Sorry, this movie sucks

This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

Amazing worth wacthing. So good. Biased but well made with many good points.

This cheap 'n' cheesy British swashbuckler is very much like the costume adventure films that Hammer were making during the same period, albeit on a much lower budget. There's a wobbly, fake look to the whole production; the costumes are anything but authentic, and nothing looks very believable when it comes down to it. It has the same authenticity as an episode of DOCTOR WHO around the time of Jon Pertwee, but that's not to say it isn't fun.The plot is completely predictable, involving a guy who comes home to claim his inheritance, only to discover that a bad guy (his cousin) has taken his place. It's rather amusing to see Keith Michell (THE SIX WIVES OF HENRY VIII) as the straight-laced lead, but the prevalence of familiar faces in the supporting cast helps to even things out a bit. Watch out for a small, fussy turn from Peter Cushing, Peter Arne and Francis Matthews as the suave villains, Adrienne Corri (VAMPIRE CIRCUS) as a potential love interest, Miles Malleson as a judge and Bill Owen (LAST OF THE SUMMER WINE's Compo!) as a circus performer (!).The production is quite poorly staged and the fight choreography is all over the place, with punches thrown so badly that you can clearly see they never connect. There's a half-rousing sword fight at the climax but it still pales in comparison to other fare from the era. There's lots of titillation though, thrown in as if to make up for the other deficiencies. Nevertheless I love period films from this era, so I still enjoyed THE HELLFIRE CLUB despite the obvious shortcomings.

Everyone has covered this but it is a good swashbuckler and it does look like the Hammer Films costume dramas from the same period, so rather than it just been that Cushing and Sangster were involved, it also resembles a Hammer Film in everything except name. Also of interest is that this is the film that Kolliatis was watching in bed before he dies in the 'The Man Who Got A New Face' episode of the series 'Department S' Which Robert S. Baker produced between 1969 and 1970. An interesting film for everyone who likes a period piece or a costume drama and unlike Kolliatis you will not die after watching this. Great! Search the TV Guide or get it on DVD it's a good timewaster.

The idea behind this film is pretty good. In the 18th century, there was an organization called the "Hellfire Club" and it really is much the way it was portrayed in the film--a group of noblemen who were libertines who were involved in all sorts of immorality behind closed doors. Membership was secret and most of the club's activities are conjecture--but they undoubtedly involved a lot of sex. This film is about this club that thrived behind closed doors in Britain and how they club conspires to keep a young man from his rightful inheritance. Interesting.Unfortunately, while the idea is very good, the writing is at times very lame. For example, when the heir wants to ingratiate himself with the current Lord of the manor, it just so happens that a member of the household is being set upon by thieves and he comes to the rescue--earning the family's gratitude. When he looks for a letter proving his legitimacy as heir, he almost immediately finds it in the manor home--though no one else had found it before this time. And, when a lady recognizes the signs that he is the heir, naturally she's also the woman who would keep this secret! When he's captured, he spits out "I'll kill you" to his cousin, yet the cousin doesn't just have him killed there and then! Too convenient, too often--a sign of a less than stellar script.Aside from all the "fortunate coincidences", the film is a pretty decent adventure film, with lots of sword fights, busty ladies and near-death experiences. It certainly is never dull! However, it's rather sad that the film ended on a rather dull note--with the expected fight scene and showdown. Also, if you are watching the film for Peter Cushing, he's barely in the film at all.By the way, one of the many great history lessons I learned from this film was that women in the 18th century wore silver sparkly pasties. Who says history is dull?!

THE HELLFIRE CLUB is often wrongly sighted as a Hammer Films production probably because the film was written by Jimmy Sangster and features Peter Cushing in the cast. (I found this film on the Hammer Films shelf at my local video store.) In this adventure set in 1700's, Jason (Keith Mitchell) is driven out of his family estate after his mother is killed and raised by a band of circus performers. When Jason returns to claim his birthright as Lord of Netherden Castle, he discovers it has been taken over by his evil cousin Thomas (Peter Arne) who is a member of the nefarious 18th century secret society The Hellfire Club. With much Errol Flynn style derring do and a capture and an escape, Jason is able to rightfully claim his birthright and expose an evil conspiracy against the crown by the French and the wicked noblemen of The Hellfire Club.Despite The Hellfire Clubs reputation (the real life secret society, not the film) for depravity and debauchery, mostly what we see of it in the film is pretty tame, even by 1960 standards. The orgy sequence that includes several scantly clad buxom babes in harem outfits is done tongue in cheek and looks as if the films makers were spoofing a harem sequence from some Maria Montez Arabian knights epic. Keith Mitchell as Jason is a bit stiff at times but he performs the sometimes cartoonish heroics convincingly. Peter Cushing is fine as usual in a rather small role as Merryweather. The film has nice production values and moves at a good pace, but overall THE HELLFIRE CLUB is just another movie.