The Witches Hammer is an
Independent Horror Film From the UK with an Excellent Story
The Witches Hammer has
first-rate acting talent, elements borrowed from popular mass-market
movies and the best special effects that no money can buy.
Written
by BHM Editor Don
Sumner February 15, 2007
Release:
(UK) 2007
Written and Directed by: James Eaves
Starring:
Stephanie Beacham as Madeline
Claudia Coulter as Rebecca
Jon Sidgwick as Edward
Here at Best-Horror-Movies.com we are
noticing some interesting things coming out of the UK – a bit
of a “horror revolution” from across the pond. The
first signs of this phenomenon were evident in the Ask
The Zombie Master section of BHM as more
and more thought-provoking questions and comments about our favorite
undead zombies started coming from the Horror Freaks in Great Britain.
The most recent development in the Horror Freakdom
of our European friends is showing itself in the rash of quality
Independent horror originating in the Queen’s Land. The
Witches Hammer is an example.
The story of The Witches Hammer surrounds Rebecca
(Claudia Coulter), a woman that was killed in an accident. Her body was
harvested by a secret government agency and transformed into a
genetically manufactured vampire.
Rebecca is trained in deadly martial arts and tasked with hunting down
and killing other vampires in The Witches Hammer,
which presumably threaten the health and welfare of humanity. The
vampires of the world, of course, do not take kindly to an entire
government project being devoted to their demise and proceed to kill
every human being associated with the agency.
Rebecca, however, is not off the hook. She becomes involved in an
effort to hunt down witches that are hell-bent on
unleashing the Souls of the Damned on the earth.
One of the interesting things about The Witches Hammer
is that you can see the overt influences of several other popular
movies in the way the film’s story progresses and how the
scenes are shot.
The first and most striking influence is of Blade,
starring Wesley Snipes. Rebecca of The Witches Hammer
is a vampire killer, skilled in martial arts hunting down her own kind.
Heck, even the way that the vampires burst into flames
when slain is reminiscent of the dramatic kill scenes in Blade.
The influence is undeniable.
The second is of Underworld, where the Vampires and
the Lycans (Werewolfs) have an eternal malice toward each other. In The
Witches Hammer it is not the Lycan but rather Witches that
are the mortal enemies of the Vampires. Just as in
Underworld the ancient foes are forced to work together to defeat a
common enemy and prevent the destruction of the human race.
There
are a few fight scenes in The Witches Hammer ala The
Matrix thrown in for good measure.
Another interesting factor in The Witches Hammer is
the effects – they are GREAT…for 1977. Still,
although budgetary concerns prevented studio-class FX, the effects in The
Witches Hammer work. They are done in moderation and with sufficient
style to contribute to the story instead of detract from it.
Like so many Independent horror movies The Witches Hammer
is not scary, but rather an adventure story that utilizes many elements
of horror to prove its point. The story is great and engrossing, the
characters are interesting and the acting is very good –
especially the ice-queen performance of Stephanie
Beacham (The Colbys television series) as Madeline. If you enjoy
vampire-adventure-conspiracy flicks then The Witches Hammer
is for you. Questions
or comments about The Witches Hammer?
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Rebecca is trained in deadly martial arts and tasked with hunting down
and killing other vampires in The Witches Hammer,
which presumably threaten the health and welfare of humanity. The
vampires of the world, of course, do not take kindly to an entire
government project being devoted to their demise and proceed to kill
every human being associated with the agency. 
Another interesting factor in The Witches Hammer is
the effects – they are GREAT…for 1977. Still,
although budgetary concerns prevented studio-class FX, the effects in The
Witches Hammer work. They are done in moderation and with sufficient
style to contribute to the story instead of detract from it. 
Blink
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