Comments on: Never Take Candy from a Stranger

By: Detour: Never Take Candy From A Stranger « top50sf

Detour: Never Take Candy From A Stranger « top50sf — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 03:59:33 +0000

[...] Daily Film Dose’s review (though it gets some of the actors wrong) A particularly well-written and considered review on MovieMorlocks The Eccentric Cinema review Believe it or not, a short but good review on Answers.com Share [...]

By: Robert

Robert — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 21:16:22 +0000

I’m thrilled that NEVER TAKE CANDY FROM A STRANGER is finally available to the masses and in a pristine print. Twenty years back I recorded one of the film’s extremely rare broadcasts on a Seattle station’s late show, and as familiar as I was with the Hammer canon this film floored me. One can only imagine the effect it may have had on audiences at the time of its release. Given its box-office failure it is perhaps understandable that they simply weren’t ready for something like this; the “House of Horrors” studio outdid itself by stepping outside the realm of fantasy to depict a realistic horror too grim for entertainment purposes. Critics who decried it as being crass exploitation truly missed the boat; the film is nothing like that and is one of the best things Hammer ever did.

Nice to see you point out the work by Freddie Francis; I believe this is the only movie he photographed for the studio before embarking on a career directing for both Hammer and rival company Amicus.

By: Suzi

Suzi — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 20:40:59 +0000

Very strange. We are big fans of Hammer here at Facets. I will have to spread the word along.

By: Medusa

Medusa — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 15:57:28 +0000

Wow! Leave it to the Brits….

Sounds completely creepy and I will look this one up. Obviously child molestation wasn’t an audience favorite plotline — not until TV shows like “Law & Order:SVU” and the like made it into a common weeknight treat. Not good, that trend.

Between these movies and “M” was a really long time, and though that’s about a child murderer, it still dabbles in the same and even darker waters.

Fascinating article!