David McGillivray of The Monthly Film Bulletin praised the film as "an immensely enjoyable piece of hokum, thoroughly well researched, performed and directed." [55] Variety wrote that Anthony Shaffer's screenplay "for sheer imagination and near-terror, has seldom been equalled." [56] Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times called it "a witty work of the macabre" with "the splendid performances typical of British films." [57] Janet Maslin of The New York Times was more negative, calling it "handsomely photographed" with "good performances," but "something of a howl" even though "it seems to have been made in all seriousness." [58] A poster with good colors and overall clean appearance. It may have minor tears small paper loss and minor stains. It may have some fold seperation.

The first screening of the film was to trade and cinema distributors on 3 December 1973. [1] The first public theatrical release was a week of test screenings at the Metropole Cinema London on 6 December 1973 ahead of the official public release in January 1974. [1] It runs 87 minutes. Hardy was not asked to direct the sequel, and never read the script, as he did not like the idea of Howie surviving the sacrifice, or the fact that the actors would have aged by 20 to 30 years between the two films. [79] In May 2010, Hardy discussed The Loathsome Lambton Worm. "I know Tony did write that, but I don't think anyone particularly liked it, or it would have been made." [80] A novelisation, which expands on the story and bears the same title, was released in 1978. It was written by Hardy and Shaffer. After Shaffer saw her on the stage, he lured Diane Cilento out of semi-retirement to play the town's schoolmistress. [22] (They lived together in Queensland from 1975, and married in 1985). Ingrid Pitt, another British horror film veteran, was cast as the town librarian and registrar. Swedish actress Britt Ekland was cast as the innkeeper's lascivious daughter, although two body doubles were used for her naked scenes below the waist. Ekland found out that she was three months pregnant with her son Nic, to Lou Adler two weeks into filming. Stuart Hopps (the film's choreographer) called upon Lorraine Peters, a nightclub dancer from Glasgow, who gyrated at the doorway [23] and against the wall of a bedroom in the fully nude "wall" scenes. Her speaking and singing voices were dubbed by Annie Ross and Rachel Verney respectively. [24] [25] [23] Summerisle is a simple pagan—if you can call that simple. He is both king and priest in one. But very dangerous. He’s a man, too, of impeccable charm and manners and good taste, an authority, articulate, in many ways a very delightful person. And you can find a bit of that in everyone… You can say that Summerisle is an amalgam of many roles I have played on-screen. Figures of power, of mystery, of authority, of presence. There is quite a lot of my natural delivery in the way Summerisle’s dialogue was written… I have been called upon to play acceptably straight characters—agreeable, courteous, amusing—add to that the suggestion that the character is not quite what he seems, and I have played them many times. Also in the changes of mood. The fact that Summerisle is dangerous when crossed perfectly applies to me: Christopher Lee does not forget a wrong done to him, so I’m dangerous when crossed, too. That’s not a very Christian attitude, perhaps, but it’s a very human one.”An American remake of the same name, starring Nicolas Cage and Ellen Burstyn, and directed by Neil LaBute was released in 2006. [82] Hardy expressed concern about the remake. [83] Stage production [ edit ]

Strauss, Matthew (3 May 2016). "Radiohead Artist Stanley Donwood Shares 'Burn the Witch' Behind-the-Scenes Shots". Pitchfork . Retrieved 3 May 2016. Author and filmmaker John Walsh tells the story of how this singular—and somewhat unlikely—folk-horror classic came to be, illustrated with fascinating behind-the-scenes photography, new interviews, exclusive artwork, and never-before-seen material from the StudioCanal archives. Learn the secret history of Summerisle—if you dare… — Titan Books Scots singing legend Annie Ross talks Duke Ellington, Billie Holiday & Judy Garland ahead of appearance at Glasgow Film Festival". 8 February 2012 . Retrieved 3 September 2017. StudioCanal is releasing brand-new 4K restoration of the film, with two very special screenings this Spring, and culminating with a Collector’s Edition release in September. The plot centres on the visit of a police officer, Sergeant Neil Howie, to the isolated Scottish island of Summerisle in search of a missing girl. Howie, a devout Christian, is appalled to find that the inhabitants of the island have abandoned Christianity and now practise a form of Celtic paganism. [8]Hardy spent four months in England studying paganism. “To begin with, we thought of a Hebridean island that could have been made fruitful by an agronomist. It had to have the Gulf Stream phenomenon to fit the story, simply because paganism was closely affected with the crops and sun worship. And I discovered that such island paradises existed. For instance, the Scilly Isles have a strong romantic tradition of the sort we ascribed to Summerisle and are fairly well-known in England. As late as 1920, Lord Leverham, who founded Lever Brothers, bought an island and turned it into a model farm—it’s still there. He did it not just to grow palm trees for the sake of growing them, but more like Lord Summerisle’s grandfather; he was an experimental agronomist and tried to develop new strains and succeeded. Those palm trees that we used in the film, for instance, are real. As to the pagan culture, everything you see in the film is absolutely authentic. The whole series of ceremonies and details that we show have happened at different times and places in Britain and Western Europe. What we did was to bring them all together in one particular place and time.” An average poster with overall fresh color. May have tears, minor paper loss, minor hazing. Paper may be brittle due to age, may have minor stains. May have a small amount of writing in an unobtrusive place. May have medium or major restoration. A poster with faded colors and brittle paper, showing significant signs of use. May have tears and paper loss. May have tape, writing, stains in image area. In need of restoration or had major restoration. Enjoy your favourite drink from a mug decorated with an image you love. Sentimental and practical, personalised photo mugs make perfect gifts for loved ones, friends or work colleagues Lord Summerisle, memorably played by Christopher Lee, is the islanders’ cult leader, the grandson of a Victorian scientist who developed a special strain of apple that could thrive in the island’s harsh climate. His ancestor, like the British Romantic poets of the 19th century also reintroduced the old gods to the island folk, bringing pantheistic light and lust into their dour lives. Both projects have thrived, until now. In a last-ditch attempt to appease the Sun God, Howie, a virginal innocent imbued with Kingly virtues (by means of his station in life as a police officer), is to be burnt in the ancient pagan edifice, in the unholy light of day, Summerisle, their “chieftain,” slyly opting out of that particular practice for himself. Christopher Lee described him as a “benevolent dictator.”