Pure Cinema Podcast talked about Rituals (1977) aka The Creeper so many times across different episodes that I just had to finally watch it. It’s basically a Deliverance knock-off shot in Ontario, Canada with the late, great Hal Holbrook in the lead; apparently he was paid one sixth of the movie’s budget and he’s worth every dollar for the gravitas he brings. Holbrook is one of five middle-aged doctors (including Lawrence Dane, Robin Gammell, Gary Reineke and Jack Creley) who get together for an annual trip to re-connect and get away from their busy practices. This year, they’ve been dropped off into an isolated stretch of woods for a hiking/camping trip, supposedly uninhabited by anybody… or so they think. As they wake up to find boots stolen one morning, they begin to realise… something is watching them. Rituals creates effective tension in the unseen threat and how it stalks and unsettles the group, and there’s effective character work in the ways the men argue and reveal their histories in between the outdoor stunts and grisly scares; the fact that they’re doctors comes in handy, but also is an ongoing thematic conversation about when to give up or keep going. There’s a nastiness to the movie as well, which is grounded by the performances as the men degenerate to survivalist mode. I didn’t think the eventual reveal hit the mark for me, after all that tension and gore, but the climax still unsettles despite this. Directed by Peter Carter, written by Ian Sutherland, with a plaintive piano score by Hagood Hardy. Found a decent uncut copy to stream uploaded on YouTube. Recommended.
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