As a suspense film, I thought CROW HOLLOW was a bit lacking. This is a slow, meandering type film that has a good location in a gloomy country house populated by eccentric sisters. The acting is hard to fault and certainly the cast members give solid performances if not outstanding. I would have to lay the blame at the door of screenwriter Vivian Milroy, who didn't seem to have much experience of the mystery genre. The resultant film is plodding although not without merit.
Natasha Parry plays the protagonist role in this film. It's a typical part that has a little of REBECCA about it; a new bride moving into an ancestral home where she may or may not be going out of her mind. Parry is a fine choice for lead, she's lovely, fragile, and determined, all in the same breath. As her husband, Donald Houston is less interesting - I've never warmed to him - but there are good roles in support for the fine Melissa Stribling (DRACULA) as the friend and confidant and the delightful Esma Cannon (CARRY ON CRUISING) as the eccentric aunt.
CROW HOLLOW does well with a handful of shock sequences, one of which involving a tarantula that was later borrowed by Hammer for their adaptation of HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES. However, the mystery aspects of the storyline feel dragged out and I found the ending to be more than a little unbelievable. It's watchable enough, but in a genre crowded with similar movies, CROW HOLLOW doesn't really stand out.
Natasha Parry plays the protagonist role in this film. It's a typical part that has a little of REBECCA about it; a new bride moving into an ancestral home where she may or may not be going out of her mind. Parry is a fine choice for lead, she's lovely, fragile, and determined, all in the same breath. As her husband, Donald Houston is less interesting - I've never warmed to him - but there are good roles in support for the fine Melissa Stribling (DRACULA) as the friend and confidant and the delightful Esma Cannon (CARRY ON CRUISING) as the eccentric aunt.
CROW HOLLOW does well with a handful of shock sequences, one of which involving a tarantula that was later borrowed by Hammer for their adaptation of HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES. However, the mystery aspects of the storyline feel dragged out and I found the ending to be more than a little unbelievable. It's watchable enough, but in a genre crowded with similar movies, CROW HOLLOW doesn't really stand out.