Back in 1957, Hammer Studios had just experienced their first major international hit with THE CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN, starring Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee. Cushing’s next film for Hammer was not HORROR OF DRACULA like everyone believes; it was 1957’s THE ABOMINABLE SNOWMAN. This film was a departure for Hammer and treaded more into the realm of sci-fi. Hammer hired the respected duo of screenwriter Nigel Keale and director Val Guest to craft the new Abominable Snowman lore. Keale and Guest worked earlier on the Hammer films THE QUATERMASS EXPERIMENT and the sequel, ENEMY FROM SPACE. 20^th Century Fox distributed the film in the US, and marketed it as a schlocky, 50’s style monster film when in truth it was so much more. Now Anchor Bay releases the film as part of their Hammer Collection DVD series.

Besides the behind-the-camera talents of Keale and Guest, THE ABOMINABLE SNOWMAN features an international cast. Peter Cushing’s character is Doctor John Rollason, a plant expert. His young wife, Helen, is played by Maureen (SKYJACKED) Connell. Forrest (THE CRAWLING EYE) Tucker is the glory-hunting scientist, Dr. Tom Friend. Arnold (THE MAN WHO COULD CHEAT DEATH) Marle plays the Llama. And Robert (DEMONS OF THE MIND) Brown portrays master trapper, Ed Shelley. This movie is about a few people who explore the isolated regions of the Himalayas; so there is no need for a big cast.

Doctor John Rollason (Cushing), a botanist, is on a Himalayan expedition with his wife Helen (Connell, and assistant Peter Fox (Richard Wattis). They have been staying at the monastery of Rong-ruk, high in the mountains, where the Lhama (Marle) has shown them great kindness and granted every facility for their work. But the Lhama is aware (through a mysterious power of mind transference) that a second expedition, led by a ruthless adventurer called Tom Friend (Tucker) is advancing towards the monastery. Rollason, too, is aware of this expedition - and its mission. He has kept secret from his wife his desire to join it , and he politely disregards the warning of the Lhama when he tries to dissuade him from joining the expedition.

Friend’s party arrives. It consists of a tough ex-trapper, Ed Shelley (Brown), a Sherpa guide named Kusang (Wolfe Morris) and a likable Scots photographer, McNee (Michael Brill). Helen quarrels bitterly with Rollason when she learns that he and Friend plan to climb into the high valleys in search of the mysterious half-beast, half-human monster known as the Yeti or Abominable Snowman. She denies its existence, but Friend shows them a strange silver flask, containing an enormous human tooth - the tooth of a Yeti. The Lhama confirms that the flask was stolen from the monastery many years ago, but Rollason is not satisfied with the gentle monk's deliberately misleading explanation of the tooth, and is convinced that the Yeti really exists when the Lhama mentions ‘a race of super-intelligent beings who will take over the world when humanity has destroyed itself’.

The five men leave Helen and Fox at the monastery and set out for the high peaks, existing on food and supplies cached by Friend along the same route a year before. After a long hard climb, the party discover the giant footprints of a Yeti. At this point - almost it seems by an unseen influence - disaster strikes the party. McNee's leg is badly injured in one of Shelley's bear traps and at the same time, Rollason discovers that Friend’s interest in the Yeti is only a commercial one.

The squabble between Friend and Rollason ends in an ugly fight and, not long after, the half-crazed McNee is killed in a fall and Kusang the guide flees in panic from the camp to make his way safely back to the monastery. But Friend is determined to carry on - especially when Ed Shelley actually succeeds in shooting a Yeti - a gigantic creature almost eleven feet high, but with a curiously wise and gentle expression even in death.

It is obvious to them that the other Yeti intend to avenge their slain comrade - and Friend persuades Shelley to act as live bait in an ice-cave rigged with a steel net to trap the invading creatures. But the trap fails. Shelley opens fire, but Friend has loaded his gun with blanks - his greed has been too strong even for friendship - and Shelley dies horribly...

