Hammer Presents: Whoever Slew Auntie Roo?
The next entry in the ongoing Hammer Presents range will be Whoever Slew Auntie Roo? (1971), the Brit horror that BBC Culture called ‘criminally underrated’. Its hagsploitation credentials are often discussed but here we’re examining other elements, including its rich narrative ambiguities, outstanding cast and the production’s turbulent journey from script to screen…
It began with AIP’s plan to adapt Emily Brontë’s gothic tour de force, Wuthering Heights because, in the words of the studio’s president, ‘Classics have a presold audience.’ The project was announced in June, 1969 and a few weeks later AIP declared Curtis Harrington, an American filmmaker with a background in avant-garde cinema and mainstream horror features, would be directing. His previous works included the minor cult classic, Night Tide (1961), a fantasy that had wowed critics but performed badly at the box office, and Queen of Blood (1966), a science-fiction flick that today, many critics feel influenced Ridley Scott’s Alien (1979).
Filming was slated to start in September, and if the original schedule had been adhered to, Whoever Slew Auntie Roo? as we now know it, might never have happened. But the production of Wuthering Heights (1970) was delayed and when the cameras finally started rolling for Cathy and Heathcliff in April, 1970, Robert Fuest was at the helm.
The story goes that Curtis Harrington had been transferred to direct a production called The Gingerbread House after its star, Shelley Winters, requested him, ‘…because of his ability with actors,’ she later recalled. ‘I thought he would be wonderful…’ In later life, Harrington claimed to have been unhappy with the switch, disappointed that he’d been forced to exchange wily, windy moors for festive fear.
In the event, he probably could have done both as The Gingerbread House was delayed and didn’t start filming until April, 1971, with most of the shoot taking place at Shepperton Studios in the south of England. By that point the movie had changed title, ditching the fairy tale feel to avoid any confusion with the play, The Gingerbread Lady, one of Neil Simon’s rare flops that had recently bombed on Broadway. Harrington was keen on a title that would thematically link it with the hagsploitation classic, Whatever Happened to Baby Jane (1962) and the similar-sounding Whoever Slew Auntie Roo? was mooted and stuck, although it would go on to be known as Who Slew Auntie Roo? in the US.
Knife-edge… Roo’s journey has taken her from open-armed host to cleaver-wielding threat.
According to many who were there, the shoot quickly became a difficult one. In her 2005 autobiography, Adventures of a Jelly Baby: A Memoir, Judy Cornwell, who played Clarine, detailed a working environment blighted by script changes and backstage rivalries. She called Harrington a ‘…charming Hollywood director’, but her feelings towards Winters weren’t quite as fond. She recalled clashing with the star over her constant efforts to upstage her, with Cornwell eventually telling her – in no uncertain terms – that she needed to get on with the job in hand. The younger actor remembered Winters starring at her for a long moment before replying, ‘My God, you remind me of me when I was young…’ after which, there were no more problems between them.
Curtis Harrington, however, later revealed he hated working with Michael Gothard who played Albie, claiming, ‘It was like pulling teeth to get a performance out of him.’ He stated the studio had been behind that piece of casting, but in fairness to Gothard, many others in the business spoke highly of him, with AIP exec Louis M. Heyward typical in his praise: ‘…he was wonderful … He had a lot of class and a lot of style.’
Reading through accounts of the film’s production it’s easy to get distracted by the claims and counterclaims regarding what actually took place. Some reports are contradictory, and although there does appear to have been a degree of disharmony on set, it’s also evident that Harrington got his creative vision in the can and at least some of the movie-makers got along, with the director having nothing but kind words for Mark Lester’s performance and Chloe Franks who played Katy Coombs.
The script, originally by Jimmy Sangster, had been extensively rewritten, initially by Robert Blees. Harrington later admitted he remained unhappy with the amendments, and that he’d persuaded Gavin Lambert to do a further rewrite, although ultimately he received a mere ‘additional dialogue’ credit. The finished version shows vestiges of Sangster’s intention to conjure up a modern version of Hansel and Gretel, but Lambert’s version offers a more nuanced take on the theme of an older woman clashing with two children.
The premise is an intriguing one. A bunch of young orphans is invited to spend Christmas at the vast, remote home of an ageing former stage star whose daughter died under mysterious circumstances years earlier. What could possibly go wrong? Turns out, quite a lot.
