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"Hammer House of Horror" Witching Time (1980)


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6 out of 6 people found the following review useful:
Reasonable Short Story of Hammer House of Horror, 15 July 2006
6/10
Author: Claudio Carvalho from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

In the isolated Woodstock Farmer, the workaholic composer David Winter (Jon Finch) is depressed because he feels that his wife, the actress Mary (Prunella Gee), is unfaithful. In a stormy night, Lucinda Jessup (Patricia Quinn), a witch from the Seventeenth Century and former dweller of the farm, arrives in the barn and possesses David. Mary fights against Lucinda trying to recover David.

"Witching Time" is a reasonable short story of the "Hammer House of Horror" show. The screenplay and mainly the characters are not well developed and the viewer never knows, for example, the motives why Mary is having an affair with Charles, if she seems to like David. Or what happened with the dog Billy? In spite of the flaws, it entertains. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "Tempo de Bruxaria" ("Witching Time")

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5 out of 7 people found the following review useful:
Reasonable Short Story of Hammer House of Horror, 9 October 2005
6/10
Author: Claudio Carvalho from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

In the isolated Woodstock Farmer, the workaholic composer David Winter (Jon Finch) is depressed because he feels that his wife, the actress Mary (Prunella Gee), is unfaithful. In a stormy night, Lucinda Jessup (Patricia Quinn), a witch from the Seventeenth Century and former dweller of the farm, arrives in the barn and possesses David. Mary fights against Lucinda trying to recover David.

"Witching Time" is a reasonable short story of the "Hammer House of Horror" show. The screenplay and mainly the characters are not well developed and the viewer never knows, for example, the motives why Mary is having an affair with Charles, if she seems to like David. Or what happened with the dog Billy? In spite of the flaws, it entertains. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "Tempo de Bruxaria" ("Witching Time")

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3 out of 4 people found the following review useful:
Very good for what it is, 26 May 2003
5/10
Author: Wayne Malin (wwaayynnee51@hotmail.com) from United States

It's an episode from the British TV series "Hammer House of Horror".

A film composer David Winter (Jon Finch) is unhappily living with his wife Mary (Prunella Gee) who's having an affair. One night he's home alone and a witch (Patricia Quinn) appears--it seems she transported herself from the 1600s where she was about to be burnt at the stake. She proceeds to make life hell for David--she wants him body and soul and prepares to take his wife out of the picture--permanently.

For a TV show it's very well-done. There are some beautiful sets with top-notch production values. The story is more than a little far-fetched but the cast gives it their all. Quinn and Gee are very good--Finch is just OK and Ian McCullough is pretty good in his small role.

My only complaint was the gratuitous nudity--it's not needed and was distracting.

An enjoyable 50 minute little film. Perfect viewing for a rainy day (which is how I saw it)!

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1 out of 1 people found the following review useful:
There's No Place Like Home!, 8 July 2008
8/10
Author: ccthemovieman-1 from Lockport, NY, United States

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

This was my first look at this short-lived British TV horror series, but I had seen a couple of Hammer horror films (Horror of Dracula, Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter) and thought highly-enough of them to give this a look.

This first episode was a shocker - not for the horror but for all the nudity. Was this "regular" TV in England in 1980? If so, it showed a lot more skin than what we see in North America. There were three separate scenes showing naked women and their breasts, one scene where a guy put his hand on one, and another scene with man a top of a woman faking intercourse. Hey, I'm not complaining.

The story is a simple one: a witch who had disappeared in the 17th century comes back to her old house and makes life tough for the married man. The latter, Jon Finch as "David Winter," wasn't much of an actor, but his wife wasn't bad and was a really beauty. She was be Prunella Gee as "Mary." The husband suspected her, rightly so, of having an affair and that plays a part in this story.

Patricia Quinn was entertaining as the laughing witch "Lucinda Jessup," who comes back with a mean streak in her and has a good time tormenting the couple until things go wrong at the end. As a man, I'd say it was particular fun to see the two women going at it! This starts off slowly but once "Lucinda" starts stirring up things, it gets very entertaining.

