Rating: C
Dir: Peter Sasdy.
Star: Ian Bannen, Judy Geeson, John Paul, Simon Oates.
It’s interesting to note that this did the “outsider authority figure goes to a remote island community, encounters hostility from the locals, and uncovers something nasty beneath the surface” thing a year before The Wicker Man got there. There’s even a hot schoolmistress in both. This was a spin-off movie from the British TV series of the same name, which had started two years previously. Some of the cast here (Oates and Paul) came over from the show, albeit more in supporting roles. Bannen, the first Oscar-nominated Scottish actor, and Geeson came on board to offer a bit more star power, while Sasdy was a genre veteran, who had directed multiple Hammer films, including Countess Dracula.
The plot sends Dr. Del Shaw (Bannen) of the “Doomwatch” scientific group, to the island of Balfe, so he can investigate the long-term impact of an oil spill. However, beyond the frosty reception, he finds the locals suspiciously similar in looks and aggressive behaviour. He eventually tracks down the cause: acromelagy, stemming from the consumption of contaminated marine life. This resulted from an unfortunate combo of military waste disposal and industrial fly-tipping in the waters nearby. But convincing the locals of the reality is harder, even with the help of local school-marm Victoria Brown (Geeson). She is also an outsider, and clearly isn’t a fan of the local fish ‘n’ chips, going by her well-separated eyes and lack of a protruding brow (top).
It is clearly a part of the eco-horror genre popular in the seventies. Though the “horror” element here is fairly soft-pedalled. The monsters are the poor islanders and they are more deserving of our sympathy than our fear. If there are real villains, it’s the pharmaceutical business who outsource their waste disposal to the lowest bidder, or the winning company, who just dump the barrels without consideration of the consequences. Neither are actively evil, and that might be the point. Yet it doesn’t exactly make for gripping cinema. You spend a fair amount of this watching Dr. Shaw and his colleagues get shuffled from bureaucrat to industrialist, though it is appealing to see George Sanders as the former, in one of his final roles.
The origins in a TV series, with a script by the same people, are fairly obvious, given the preference for talk over action in the interests of saving money. Sasdy does make good use of Cornish locations like Polkerris, and the production certainly squeezes every penny of value out of the helicopter they rented. The second half has dated well, pre-dating the modern era of corporate malfeasance and scepticism about big business. But I likely preferred the parts on the island, with Dr. Shaw picking his way to the heart of his mystery with determination. It would have benefited from more energy, and it really doesn’t feel like this takes advantage of the greater freedom offered to the cinematic form. Considered as a TV movie though, it’s decent enough.