But it’s the ambiguity and pathos of the horror that unfolds which lends Whoever Slew Auntie Roo? much of its uniqueness and interest. Nothing and no one are quite as it seems in this psycho-biddy barnstormer, and it’s easy to overlook the real villain of the piece. After a spooky opening with Roo at a seance (‘Mummy… Mummy… I’m trying to come to you…’) Harrington craftily ensures the film lulls us into a false sense of security. It’s Christmas. There’s festive frolics and happy children singing in the back of an old car. We’ve even got the reassuring presence of Lionel Jeffries, that cinematic equivalent of a lovely, big old comfort blanket. With him in the mix, surely the worst thing that can happen is that a vintage vehicle will start flying or Peter Sellers might try to pull off an improbable heist?
Scream and scream again… Mark Lester as Christopher and Chloe Franks as Katy. Harrington praised Lester’s ‘wonderful quality and presence’ and often spoke warmly about his time with Franks.
The orphanage feels familiar, as well, given it’s the home of Christopher Coombs who’s played by Mark Lester, the youngster who’d recently asked for more in Oliver! (1968). This time around he’s got a sister, Katy, and as is the way of these things, they’re preternaturally close and present a united front against the world. It’s easy to understand why. The orphanage is run by the (apparently) heartless Miss Henley (Rosalie Crutchley) who seems to possess all the warmth and approachability of a Mozambique spitting cobra.
We soon discover that every December, Rosie Forrest, who insists on being called Auntie Roo by the children, hosts an overnight Christmas party for ten of the youngsters from the orphanage. Miss Henley chooses the fortunate few and in an emotional scene it’s revealed she’s omitted Christopher and Katie from the guest list. Of course, they’re gutted. After all, Auntie Roo’s parties are known for their lavishness. There’s food aplenty, colourful presents, a roaring log fire and the kindly Auntie Roo herself, fussing over and spoiling her visitors, just as a ‘real’ mother would... These aren’t just festive bashes, they’re a glimpse of the good life, and unsurprisingly, the Coombs kids want in. And so, with Christopher as the driving force, the two children essentially sneak into the party.
So far, so Disney.
Mark Lester called Michael Gothard (left), ‘…a truly professional actor with a unique charm and presence,’ adding, ‘It was a pleasure to work with him.’
But Roo’s house is a place of death and deceit, cruelty and sadness. We learn her daughter, Katharine, died years earlier, and massively affected by the loss, she tries to speak to her child via a medium. Trouble is, the man she consults is a fake who’s rigging the whole ‘chats beyond the grave’ set-up simply to get his hands on her cash. In fact, Roo’s naivety leads her to surround herself by an array of frauds whose true motives remain hidden to her. Her ominous-looking butler, Albie, for example, is a violent, implacable crook and her maid, Clarine, is in cahoots with him.
When the orphanage contingent turns up at the house, all wide eyes, giggles and joyous gasps, Roo treats them with her customary kindness. Soon after, when Albie catches Christopher and Katy, she remains the perfect host, greeting the extra guests and telling Miss Henley that they’re welcome additions to the gathering.
Yet despite this largess, when Christopher looks at the woman who’s offered nothing but hospitality, there’s something in his eyes that flags his mistrust and antipathy towards her.
From this point onwards, Christmas curdles.
SPOILERS AHEAD…
Roo begins to see Katy as the reincarnation of her daughter and although the grieving mother needs helps, she’s preyed upon by pretty much everyone around her, from her blackmailing butler to Christopher Coombs who’s determined that this ‘witch’ as he calls her, won’t take his sister. With her sanity slipping Roo will go to almost any lengths to keep and protect the girl she believes to be Katharine, whereas it’s equally apparent Christopher will stop at nothing to keep their sibling bond intact.
Who lives in a gingerbread house like this?
What follows is a fascinating battle, and at the time of its release critics were quick to side with Mark Lester’s character. But time changes our perception of villainy. One generation may cite Lady Macbeth as Shakespeare’s most ruthless and selfish antagonist. The next is equally likely to embrace her as a wronged woman seeking to defend her husband and country. Perhaps more pertinently, when Hammer recently added Stolen Face (1952) to the Limited Collector's Edition range, many modern day reviewers were baffled by the previously held perception that Lily Conover represents the movie’s villain, despite the fact her life is thrown into chaos by a posh, egocentric doctor who tries to play Pygmalion with her.
Despite Roo’s missteps toward the end of the movie, watching Whoever Slew Auntie Roo? today it’s hard not to feel sympathy with the bereaved mother after the mental torture she endures, and if we’re looking for characters to blame for the final horror, step forward Christopher and Katy. As critic Kevin Lyons noted, ‘…the entire film is more restrained than the Grand Dame Guignol films had become… But its restraint allows room for the film’s moral ambiguity to find more room. Viewers’ sympathies are pulled this way and that throughout the film… as for the children – they’re manipulative and devious, their happiness at the climax coming only at the cost of great tragedy.’
