An early scene in The Shout (based on the short story of the same name by Robert Graves) shows a cricket match getting underway in a small English village. One of the scorers, Charles Crossley (Alan Bates) tells a story of a musician/sound effects artist (John Hurt) from the local village, who is unfaithful to his wife. Along comes a stranger (Alan Bates again) who invites himself to lunch at the married couple's house and tells them of his time in Australia living with an aboriginal tribe, during which time he claims to have perfected a shout that has the power to kill anything nearby. Eventually he is given an opportunity to prove it.
This is a strange horror film. It tells its story subtly and not necessarily always in the order the events occurred. This approach could be part of the reason The Shout isn't at all well-known, despite its good qualities.
Rich in symbolism and open to interpretation, this film drew me in and by the end I was both satisfied with the story that had been told but also left wanting. A second viewing helped me piece together a few more plot strands such as the significance of certain objects such as bones and a lost belt buckle, but also left me with a few more unanswered questions.
From reading some other people's thoughts on The Shout, it seems to get compared to films such as Don't Look Now, The Wicker Man and Picnic at Hanging Rock. While I don't think it's quite as good as any of those, I would recommend it to fans of those titles. It fits into the mould of the more artsy genre films of the 70s, where the storytelling is complex and (in this case) rewards the discerning viewers attention.
This is a strange horror film. It tells its story subtly and not necessarily always in the order the events occurred. This approach could be part of the reason The Shout isn't at all well-known, despite its good qualities.
Rich in symbolism and open to interpretation, this film drew me in and by the end I was both satisfied with the story that had been told but also left wanting. A second viewing helped me piece together a few more plot strands such as the significance of certain objects such as bones and a lost belt buckle, but also left me with a few more unanswered questions.
From reading some other people's thoughts on The Shout, it seems to get compared to films such as Don't Look Now, The Wicker Man and Picnic at Hanging Rock. While I don't think it's quite as good as any of those, I would recommend it to fans of those titles. It fits into the mould of the more artsy genre films of the 70s, where the storytelling is complex and (in this case) rewards the discerning viewers attention.