The Skull

"When the Skull strikes you'll scream!"

1965 1h 23m EN

😐

6.0

MID

★6.0TMDB · 117

HorrorThriller

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Esoterica collector Dr Maitland buys an unusual skull from his ordinary source; the artifact is what remains of the Marquis De Sade. Much too soon, Maitland discovers that the skull is turning him into a frenzied killer.

“When the Skull strikes you'll scream!”

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Cast

Peter Cushing
Dr. Christopher Maitland
Christopher Lee
Sir Matthew Phillips
Patrick Wymark
Anthony Marco
Jill Bennett
Jane Maitland
Peter Woodthorpe
Bert Travers, Marco's Landlord
Nigel Green
Inspector Wilson
April Olrich
French Girl
George Coulouris
Dr. Londe

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Freddie Francis
Writers: Milton Subotsky, Robert Bloch, Robert Bloch
Languages: English
Countries: United Kingdom

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

83 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

61 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Freddie Francis, shot by John Wilcox. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Elisabeth Lutyens. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Oswald Hafenrichter shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee and Patrick Wymark carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "When the Skull strikes you'll scream!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0059727 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Freddie Francis directs. John Wilcox behind the camera. Elisabeth Lutyens scores. Oswald Hafenrichter cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United Kingdom. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

183 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.
261 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3Directed by Freddie Francis, shot by John Wilcox. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Elisabeth Lutyens. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Oswald Hafenrichter shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee and Patrick Wymark carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "When the Skull strikes you'll scream!".
8IMDB entry: tt0059727 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Classified under 9 themes, including "london, england", "auction", "possession", "evil spirit".
10Released under 22 different titles around the world.

The technical file

Cinematography: John Wilcox
Original score: Elisabeth Lutyens
Editing: Oswald Hafenrichter
Makeup / hair: Jill Carpenter
Runtime: 83 min · 1h 23m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Original language: EN
IMDB: The Skull (1965)

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Freddie Francis

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Community reviews

What people are saying

Wuchak2020-03-28
★ 4/10
Features Peter Cushing & Christopher Lee, but way too much filler A researcher of the occult and esoterica (Peter Cushing) apprehends the skull of the nefarious Marquis de Sade and learns that something evil is attached to it, which negatively influences its owners. Patrick Wymark plays his source for artifacts while Christopher Lee plays a rival collector. Patrick Magee is on hand as an inspector. “The Skull” (1965) is worth checking out for fans of British horror featuring Cushing and/or Lee, but it places with the least of their works. There’s just way too much filler. The runtime could’ve been cut in half and it would’ve been a compelling mini-movie. As it is, it’s just too drawn out for the material to maintain interest. However, the theme is interesting: Can articles have evil spirits attached to them? During the days of the early Church, articles that Paul touched, like handkerchiefs and aprons, “were taken to the sick, and their illnesses were cured and the evil spirits left them” (Acts 19:11-12). It was the same thing with Peter’s shadow. These things had the anointing of God on them and thus physically or mentally ill people exposed to them were healed and demons fled! A good example from the Old Testament would be Elisha’s bones noted in 2 Kings 13. These various items were blessed as conduits of God’s power. Could the inverse also be true? Could certain items be cursed with a demonic non-anointing? If the former is true with the kingdom of light, isn’t it possible that the reverse is also true with the kingdom of darkness in some cases, particular items like idols? The movie runs 1 hour, 23 minutes and was shot at Shepperton Studios, Shepperton, Surrey, England; as well as Great Cumberland Place, Marylebone, London (Maitland's home). GRADE: C-
CinemaSerf2025-01-18
★ 7/10
When Christopher Lee tells you to leave well alone, well you should - even if you are Peter Cushing! The latter is "Maitland" who is offered a gruesome artefact by his rather dubious supplier "Marco" (Patrick Wymark) and when he mentions it to his collecting rival "Sir Matthew" (Lee) he is told that this was recently pinched from him and well, he decides to ignore the advice. It doesn't take him very long before he rues that decision. This skull belongs to the Marquis de Sade and his spirit is looking to continue to cause as much mischief as he can! To those ends, it can take over the minds of those close to it and manipulate their behaviour to do his will. Can the sceptical "Maitland" do what generations of his forebears have failed to do and thwart this malevolent force? This is one of my favourite Hammer horrors with plenty of accumulating menace; some clever photography - often from the skull's POV, it's hauntingly scored and the denouement isn't what I ever remember to expect after a fun eighty minutes of pure cinematic evil. It spares us the usual ketchup gimmickry and uses a little more psychology to fo the scaring, and I think it works quite well.