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1 out of 1 people found the following review useful:
Hammer Time! No…Witching Hammer Time!, 21 November 2006
6/10
Author: Coventry from the Draconian Swamp of Unholy Souls

The first episode of Hammer's short-running "House of Horror" series and I can't really say I'm disappointed, although it's very different in style and tone compared to all those lovely Gothic horror films the production company served us. Perhaps this is partly due to the fact that Hammer's reign of horror had past already by the year 1980. The company's biggest successes were released between the mid-1950's and the early 1970's and they covered pretty much every field of the genre, going from the abominable snowman of the Himalayas to Count Dracula munching blood in the present day of London. Although I really can't judge after seeing one single episode, this show lacks that typical and good old-fashioned goth ambiance as well as the gruesome make-up effects that dominated the movies. The plot of "Witching Time" nevertheless hints at Gothic themes, with the reincarnation of a 17th Century witch in the contemporary countryside of Britain. During a wild thunderstorm in the isolated Woodstock region, where composer David Winter awaits the homecoming of his adulterous wife Mary, the condemned witch Lucinda appears out of nowhere and immediately claims David to be her own personal slave. Through black magic spells and voodoo, Lucinda attempts to eliminate Mary (who suddenly decided to remain faithful to her husband) and to grow more powerful. Admittedly the running time of 60 minutes is too short for detailed character drawings, but the viewer never really feels sympathy for David and Mary's situation while Lucinda's character nearly isn't menacing enough to evoke scares. Sure she decapitates innocent birds and forces David to set his own wife on fire, but her grimaces aren't exactly petrifying. The climax is rather exciting, though, and both Patricia Quinn and Prunella Gee provide the short movie with a tad bit of nudity. I hope the next installments in Hammer's House of Horror will be slightly improving, but even when this quality level is maintained, I won't regret having bought the DVD box set.

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Flawed but interesting tale of witchcraft, 20 June 2009
6/10
Author: Prof-Hieronymos-Grost from Ireland

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

David Winter (Jon Finch) is a reclusive hard working film composer, he lives in the remote Woodstock Farm which he as converted into a recording studio. His wife Mary (Prunella Gee) is a successful actress, who is off working most of the time which leaves David thinking she is having an affair, as a result he is constantly hitting the Scotch and his work has subsequently been affected. On one such evening when his spirits are low, David goes to tend the horses in the stable as a sudden storm is about to break, there huddled in the straw he finds what he thinks is his startled dog hiding from the storm, but it turns out to be a woman, naked but for a loose fitting hooded cloak. She is startled by her surroundings and introduces herself as Lucinda Jessop, a witch no less who proclaims to have been transported from the 1600's to the present, back to Woodstock Farm her former home. Having been on the run from the local Witchfinder, she takes great glee in taunting her former adversary. Needless to say despite her seeming authenticity, David believes she is an escaped lunatic and locks her in an upstairs bedroom, while he calls his friend Dr. Charles Henderson who may be able to help. Charles who is Mary's secret lover is none too surprised when he finds nobody in the still locked bedroom, believing David is hallucinating due to the mix of alcohol and medication and suspicion of adultery, he sedates David. After his wife returns, David explains that the witch has him under her spell, a spell he doesn't feel able to fight, she doesn't believe the story either, although after Mary finds deep scratches in his back she does some local detective work that shows that such a witch did exist and was the only witch to escape the clutches of the witchfinder. So is David just drunk or going mad? or is there some truth to the story? After an accident that sees her in hospital, Mary is left with no doubt.

A tale of witchcraft from Hammer's House of Horror, is for the most part an interesting story, that provides some background into witch hunts of the past. Irish actress Patricia Quinn may be nothing to look at, but her portrayal of the traumatized and menacing witch Lucinda feels very authentic, she nails the character with an effective mix of wide eyed cackling and some fine acting. Jon Finch perhaps best known for his role in Hitchcock's Frenzy, is here, a good few pounds heavier and fairly unrecognizable with a tired and disheveled look, his demise into an alcoholic stupor coupled with his fear of being powerless gives us a hint of his past glories. Director Leaver is more used to detective and crime shows and was probably the wrong choice to helm this one, in more horror friendly hands it could have been very good. As tales of witchcraft go, this isn't bad though, a suitable atmosphere of menace and magic is built up and when all seems like being lost for the Winters, there is a satisfactory and somewhat exciting and fiery climax to events. There is some nudity involved here which is strangely rather distracting, in a bad way, i don't say that often, but this is a case in point where a clothed witch would have made for a better film.

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Decent Opener to Hammer House of Horror, 12 June 2009
7/10
Author: Benjamin Gauss from Salzburg, Austria

As a great fan of the Hammer Studios and enthusiastic watcher of their Gothic Horror films, I wonder what took me so long to start watching their TV-series "Hammer House of Horror", which only ran for one season in 1980. Now that I've seen the first four episodes of the show, I can say that it easily satisfies my expectations so far. While this first episode "Witching Time" is maybe not the most imaginative Horror story ever told, and doesn't quite deliver the marvelous Gothic atmosphere that I love Hammer's films from the 50s to the 70s for, it doubtlessly does accomplish to tell a surprisingly spooky tale and create some genuine creepiness within fifty minutes. Film score composer David Winter (Jon Finch) is tormented by the 17th century witch Lucinda (Patricia Quinn)... While he story may be simple, but for a running time of less than an hour, it is effective and delivers many creepy moments. Northern Irish actress Patricia Quinn, who is probably best known for her role in "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" (1975) as well as the fantastic Monty Python comedy "Monty Python's Meaning of Life" (1983), is wonderfully malicious in her role which fits her like a glove. Jon Finch is also quite good as David, and while Prunella Gee, who plays his adulterous actress wife, may not be the best actress ever, she is definitely nice to look at. The episode is accompanied by a nice score which plays along well with the atmosphere. Overall, "Witching Time" is a very entertaining episode with several truly creepy moments, and decent opener to the series.

