hammer

100 Years Of Christopher Lee

Few actors have had an impact on so many generations in the way that Christopher Lee did. The tall, dark and enigmatic actor’s deep baritone voice meant that he sounded as iconic as he looked and he had a career which saw him enter the Guinness [...]

May 27, 2022

Horror Movies To Watch This Halloween

October is when the nights get darker and more mysterious. It’s the month where people like to delve deep into the horror genre and watch a variety of scary movies as Halloween approaches. Movies In Focus has put together a [...]

October 2, 2021

Uncovering Curiosities: Christian Sparkes’ HAMMER

Writer-director Christian Sparkes’ 2020 film, Hammer is an intriguing dramatic thriller which works well despite its limited scope. The film is anchored by a wonderfully rich performance by the great Will Patton, a long-standing supporting actor [...]

September 13, 2021

Uncovering Curiosities: Freddie Francis’ THE SKULL

They don’t make movies like The Skull anymore. Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee top-line this 1965 British horror that sees Cushing’s occult collector acquire the skull of the Marquis de Sade – but the evil relic soon takes on a life of [...]

September 3, 2021

Uncovering Curiosities: Don Chaffey’s ONE MILLION YEARS B.C.

Hammer Films is best known for its velvet-tinged gothic horror movies, but few know that it was the studio behind One Million Years B.C., the movie that launched a million posters! Don Chaffey’s 1996 movie is most famous for that Raquel Welch [...]

July 1, 2021

Remembering The Great Christopher Lee

May 27, 2021

Podcast – Episode 1: Writer & Director Nicholas Jarecki Talks To Movies In Focus

Writer and director Nicholas Jarecki talks to Niall Browne about his opioid thriller Crisis, starring Gary Oldman, Armie Hammer & Evangeline Lilly. Listen below or subscribe wherever you get your [...]

March 20, 2021

Uncovering Curiosities: Terence Fisher’s THE MAN WHO COULD CHEAT DEATH

The Man Who Could Cheat Death is an all but forgotten Hammer film from 1959. Terence Fisher’s horror may not be Hammer at its best but it does have enough intriguing elements (and Christopher Lee) to make it watchable. Anton Diffring is Georges [...]

March 2, 2021

Notebook Reviews: SLEEPY HOLLOW

Tim Burton – 1999 Sleepy Hollow is a good looking and atmospheric Hammer-style horror from Tim Burton. It doesn’t quite live up to its potential, but this it ticks all the right boxes and Johnny Depp is very good. Christina Ricci is [...]

January 11, 2021

Behind The Scenes: Terence Fisher Directs Christopher Lee On The Set Of 1959’s Hammer Horror THE MUMMY

The Mummy takes one of horror’s most enduring characters and adds two of the genre’s most iconic stars to deliver a film that still holds up fifty years on. Director Terence Fisher may not be a great stylist, but he knows how to build tension [...]

January 10, 2021

Darth Vader Actor David Prowse Dies Aged 85

David Prowse, the former bodybuilder who played Darth Vader in the original Star Wars trilogy, has died at the age of 85. The English-born Prowse embodied the physical presence of Vader and the voice was provided by James Earl Jones. Prowse also [...]

November 29, 2020

25 Great Horror Movies To Watch This October

October is the month where people like to delve deep into the horror genre and watch a variety of scary movies in the lead-up to Halloween. Movies In Focus has put together a list of 25 great horror movies. Some of them are classics films and others [...]

October 4, 2020

Respect To Tod Browning’s DRACULA

Tod Browning’s 1931 film, Dracula kick-started Hollywood’s fascination with horror. Almost 100 years on and the adaptation of Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel remains the quintessential vampire film. The massive success of the Bela Lugosi starrer [...]

September 7, 2020

Uncovering Curiosities: Peter Cushing & Christopher Lee Star In THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES

It’s Holmes under the Hammer with this 1959 screen adaptation of Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Hound Of The Baskervilles. This glorious Hammer production is a faithful adaptation of Doyle’s tale with Peter Cushing and Andre Morell starring [...]

August 11, 2020

Review: Will Patton Is Great In The Dramatic Thriller HAMMER

Writer-director Christian Sparkes’ Hammer is an intriguing dramatic thriller which works well despite its limited scope. The film is anchored by a wonderfully rich performance by the great Will Patton, a long-standing supporting actor who is given [...]

June 14, 2020

Blu-ray Review: Classic Amicus Horror Films THE HOUSE THAT DRIPPED BLOOD & ASYLUM

The House That Dripped Blood Asylum Amicus Productions is often seen as the poor cousin of Hammer Films. The Shepperton Studios based production company churned out a selection of modestly budgeted (but rather successful) horror films throughout the [...]

July 22, 2019

Review: CRUCIBLE OF THE VAMPIRE Looks To A Forgotten Era Of British Horror

Iain Ross-McNamee tries to take British horror back to the late 1960s and early 1970s with Crucible of The Vampire, a solid low budget fright pic that has enough atmosphere, quirky performances and mystery to keep you hooked. The ending is a bit of [...]

February 2, 2019