Wow! Such a good movie.

A lot more amusing than I thought it would be.

The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

Some films need a strong performance to lift them above the mediocrity of their concept and execution. And this films saving grace is in its lead, Mr Lockheart, who gives a great swaggering and charismatic performance pitched at just the right operatic intensity to match the essential absurdity of the premises. Very much a product of its time and place, when traditional horrors were attempting to recast themselves in more modern clothes with elements of then modern culture, car chase scenes, hi-tech and a dash of blaxploitation.Definitely a late night fun movie to enjoy purely on its own merits. Marred mostly by terrible 'Day for Night' effects (a curse of British productions throughout that period) and the cheapest, saddest werewolf ever put on film (it looks like a cuddly family pet) it's otherwise a fun and well acted romp of Hammy Hammer proportions.Just to clear up what seems a plot absurdity; how does Tom know one of his guests is a werewolf?Simply, this film takes place in a world where they exist (the characters seem to accept the basic premise with neither protest nor disbelief) so Tom simply uses both his intelligence and hunters instinct (something repeated and emphasised several times) to round up the most likely candidates knowing that by casting a wide net he will bag his target.Well, that and the script says so.

"This is a murder mystery in which you are the detective... But instead of "who is the murderer?" the question is "who is the werewolf?"So the film starts, Lockhart is being hunted but soon establishes himself as the hunter, by the end of the film expect the hunter to become the hunted again both metaphorically and physically. He's basically an eccentric big game hunter who's rigged his mansion grounds up to help track a werewolf, who incidentally is one of the guests him and his wife will be entertaining during a full moon cycle. The guests include an artist, biologist, a musician, and werewolf expert amongst others. The cast is actually really good making this b-movie werewolf film actually not that bad, Peter Cushing, Tom Chadbon, Sir Michael Gambon and Lockhart all have a bit of experience and class about then. The latter, Calvin Lockhart brings a blaxploitation feel to the film with his own funky soundtrack following him and his undertones of ghetto attitude. I enjoyed the 'whodoneit?' feel to the film, I guessed who the werewolf was but ended up talking myself out of it while imagining random endings that would have been more creative. The 'detective' element of the film was nice to see, I can't remember the last time I watched an interactive film since the end of the 80's, however I read that this wasn't a planned part of the film, it was added after the film had already been printed, as such may not make much sense to modern audiences. This film is good for a rainy day if you will suspend your disbelief and just go with it, if you are expecting a grizzly werewolf, blood and violence then watch "American werewolf in London" not this B-movie narrative thriller.

The Beast Must Die is an unusual film in more ways than one. The studio who made it - Amicus - were well known almost solely for their portmanteau movies, i.e. films with a selection of short horror stories connected by a spooky framing narrative. The Beast Must Die is not one of those types of films, instead it's story encompasses a full length feature. But it's hardly a typical horror film. Instead it really works as an Agatha Christie style murder-mystery that happens to have a werewolf angle. There was a cycle of successful Agatha Christie adaptations back in the early to mid 70's such as Murder on the Orient Express and it's certainly possible that Amicus thought combining this idea with their horror speciality was a sure-fire winner. Add to the mix a character very similar to the then popular blaxploitation icon John Shaft and Amicus had covered quite a lot of contemporary cinematic bases from the time. It would be wrong to say that they fully succeeded here but, while the result is mixed, it's different for sure and it is entertaining.The central premise has a wealthy hunter invite a selection of people to stay at his remote mansion. The idea of it is that he knows one of them is a werewolf and he intends to find out and kill them - the ultimate hunter's trophy.Like all Amicus productions this one has another stellar cast - Peter Cushing, Michael Gambon, Charles Grey and Anton Diffring in particular. While Calvin Lockhart looks pretty cool in his leather outfit roaming around the grounds of his estate looking for the werewolf. He is complemented too with a funky 70's score, which of course adds to the period feel. The setting is pretty cool too with the modern mansion complete with surveillance cameras and detectors. The movie also adds the famed 'Werewolf Break' where the action freezes and a timer ticks down and we are asked to guess who we think the werewolf is. It's a fun gimmick and gives the film a bizarre angle that ensures that it's memorable. Unfortunately, the werewolf itself is extremely unthreatening, seeing as it seems to be a dog sprayed grey - this is a shame and the film has to lose marks for this. But other than this, The Beast Must Die is a fun and somewhat unusual, horror-mystery.

This is a fun little film to watch late at night with a girlfriend...It is actually a fairly good "who-done-it" British style, but not all that scary for the most part. With some fine plot twists, and the infamous "werewolf break" added at the end, I enjoyed it a lot...The main things that ruin this movie are...1- the horrible 1970's Techno-funk music...(Now THAT is really horrible!!!), and...2- the idea that a black guy in England would have that many honky friends to invite or that he would have that much money without being a deposed African dictator...All in all, an enjoyable romp with excellent acting from most of the cast...but don't expect too much from it, just sit back and let 'er roll.