Nineteen Eighty-Four (1954)

Film of 2012 #37

The TV adaption from 1954 starring Peter Cushing as Winston Smith, while I know the concept and idea behind 1984, I have never read the book or actually seen a version of the story so this was my first view of the story right through. Or was it, I have actually seen a Christian Bale film called Equilibrium which I really enjoyed and after seeing this film realised that it is a modern retelling of the same basic story. So while watching this I did keep thinking back to Equilibrium but it did not detract from the enjoyment of the performances from Peter Cushing and Yvonne Mitchell, there is also a supporting role for Donald Pleasence. So for those unaware of the story from George Orwell it is set in a future where Big Brother is an all powerful figure at the head of The Party and the society they have created is montired and the greatest crime is thought crime which results in brainwashing. 

I have never read the story but presume as this is one of the first film adaptations that they have stuck pretty close to the source material and it still resonates as much as it would have back then. I think that in the 1950's and 60's when the Cold War was happening there will have been a greater impact and importance on the freedoms and i think that back then the fear that we could end up in a society like that portrayed in 1984 would have been more believable, In today's world while we worry that our freedoms are being infringed nothing like 1984 is likely to happen in the short term.

I want to see the John Hurt portrayal of the character before saying if you need to see this version as a recommendation, I think the story should be seen so if you can only see this version then you should see it and the story is worth seeing in some format, even if it by watching Equilibrium. This version gets 3 stars from me and is worth seeing how the story was told in 1954. It is available as a Public Domain download, not the best quality but good enough yo enjoy.

The Satanic Rites of Dracula (1973)

Film of 2012 #26
No Spoilers

This film is the last Hammer film to star both Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing and is also the last film for Christopher Lee to play Dracula. It is a sequel of sorts to some of the earlier Dracula films but at the time I watched it I was not aware of any of the history, though the film itself clearly references previous stories and battles. Peter Cushing plays Lorrimer Van Helsing and his niece is played by Joanna Lumley who I did not recognise to begin with but later in the film you can clearly see that it is her. 

The film starts quite confusingly with a ritual and a prisoner escaping and through the main characters finding out what happened you are brought up to speed. Scotland Yard are investigating a group of influential individuals who appear to be up to no good and within their investigations they discover that the group are headed up by Christopher Lee. He turns out to be Count Dracula resurrected from the dead as Van Helsing had killed him two years previously. This film is one of those older films that just accepts supernatural goings on, you have a case when someone known to the main characters is turned and they shout she is a vampire and there is simple acceptance of this fact as it is normal everyday goings on in the Hammer world. 

This was really a very enjoyable film, there are some issues around the pacing of it and I think that modern audiences would struggle with it as it moves at it's own pace. It is a good vs evil story and you know where it is going. a big plus point is that it is near the end of the Hammer films as there are plenty of b**bs on show and there is still some tension built up so a three star film for me, very enjoyable.