distribution studio responsible for such films as '' The Graduate'', '' The Prod ...

with the alternative title ''Island of the Ghouls''. In the film, the waters surrounding an island become contaminated by chemical dumping, and people who eat fish caught in those waters become deformed and violent.

Plot

An outsider visits a remote isolated village that has seemingly shunned the modern life. Doctor Del Shaw, an investigator from the British ecological watchdog group nicknamed Doomwatch, is sent to the island of Balfe, to file a report on the effects of a recent oil tanker spill. He becomes fascinated with the mysterious

behavioural Behavior (American English) or behaviour (British English) is the range of actions and mannerisms made by individuals, organisms, systems or artificial entities in some environment. These systems can include other systems or organisms as wel ...

disorder Disorder may refer to randomness, non-order, or no intelligible pattern. Disorder may also refer to: Healthcare * Disorder (medicine), a functional abnormality or disturbance * Mental disorder or psychological disorder, a psychological pattern ...

s of the locals who display rudeness and random aggression and a strange genetic prevalence of thick lips and sloping brows. Investigation shows that the villagers have been suffering over a prolonged period from hormonal disorders, which are being caused by leaking drums of growth stimulants that have been dumped offshore. The islanders have been eating contaminated fish and develop a disorder of excessive hormonal growth, which produces aggression and eventually madness, attributed to a form of

acromegaly Acromegaly is a disorder that results from excess growth hormone (GH) after the growth plates have closed. The initial symptom is typically enlargement of the hands and feet. There may also be an enlargement of the forehead, jaw, and nose. Othe ...

. Rather than seek help from the mainland they hide those who are deformed from any newcomers.

Cast

as Dr. Del Shaw *

as Victoria Brown * John Paul as Dr. Spencer Quist *

Simon Oates Simon Oates (6 January 1932 – 20 May 2009) was an English actor best known for his roles on television. Born in Canning Town, east London and moving to Finchley in his teens, Oates trained as a heating engineer for his father's firm before ...

as Dr. John Ridge * Jean Trend as Dr. Fay Chantry * Joby Blanshard as Colin Bradley *

George Sanders George Henry Sanders (3 July 1906 – 25 April 1972) was a British actor and singer whose career spanned over 40 years. His heavy, upper-class English accent and smooth, bass voice often led him to be cast as sophisticated but villainous chara ...

as The Admiral * Percy Herbert as PC Hartwell * Shelagh Fraser as Mrs. Betty Straker *

Geoffrey Keen Geoffrey Keen (21 August 1916 – 3 November 2005) was an English actor who appeared in supporting roles in many films. He is well known for playing British Defence Minister Sir Frederick Gray in the ''James Bond'' films. Biography Early lif ...

as Sir Henry Leyton *

Joseph O'Conor Joseph O'Conor (14 February 1916 – 21 January 2001) was an Irish actor and playwright. Early years O'Conor was born in DublinAlan Strachan ''The Independent'', 2 February 2001Stephen GilbertObituary ''The Guardian'', 25 January 2001 on ...

as Vicar * Norman Bird as Brewer *

Constance Chapman Constance Chapman (29 March 1912 – 10 August 2003) was an English character actor working in theatre and television. She also made occasional film appearances. She made her stage debut in 1938 in ''Hay Fever'' at the Knightstone Theatre, West ...

as Miss Johnson * Michael Brennan as Tom Straker * James Cosmo as Bob Gillette

Production

The sets were designed by the

art director Art director is the title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, film and television, the Internet, and video games. It is the charge of a sole art director to supervise and unify the vis ...

Colin Grimes.

Filming

The film was made at

Pinewood Studios Pinewood Studios is a British film and television studio located in the village of Iver Heath, England. It is approximately west of central London. The studio has been the base for many productions over the years from large-scale films to t ...

and

location shooting Location shooting is the shooting of a film or television production in a real-world setting rather than a sound stage or backlot. The location may be interior or exterior. The filming location may be the same in which the story is set (for ex ...

took place around

Polkerris Polkerris ( kw, Pollkerys, meaning ''fortified pool'') is a small village on the south coast of Cornwall, United Kingdom. It forms part of the civil parish of Fowey. The village is part of the Rashleigh estate which is commemorated in the na ...

, Mevagissey and

Polperro Polperro ( kw, Porthpyra, meaning ''Pyra's cove'') is a large village, civil parish, and fishing harbour within the Polperro Heritage Coastline in south Cornwall, England. Its population is around 1,554. Polperro, through which runs the River ...

and Chapel Porth in

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a Historic counties of England, historic county and Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people ...

, as well as the London Heliport in

Battersea Battersea is a large district in south London, part of the London Borough of Wandsworth, England. It is centred southwest of Charing Cross and extends along the south bank of the River Thames. It includes the Battersea Park. History Batt ...

Critical reception

For ''

Radio Times ''Radio Times'' (currently styled as ''RadioTimes'') is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves ...

'', Tom Hutchinson awarded the film two stars out of five, writing "this mystery thriller crash-landed unhappily in the swamp of horror instead of on the firmer ground of science fact or fiction ..It's risibly alarmist, certainly, but the environmental dangers it pinpoints are only too topical." ''

Halliwell's Film Guide Robert James Leslie Halliwell (23 February 1929 – 21 January 1989) was a British film critic, encyclopaedist and television rights buyer for ITV, the British commercial network, and Channel 4. He is best known for his reference guides, '' Fil ...

'' described it as "an unsatisfactory horror film".

References

External links

* https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0068498/
Doomwatch film locations
www.reelstreets.com {{Peter Sasdy 1972 films 1970s science fiction thriller films British science fiction horror films British science fiction thriller films Folk horror films Films directed by Peter Sasdy Films shot at Pinewood Studios Films scored by John Scott (composer) Films set on fictional islands Films set in Cornwall Films shot in Cornwall Films set in London Films shot in London Films with screenplays by Clive Exton 1970s English-language films 1970s British films