How sad is this?

Don't listen to the negative reviews

A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

A reasonably exciting Amicus thriller directed by Freddie Francis with a screenplay by Robert Bloch. Pop singer Suzanna Leigh has a breakdown and seeks rest & relaxation on a seemingly idyllic island. She soon finds out that two gentlemen farmers are engaged in a fierce bee-keeping competition. One of them is raising killer bees. It takes a while to get going, but the last quarter of the film is well put together as Leigh realizes that her allegiances have been misplaced. Guy Doleman is one of the farmers and Catherine Finn plays his bitchy wife. Stealing the movie is Frank Finlay as the other farmer, a wolf in sheep's clothing if ever there was one. He's great. The music is by Wilfred Josephs and is awful. The Birds appear briefly during the opening scene.

"Psycho" author Bloch co-writes and the renowned director / cinematographer Francis directs this entry into killer bee cinema that predates the 1978 flicks "The Swarm" and "The Bees" by almost a dozen years. It may work for viewers if they approach it as a camp film but the truth is, it's too silly to be all that successful. The bee attack scenes really aren't bad (the actors certainly sell the hell out of the material), but they'd be better if the (not so) special effects weren't so hilariously unconvincing. The story, based on a novel by Gerald Heard, deals with a pop singer named Vicki Robbins (Suzanna Leigh), who suffers a mental breakdown and is sent to the idyllic, rustic community of Seagull Island for much needed R & R. Unfortunately, things there are going to get ugly as rival bee keepers engage in cutthroat competition. Bees are being sent to do some serious damage to various unlucky human victims. All in all, this viewer would consider this a lesser effort for Amicus Studios. The company always fared best with their omnibus features; their single story features were never quite as strong. Still, this is all fairly watchable regardless; sincere performances really help a lot. The pretty Leigh is engaging as a resourceful lead, but the show really belongs to Frank Finlay and Guy Doleman as the warring farmers, H.W. Manfred and Ralph Hargrove respectively. A fine supporting cast includes Catherine Finn as Hargroves' neglected wife, Hammer and Amicus regular Michael Ripper in a solid turn as part time barman and part time lawman David Hawkins, James Cossins as an investigating coroner, and the appealing Katy Wild as the helpful Doris Hawkins. There's also the chance to see a musical performance by rock group The Birds (not to be confused with American group The Byrds), featuring a young Ron Wood. The movie further benefits from a good score composed by Wilfred Josephs and a reasonably rousing and fiery finish. While it isn't particularly good, it isn't all that bad, delivering some fun moments and coming in at a short enough 84 minute running time. Five out of 10.

This was my favorite horror film when growing up in the 60s. It has everything you want in a horror flick of the time: period clothing and hairstyles, a dreary setting, ugly-spirited people, a common creature of nature whose behavior changes (hints of the future of Africanized bees?). It has been a good 36 years since I've seen this movie, but scenes of the dead dog, of the girl trying to run away and the bees with their relentless swarming -- have haunted my memory throughout the years! Who knows why! Gross horror movies aren't my thing. If you want a movie that gets to those who have fears of bees (not me) or of scary places (me), you'll have fun with this one. It's one of those you can feel a bit embarrassed about liking.

A British pop singer called Vicky Robins (Suzanna Leigh) is sent to the isolated "Seagull Island" by her doctor to recover from a nervous breakdown. However, there is a madman at large on the island who has developed a strain of killer bees, which he unleashes to kill people. Vicky has two bee keepers to choose from as likely suspects. But before the truth comes out, Vicky nearly becomes a victim of the killer swarm herself.More of a routine whodunit than a horror film, which is noted for its troubled production history (it was shot at Twickenham studios in the middle of winter and the bees had to be imported from Australia). It defeats the usually reliable genre director Freddie Francis whom has done much better work for Amicus including the highly successful anthology films "Dr Terror's House Of Horrors" (1965) and "Tales From The Crypt" (1972). This film also suffers from a lacklustre script, dull performances and poor special effects. Nevertheless, its still fun in an undemanding way and there's even an appearance from "The Birds" (no relation to the American superstars The Byrds), an obscure UK pop group which featured future Rolling Stone Ronnie Wood on guitar. Look out for him toting his Fender Stratocaster!