Twins of Evil (1972)

Sorry, this movie sucks

The film creates a perfect balance between action and depth of basic needs, in the midst of an infertile atmosphere.

The biggest problem with this movie is it’s a little better than you think it might be, which somehow makes it worse. As in, it takes itself a bit too seriously, which makes most of the movie feel kind of dull.

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

viewing in glorious black and white will make all the difference. The story is pretty straight forward as far as vampire/devil worship/witch hunt movies go, but the execution of this simple tale is outstanding on every other level..the acting, the wardrobe, cinema photography were all top notch. Warning! This film has sinful devil worshiping, bloodletting, human sacrifices, young nubile witch burnings, head decapitation, and plenty of heaving bosoms.

This is a really weird mix of story elements, even for a Hammer film, and the odd mix and directorial style make "Twins Of Evil" a lot less enjoyable (and a lot less fun) than the "classic" Christopher Lee Dracula films. For one thing, the whole thing feels ugly and mean spirited. The only likable character in the whole first half of the film is "Cathy" (Peter Cushing's "wife"). Everyone else is a rigid, unreasoning fanatic (Cushing and the townsmen), a decadent murderer (the "Count"), or a helpless victim. (I don't count the "Twins" of the title, since they're pure ciphers for the first 30 minutes).And the film takes a little too much pleasure in watching innocent girls burn at the stake.And once things get rolling, there are still these weird "found" plot elements that seem to be there because the story told us that's how things had to be. Vampires are "undead" and can't be seen in the mirror, just...because. They can't fly or transform or command animals or the elements, but they CAN hypnotize people just...because. It turns out that Vampires can't be permanently destroyed by fire - their bodies melt, but their spirits are free to take over other bodies, but this is never demonstrated. So they must be impaled or decapitated, just...because. Nothing about running water, or silver, or garlic, but they hate crucifixes just...because. (And does anyone else find it odd that a choirmaster would know more about vampire lore than the witch hunter?) And once things get rolling...it's just a mess. One twin is bland and "good", one is evil, they have that whole "twin empathy thing" that is just there without being at all convincing. People are killed by vampires. The choirmaster's sister is killed off camera. The count kills people seemingly at random. The count tries to kidnap the good sister, is foiled by the crucifix, but only for a moment. The villagers fight the manservant (so the count sold his soul to the devil but only has one guy to defend his castle??). Peter Cushing's character dies uselessly, but the choirmaster manages to heave a javelin through the count's chest. The end.I don't know...maybe the version I saw was heavily edited to cut down on the running time and some scenes that would have made things hold together were taken out? There's still some good "Hammer" stuff in here, and I'm not sorry I took the time to track it down and see it. (For instance, the evil twin's decapitation is staged very nicely...but without showing us HOW the witch hunter knew to be there at the supposedly secret back exit she was taking. Like I said, the plot's a mess). The acting is...well, the acting is actually the best part of the movie, because although the characters are completely cardboard, the actors manage to invest them with presence and make you absolutely believe that those are real people under going real events. Peter Cushing is pretty good, as he always is, even if his role makes you want to set HIM on fire. So even if the screenplay itself is really sketchy and irritating, the director at least got one part of his job right. Verdict: worth seeing if you REALLY LIKE Hammer and want to see every film the studio ever put out. Worth seeing if you value atmosphere and dread over forward momentum and, for lack of a better term, "heart".

Any viewer has to remember that this is a Hammer film and the year of production is 1971. This was racy sexy vampire libido turn-on drive- in movie stuff at the time. Certainly a great drive-in flick for a few beers and hopefully a hot date with fantasy in her mind. However....by any decades standards...what starts out as a really good horror film gets silly at the end. Still...as far as eye candy goes...this film rates a 10 for lots of babes and studly hero. No literally dirty girls here...only very figuratively dirty. Others have already noted the bevy of Hammer beauties in this film and it does not disappoint!At least one other has noted that the film also shows modern society in respect to the paranoia factor of certain factions of society. The Peter Cushing Brotherhood reminded me of Global Warming nuts while watching the film. "We must burn at the stake anyone who disagrees with us!" A better script would have served this film well and a remake could probably do quite well with a meatier script. In the end it gets silly. Count Karnstein tells his Vampire hottie that Peter Cushing and his Brotherhood can come burn them and they will laugh at the Brotherhood because there bodies will die but their souls will find another body to inhabit (these vampires can only be killed by beheading or by a stake through the heart). Undoubtedly there is a bevy of beautiful bodies waiting to be taken over.DOH! The Count is informed by his servant that they are are bringing axes! And...Sharp implements too! DOH! So now they are trapped and killed because they are that stupid!!???Now THAT is just plain silly!If you like vampire flicks....before vampires all became comic book superhero vampires...then you will be entertained. If you have a hot babe you know with a bent for this sort of flick then by all means check it out with her. They will enjoy the visual and they will also enjoy the silliness...and with some wine or the like it probably will work real well to bring out her Twin of Evil! ;)

This is some of the later Hammer work, where they went less with atmosphere and more with nudity. Peter Cushing Stars as a religious leader who gets his jollies burning young women at the stake because no one has invented reality TV yet. His life becomes complicated when his nieces from Venice in with him. One sister is good, the other is wicked and there's a vampire living up on the hill.It's like The Parent Trap with boobies! So you have the learned guy, who knows vampires can be killed with stakes and axes. Because he's read books.Anyway, it's a fun romp, not particularly good acting and the sound is just a bit off. Cushing is phoning it in at this point.