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The Gorgon (1964)
Country
of Origin: UK
Year of Production: 1964
Running Times: 83 mins 18 sec
Length: 7,497 ft
Format: Eastmancolour 35mm
Ratio:
Sound: CREDITS
PRODUCTION
Production Company: Hammer Films
Producer: Anthony Nelson Keys
Production Manager: Don Weeks
SCRIPT
Script: John Gilling
Story: J. Llewellyn Devine
DIRECTION
Director: Terence Fisher
Assistant Director: Bert Batt
PHOTOGRAPHY
Director of Photography: Michael Reed
Camera Operator: C. Cooney
Electrician: George Robinson
Grip: Albert Cowland
Stills: Tom Edwards
Colour: Pathe
EDITING AND POST-PRODUCTION
Supervising Editor: James Needs
Editor: Eric Boyd-Perkins
MUSIC
Music: James Bernard
Musical Supervisor: Marcus Dods
Musical Director: James Bernard
SOUND
Sound Recording: Ken Rawkins
Sound Editor: Roy Hyde
Sound System: RCA Sound Recording
MAKE UP AND
COSTUMES
Make Up: Roy Ashton, Richard Mills
Hair: Frieda Steiger
Wardrobe Mistress: Rosemary Burrows
SPECIAL EFFECTS
Special Effects: Syd Pearson
DESIGN AND SET
CONSTRUCTION
Production Designer: Bernard Robinson
Art Director: Don Mingaye
Construction Manager: Arthur Banks
Props: Tommy Money
MISCELLANEOUS
Continuity: Pauline Harlow
Studio Manager: A.F. Kelly
Publicity Supervisor: Dennison Thornton
Publicist: Alan Arnold
LOCATIONS
Studio: Bray Studios, Berkshire, England, UK
Locations: Black Park, Bucks, England, UK
STUNTS
Fight Arranger: Peter Diamond
CAST
Peter Cushing (Dr Namaroff)
Christopher Lee (Professor Karl Meister)
Richard Pasco (Paul Heitz)
Barbara Shelley (Carla Hoffmann)
Michael Goodliffe (Professor Jules Heitz)
Patrick Troughton (Kanof)
Jack Watson (Ratoff)
Joyce Hemson (Martha)
Jeremy Longhurst (Bruno Heitz)
Tony Gilpin (Sascha Cass)
Redmond Philips (Hans)
Joseph O'Conor (coroner)
Alister Williamson (Janus Cass)
Michael Peake (constable)
Sally Nesbitt (nurse)
Prudence Hyman (Chatelaine / Megeira, the Gorgon) PLOT SUMMARY
A series of strange
deaths in the town of Vandorf results in a series of
bodies that have been turned to stone. Professor Heitz
comes to believe that the culprit is Megaera, the last of
the Gorgon sisters from Greek mythology. When he's killed
by the creature, it falls to Heitz's son, Paul and
Professor Meister to track down the snake-haired monster. CAPSULE REVIEW
An intriguing idea goes
nowhere in this beautifully shot but curiously
uninvolving Hammer film. The merging of Greek mythology
with Hammer's mittel-European Gothic promised a lot more
than the Gorgon manages to deliver, despite some
excellent performances - sadly, Fisher's direction is
uninspired and Gilling's flat script never really gets
going. AVAILABILITY
UK
Theatrical Distributor: Columbia Pictures
Video Distributor: RCA Columbia
USA
Theatrical Distributor: Columbia Pictures
Video Distributor: Goodtimes Video; RCA / Columbia
Laserdisc Distributor: Image Engineering Inc
CENSORSHIP HISTORY
Finland
Rating: K-16
Spain
Rating: T
UK
Rating: X
USA
Rating: unrated TIMELINE
1964
October
18: UK - theatrical release
1965
February
17: USA - theatrical release
1997
October
15: France - shown at the Cherbourg-Octeville Festival of
Irish and British Film POSTER TAGS
Petrifies the screen with Horror! ALTERNATIVE TITLES
Die Brennenden Augen von Schloss
Bortimore - German title
La medusa - Spanish title
Lo sguardo che uccide - Italian title LINKS
FOOTAGE INCLUDED IN
The Many Faces of Christopher Lee (1996) REFERENCES
MAGAZINES
British National Film catalogue vol.2
(1964) (UK)
credits, synopsis
Classic Images no.253
(July 1996) p.42 (USA)
illustrated interview
Daily Cinema no.8956 (26
August 1964) p.9 (UK)
review
Dark Terrors no.3 p.16
(UK)
note
Dark Terrors no.11
(December 1995) pp.9-15 (UK)
illustrated credits, synopsis, production notes
Film and TV Technician vol.30
no.237 (November 1964) (UK)
credits
The House That Hammer Built no.4
(August 1997) pp.220-230 (UK)
illustrated credits, synopsis, review
The House That Hammer Built no.10
(October 1998) pp.91-106 (UK)
illustrated article
Kine Weekly no.2969 (27
August 1964) p.11 (UK)
review
Monthly Film Bulletin vol.31
no.369 (October 1964) p.149 (UK)
credits, synopsis, review
Shivers no.52 p.8
note
TV Times 30 January - 5
February 1988 p.34 (UK)
review
Variety 26 August 1964
(USA)
credits, review
BOOKS
Christopher Lee: The Authorised
Screen History pp.98-99
illustrated review (by Jonathan Rigby)
The Hammer Story pp.82-83
illustrated article, review (by Marcus Hearn and Alan
Barnes) KEYWORDS
greek mythology; medusa;
legends
Last Updated:
1 January, 2009
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