Weather conditions are now appalling. Menaced by a blizzard and terrorized by the strange and unearthly powers of the Yeti, even the rugged Friend is ready to pull out - taking the dead Yeti with them on a sled. But the Yeti are relentlessly closing in - separating the two men by their uncanny powers. Demented with panic, Friend tries to shoot down the Yeti as they come for him, but his gunfire only starts an avalanche that buries him forever in the frozen wasteland.

From his refuge in the cave, Rollason watches as the huge, dim shapes of the Yeti gently pick up the bodies of their comrade and depart. At the monastery, Helen and Fox realize that the expedition has failed as Kusang staggers into the courtyard. They set out with a relief party to rescue Rollason and the others, and Helen is overjoyed when she finds her husband is still alive. Wearily, they help him back to the monastery and it is here that Rollason shows he understands the mysterious mission of the Yeti - and the need to protect them from civilization until their time comes. Questioned by the Lhama, Rollason tells him that he and his dead companions have found nothing...

You would think that with a title like THE ABOMINABLE SHOWMAN, the film would be a monster-on the-loose saga with a horror twist. The truth is, Keale and Guest crafted the script to play as an intelligent, psychological science fiction story with philosophical overtones. This allows Cushing and Tucker to get involved in a morality play, which makes for some great dialog. One of Keale’s ideas is that this intelligent race of snowmen are waiting for mankind to destroy themselves, upon which they shall come down from the Himalayas to take over. Though the creatures are big and powerful enough to tear people to shreds, they prefer to use their advanced mental powers to lead the human opposition to their fates. Ultimately, the expedition is destroyed by their own fear and paranoia.

Although 20^th Century Fox marketed the film like a B-monster movie, THE ABOMINABLE SNOWMAN is anything but. The creatures appear in shadows only, and are never fully glimpsed. While this may disappoint many monster fans, it is actually a blessing when viewing today. Even if they had used the best makeup effects possible at the time to depict the beasts, the results would have been a campy looking (and laughable) creature today. But since Keale and Guest left the creature’s appearance to the viewer’s imagination, the film holds up today.

Since the snowmen creatures are only occasionally glimpsed, this leaves the talents of Peter Cushing to take center stage. Normally in a Hammer role, Cushing must share the screen with Chris Lee (Dracula, Frankenstein, The Mummy), or some other monster. But in this film, without other monsters getting significant screen time, Cushing himself rules the roost. Peter was pretty young when he made this, and could project a more physical performance into his character. For instance, Dr. Rollason is an accomplished mountain climber, so we see Cushing leading the other characters while they ascend the steep, snow-covered Himalayas.

The B & W photography evokes the proper dark, eerie mood which leaves you with that unsettling feeling that something truly is out there, and it's inevitably closing in on you. Though many critics and viewers felt that the highly overpraised BLAIR WITCH was original with its idea of the unseen menace that preys upon your doubt and paranoia, it's now obvious that it was nothing more than a slipshod rehash of these notable films that were produced decades earlier.

Hammer tried a lot of new things in THE ABOMINABLE SNOWMAN. For example, when the expedition fails, Cushing’s wife goes up into the mountains to save her husband. This was probably the first time feminism was used in a Hammer film. There is also an element to the film that makes you feel guilty for being human, and thinking that you are above all other living things.

Director Guest creates an absorbing atmosphere of mounting terror from beginning to end as the characters’ (and the viewers’) smugness and complacency is gradually devoured. Then the unknown takes over, and from total helplessness and fear come the terrifying and tragic results. What at first seemed far-fetched now becomes all too real. This skillful technique was effectively employed in Tourneur’s classic, NIGHT OF THE DEMON.