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Hammer House Of Horror: Witching Time (Don Leaver, 1980) (TV) **1/2, 20 October 2007
6/10
Author: MARIO GAUCI (marrod@melita.com) from Naxxar, Malta

While I can't say that I was especially looking forward to this series – considering the undeniable drop in quality during Hammer's last years (I did, however, catch at least one memorable episode from its follow-up, HAMMER HOUSE OF MYSTERY AND SUSPENSE [1984]) – this one certainly sets it off to a pretty good start. Incidentally, it was unusual to have nudity in a TV show of the era, even if – by now – this was pretty much a Hammer requisite. Here, we get a predictable but well-handled plot involving a strained relationship accentuated by the intervention of the supernatural. The 'attacks' on the heroine by the jealous witch and the latter's influence on her husband (causing his descent into near-madness) are, again, par for the course – as is, needless to say, the witch's eventual come-uppance by virtue of the elements (water and fire). The opening episode of this particular series is helped a lot by good casting (notably Patricia Quinn as the witch – alternating between hysteria, sensuality and menace) and the remote countryside setting.

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I rather liked it., 7 May 2007
7/10
Author: Paul Andrews (poolandrews@hotmail.com) from UK

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

Hammer House of Horror: Witching Time is set in rural England on Woodstock farm where stressed musician David Winter (Jon Finch) lives with his actress wife Mary (Prunella Gee) & is currently composing the music for a horror film. One night while looking for his dog Billy David finds a mysterious woman in his barn, calling herself Lucinda Jessop (Patricia Quinn) she claims to be a witch who has transported herself from 300 years in the past to now. Obviously rather sceptical David has a hard time believing her so he locks her in a room in his farmhouse & calls his doctor Charles (Ian McCulloch) to come examine her, however once he arrives & they enter the room Lucinda has disappeared. Charles puts it down to David drinking too much but over the next few day strange & disturbing things begin to happen to David & Mary...

Witching Time was episode 1 from the short lived British anthology horror series produced by Hammer studios for TV & originally aired here in the UK during September 1980, the first of two Hammer House of Horror episodes to be directed by Don Leaver (episode 13 The Mark of Satan being the other) I actually rather liked this. As a series Hammer House of Horror dealt with various different themes & were all unconnected to each other except in name & unsurprisingly Watching Time is a sinister & effective little tale about a witch, the script by Anthony Read benefits from it's slight 50 odd minute duration & moves along at a nice pace. The character's are pretty good as is the dialogue, there are some nice scenes here & I liked the way it never quite reveals whether David & Mary are going crazy or not. I think it's a well structured, entertaining & reasonably creepy horror themed TV show that I enjoyed more than I thought I would.

Being made for British TV meant the boys at Hammer had a lower budget than usual, if that was even possible, & as such there is no gorgeous period settings here as in their most well know Frankenstein & Dracula films although the contemporary English setting does give it a certain atmosphere that you can relate to a bit more. Another TV based restriction is that the exploitation levels are lower than you might hope for, there's some nudity & gore but not much although I didn't mind too much as the story here is pretty good. It's well made for what it is & Hammer's experience on their feature films probably helped make these look pretty good, the acting is good as well with genre favourite Ian McCulloch making a bit-part appearance.

Witching Time is a good start to the Hammer House of Horror series, as a 50 minute piece of British TV it's pretty damned good, now why don't they make show's like this over here anymore?

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3 out of 7 people found the following review useful:
One of the Hammer classics (sort of), 31 May 2002
5/10
Author: Christopher (page79) from Cincinnati, Ohio

The British Hammer Films put out film after film after film over the course of about 20 or so years. Hammer became easily connected with cheap Horror. Amongst hundreds of films some stand out as being classics (if only when compared within the Hammer collection) This one is not bad. If you excuse the fact that it was made in Britain in the 80s which amazingly looks like America in the 70s. The story itself is fairly well paced. The acting is good. I did think the ending could of used a little work. A question I asked myself after it was over, and its a question that you really wont understand unless you see it, was "What happened to the dog?" You can find this gem on the DVD collection of Hammer classics. (copy and paste link) http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00005MKON/qid22904433/sr>2-1/ref=sr_2_1/104-5069885-1464715

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