Double Feature
The Fearless Vampire Killers
Director Roman Polanski was a big fan of Hammer Films and, reportedly, one of the main reasons he made the dazzlingly macabre comedy The Fearless Vampire Killers was as a tribute to the British gothic horror maestros. It’s also the film where he began dating rising star (and future spouse) Sharon Tate who appears here as the innkeeper’s daughter whose whisked away by Count von Krolock (Ferdy Mane) to his snowbound mountain castle. The eccentric, elderly vampire hunter Professor Abronsius (Jack MacGowran) and awkward assistant Alfred (Polanski, doing double duty) are soon in hot pursuit to rescue the damsel-in-distress. Cinematographer Douglas Slocombe lensed the deep, saturated hues, capturing an ethereal nightmare fairyland. This was Polanski’s first film in color and scope, and the delirious original music was composed by Krzysztof Komeda (who did scores for Polanski’s Cul-de-Sac and Rosemary’s Baby).
“Funny and scary, this is vintage Polanski. A beautifully-designed, subtly subversive parody of the 1960s Hammer films.” – Kim Newman, Empire Magazine
- Director
- Roman Polanski
- Writer
- Story and Screenplay by Gerard Brach and Roman Polanski
- Starring
- Jack MacGowran, Alfie Bass, Jessie Robins, Sharon Tate, Ferdy Mayne, Roman Polanski
- Year
- 1967
- Country
- USA/UK
- Format
- 35mm
- Running Time
- 107 minutes
The Wrecking Crew
Dean Martin had already been goofing on the James Bond bandwagon since 1966, with three previous outings as the boozing secret agent ladies man Matt Helm. With The Wrecking Crew, he wisely brings back director Phil Karlson (who did the first in the series, The Silencers) for the final entry. Martin’s Helm character was always surrounded by beautiful women in the roles of heroines and villains. Sharon Tate’s growing confidence in her comedic skills makes her performance as spy ally Freya Carlson a pleasure to watch as she goofily attempts to aid Helm in foiling arch villain Count Contini (Nigel Green), who is trying to wreck the global economy. Contini has his own stable of deadly females (Elke Sommer and Nancy Kwan) to thwart Helm’s efforts. Dino was so impressed with Tate’s presence and comic timing that he wanted to bring her character back for the next Helm picture. Unhappily, the film’s diminished box office returns, and Tate’s untimely tragic death in August, 1969, made this impossible. Although Tate still had one more movie in the can – the Italian comedy, The 13 Chairs – it was posthumously released.
“The Wrecking Crew emerges as a very entertaining, relaxed spy comedy. It features Dean Martin, Elke Sommer, Nancy Kwan and Sharon Tate, the latter in a delightful comedy performance.” – Variety
- Director
- Phil Karlson
- Writer
- Screenplay by William McGivern based on the novel by Donald Hamilton
- Starring
- Dean Martin, Elke Sommer, Sharon Tate, Nancy Kwan, Nigel Green, Tina Louise
- Year
- 1968
- Rated
- PG
- Country
- USA
- Format
- 35mm
- Running Time
- 104 minutes