SIGHT

Oh, yeah. Anchor Bay releases THE ABOMINABLE SNOWMAN in a new, 16x9 enhanced widescreen transfer. I love black & white films. It’s pretty rare that you get to enjoy a wonderfully balanced, 16x9 enhanced widescreen black & white transfer (most black & white films are full frame). There is something about watching black & white films on a digital format. Perhaps its because the colors are broken down to a series of 0’s and 1’s; that black & white is a pure digital medium perfect for DVD. Whatever the reasoning, this is one amazing transfer. Thanks to 16x9 enhancement, the film has a glossy, new luster. The sharpness and contrast are perfectly balanced. The detail level is immaculate. The black level is Deep with a capital D. Everything is either pure white, or pure black, making for an eye-catching image. There is no other colors present. There is no edge enhancement, aliasing, or anomalies of any kind. Occasionally, there is a scratch in the print or a patch of grain, but you’d be surprised how infrequently this occurs. This is important because of the locations where the movie was filmed. The panoramic cinematography includes the Himalayan mountains, snow-covered peaks, and isolated stretches of cavernous topography. Much of this footage is filmed from a camera in the sky, making for some truly spectacular and majestic shots. The close ups were filmed with the actors on a fairly convincing soundstage, ripe with detail. Some of these shots also have a foggy, murky look, which helps to elevate the grim mood and atmosphere. The monastery where the Llama lives has great production design and detail, too. I think I can safely say that this is most impressive black & white DVD I’ve seen yet.

SOUND

Anchor Bay has mixed the original mono mix in a new Dolby Digital Mono 2.0 soundtrack. Surprisingly, this new DD Mono 2.0 mix delivers a wide range of frequencies. The sound is crisp, loud, and natural. Other Anchor Bay Hammer titles, like LEGEND OF THE GOLDEN VAMPIRES, have had problematic mono mixes. Not so with THE ABOMINABLE SNOWMAN. There is no hiss, background noise, or audio dropouts. When you raise the volume considerably, there is no distortion. The sound effects, dialog, and music are perfectly synchronized. About the only negative thing I can comment on, is not really DVD or film related. The actor, Arnold Marle, who plays the wise Llama character, has a thick, eastern European accent. I found it nearly impossible to decipher the dialog that the Llama was speaking. This problem is more on the part of the filmmakers themselves, and nothing Anchor Bay could have done would have remedied that (exception for allowing Close Captions, that is). Adding to the foreboding tone of the film is the score. It’s a sinister 1950’s sci-fi type score that should be made available on CD. The score reminds me a lot of the original THE THING score. In fact, this whole movie has a vibe similar to that film.

FEATURES

From the extras menu, you can view the theatrical trailer (2.35.1, mono, 1:41). You can also select the World of Hammer episode entitled PETER CUSHING. This documentary is narrated by the late Oliver Reed and features scenes of Cushing in his greatest roles such as Sherlock Holmes, Van Helsing, and Victor Frankenstein. The clips are from THE CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN, FRANKENSTEIN AND THE MONSTER FROM HELL, THE MUMMY, HORROR OF DRACULA, SHE, HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES, and others. Though this is a nicely assembled tribute to the man, all the scenes from these films are full frame, and have that faded, washed-out look. The documentary is entirely full frame, mono, and runs twenty five minutes. There is also an enlightening audio commentary with director Val Guest and writer Nigel Keale. Each of these filmmakers where recorded for the commentary separately, so their is no interplay between them. Though the commentary is a bit dry, it is very insightful for Hammer fans and film students. Keale talks about how he got into screenwriting. Guest talks a lot about Peter Cushing, whom he addresses as ‘Prop Cushing’, since Cushing would improvise with movie props and never let any of the other stars know. A worthy commentary.

CONCLUSION

This is what horror/sci-fi films are about: chilling suspense, but also with a serious thought-provoking theme. There is certainly no shortage of suspense in this genuinely haunting, well-paced film. There is also no shortage of powerful dialogue, much of which is provided by Cushing’s likable botanist. The characters are all believable and well-written, and the isolated monastery, lonely mountains, and atmospheric scenery (which look great on this DVD) provide the proper mood. This is a must-see DVD for true fans of the master, Peter Cushing. Anchor Bay should be given some kind of award for giving this overlooked gem it’s just due. Due to the high level of class inherent in THE ABOMINABLE SNOWMAN, gore fans who need to see a head squished every ten minutes may want to look elsewhere.

THE ABOMINABLE SNOWMAN is available from DVDEmpire.com

THE ABOMINABLE SNOWMAN/SHATTER Double Feature is available from DVDEmpire.com

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