For the screening Jameson went to great lengths to decorate their eerie Union Chapel church setting; unique lighting, a thick foggy air and actors portraying generic horror types walking around all combined to create a creepy atmosphere. And on the stage below the screen, they had even built a version of the most important scene setting in the film – a large black alien spaceship with rubble strewn at its base.
Several actors were also present to portray the film’s main characters, staying in character whilst the audience were taking their seats and chatting. These actors then gave a small performance and introduction before the feature started. This pantomime-like audience engagement served to build a sense of joviality among the audience, and the way in which those characters were introduced so dramatically on stage certainly increased excitement and anticipation among those present who had not seen the film before.
Quatermass was originally a British television series in 1953, called The Quatermass Experiment, which had various other series and films that followed it. The 1967 film Quatermass and the Pit tells the story of a strange object that is unearthed in a London underground station as an extension is being built. The odd nature of this sleek black object and the primitive human skeletons that surround it draw the attention of a host of people; the military, anthropologists and most importantly, the quirky and verging on crazy scientist Professor Quatermass (in this Quatermass outing, being portrayed by Andrew Keir).
As they manage to penetrate the object, they discover it to be a Martian spaceship that has been buried underground for millions of years. The ship and its inhabitants begin enforce psychic effects upon the people involved and London is thrown into disarray, as what is effectively a delayed Martian invasion unfolds.
Being an old Hammer film production, one would expect the effects to be a little bad and likely very dated, and they range here from extremely poor (the Martians themselves, who look like large grasshoppers), to really rather good at a times. For the audience at hand though, this played as a straight comedy; laughing often at both the effects and the very exaggerated, over the top and impeccably British acting within. This seems the sort of film though that perhaps wasn’t even meant to be taken too seriously back when it was made.
It is possible that what the film is really commenting on is World War II and the Holocaust. There is much at play here that relates to this, such as an attempt by the Martians to kill off a particular kind of people (the small minority immune to their psychic manipulation).
The film is also daring in the way that it disregards religion and hypothesises that aliens might have played a hand in our development (“You realise what you’re implying? That we owe our human condition here to the intervention of insects?” asks the Ministry of Defence incredulously).
What strikes about this film the most though is its intelligence. Dealing with both deep and allegorical themes, whilst still managing to retain all of the science fiction and horror thrills you could want serves to create something quite special indeed. This is a gem of science fiction that deserves to be more widely seen and appreciated.