Grand Old Movies was more direct, pointing out, ‘The kid [Christopher] is the flaming psychopath here, not poor, deluded Auntie; he spies on her, steals her jewels, and then traps her in a pantry he sets ablaze.’
Admittedly, Harrington makes it clear what’s driving Christopher. Katy is central to his existence, and the thought of her absence is inevitably painful. But equally, he only wants to rescue her in order to circumvent that pain. His pain. There’s a feeling that if Roo had selected any of the other orphanage kids, Christopher wouldn’t have cared less. He’s out for himself, brushing aside his sister’s defence of Roo and everything she says she wants. Maybe a tough life has kneaded him into this self-centred operator, but his amorality is unnerving to watch.
Shortly before playing Mrs Henley, Rosalie Crutchley (or ‘Bun’ as she was affectionately known to many of her colleagues) had appeared in Hammer’s prehistoric drama, Creatures the World Forgot (1971).
Writing for Macabre Daily, Dana V also recognised the kids were definitely not all right: ‘Katy and Christopher are calculating and opportunistic. Once Auntie Roo (and by extension, her house) have been set ablaze, Christopher heads back inside to steal her jewels, hiding them in a teddy bear, and once safely outside, comments: “Bloody good fire,” as he fondly watches his conflagration handiwork. Yeesh. That kid could give the Children of the Corn’s Isaac a run for his money in the creeptastic department.’
Meanwhile Roo emerges as the damaged, fragile victim of countless schemes and misfortunes. She misses her late husband and their daughter, and at a time when she needs support and friendship, she finds only charlatans and thugs. Critic Kim Morgan neatly summed her up, ‘And he [director Curtis Harrington] allowed her to be something many can relate to – lonely. Not just pathetic, not just silly or scary, but lonely. Yes, she’s frightening, she’s even funny at times, but she’s grieving and she’s going insane. But Harrington isn’t exploiting this predicament for laughs or easy terror…’
Winters puts in an impressive shift as Roo. Sure, she’s wildly over-the-top in the song and dance numbers, but that zeal is authentically Rosie Forrest. Her love for her lost daughter feels raw and real, and when she finally tumbles to Albie, and later Christopher, there’s something satisfying about the steel that Winters injects into her performance.
Although this could legitimately be termed Winters’s movie, the supporting cast is excellent. Rosalie Crutchley is fabulous as Miss Henley. Like pretty much every fictional manager of a kid’s home, from Mr Bumble in Oliver Twist to Miss Hannagan in Annie, she’s initially presented as something of a self-serving ghoul. But rewatching the picture when we’re armed with foreknowledge, her treatment of Christopher feels prudent. This is a woman with many children in her care and she’s simply trying to protect them from any element that might cause them harm. Miss Henley lives in the real world and knows that not all witches hide in gingerbread houses. Incidentally, it’s worth giving Crutchley’s performance closer attention when she interacts with Christopher… Is that a trace of fear in her eyes? Fear because she recognises what she’s being confronted by?
‘She [Winters] also kept insisting that I get a 'Sir' for [the] supporting role. I got Ralph Richardson but she had meant Laurence Olivier…’ - Louis M. Heyward
Ralph Richardson somehow brings a battered nobility to the awful Mr. Benton whilst Michael Gothard as Albie, the brutal butler, suggests the kind of horror that Christopher claims Roo is more than capable of. Gothard clearly wasn’t a favourite of Harrington, but he later played the real-life assassin, John Felton, in The Three Musketeers (1973) and The Four Musketeers (1974) before delivering probably his best-known performance, giving us a wonderfully chilling Bond baddie, Emile Locque in For Your Eyes Only (1981).
For its release as part of the Hammer Presents range, Whoever Slew Auntie Roo? has been restored in 2K from the original film negatives and comes with a new commentary with film critic and historian Alexandra Heller-Nicholas, an image gallery, a new video essay by Heather Wixson entitled, ‘Grief is Horror’, plus the original theatrical trailer.
But best of all, it offers a chance for us all to revisit the Gingerbread House and spend time with Auntie Roo and the kind of children who give Christmas a bad name. Towards the end of his career, even Curtis Harrington, almost begrudgingly, accepted it was a good horror, and 55 years after it first played in cinemas, it still delivers. As the critic for Grand Old Movies put it, Winters approached the production as if ‘…it’s the last film that will ever be made and she needs to make it count.’
Perhaps even Harrington would have agreed that it’s fortunate, after all, that Wuthering Heights was delayed. No Cathy or Heathcliff, but in Rosie ‘Auntie Roo’ Forrest, a striking, tragic and terrifying figure for the ages.
