By Hank Reineke
In the autumn of 1963 the Macmillan Co. published Rohan
O’ Grady’s third suspense novel Let’s
Kill Uncle. The book’s appearance
was certain to command some critical and public notice: the dust jacket and
title page was adorned with the idiosyncratic illustrations of Edward Gorey. The cover blurb offered a small glimpse of
what awaited readers: “In an idyllic, peaceful island setting two
charming children on summer holiday conspire to execute the perfect murder –
and get away with it.” Though a
macabre premise, the book was well-received, the Baltimore Sun, Boston Globe,
Pittsburgh Press, New York Newsday and Chicago Tribune singing its praises. Toronto’s Globe
and Mail crowed Let’s Kill Uncle was
“the jolliest thriller of any year.”
One fan of the novel was the producer-director William
Castle, the undisputed grifting King of Ballyhoo. Castle optioned the property shortly after its
appearance with no immediate plans for production set. After scoring handsomely with his 1959 indie House on Haunted Hill with Vincent
Price, Castle had signed on with Columbia Pictures for a four-film deal in
March of 1959 (later extended beyond the original four pics). Between 1959 and
1964 Castle delivered such popcorn-munching guilty-pleasures as The Tingler, 13 Ghosts, Mr. Sardonicus,
and Strait-Jacket, amongst others. Then, in October 1963, Universal Picture’s
Vice-President of Production, Edward Muhl, signed Castle to a three-picture
deal for a series of “cost-control” films.
Castle’s trio of films for Uni were less celebrated and
money-spinning than his earlier efforts. His second and most recent effort for the studio, I Saw What You Did (1965) did little to buffer his reputation as a
filmmaker nor cash-cow guarantor. As one
critic from the Los Angeles Times sulked, “I Saw What You Did,
William Castle, and as usual I am not impressed.” Castle’s final film in his three-pic contract
would be Let’s Kill Uncle. By all indicators, the production of Let’s Kill Uncle would be a rushed
affair. One Hollywood correspondent –
having already visited director Brian G. Hutton rehearsing his cast on the set of
The Pad – chose to drop by the
adjourning soundstage where first-day shooting of Let’s Kill Uncle was in process. The columnist was quick to note the film’s “rough edges” were already
showing. The writer noted the fast and frugal
Castle had already shot more film during his brief visit than Hutton would
shoot in an entire day.
Castle had reason to work quickly. In October of 1965, Variety reported the director/producer was soon to again jump ship,
having just inked a multi-picture deal with Paramount. That contract called for Castle to report to
his new bosses on New Year’s Day 1966. Though
Castle was scheduled to begin work on Let’s
Kill Uncle on December 10, 1965, actual production evidently would not
commence until December 20. The clock
was ticking.
One reason for the delay was Castle’s decision to wait on
the availability of “moppet Mary Badham,” the child actress cast as “Chrissie”
in the film. The thirteen-year old was
not yet finished completing work on Sydney Pollack’s drama This Property is Condemned with Natalie Wood, Robert Redford and
Charles Bronson. Another
thirteen-year-old, Pat Cardi, was to join the cast as Barnaby Harrison, the
principal target of his black-hearted Uncle, Major Kevin Harrison (Nigel
Green). Though Cardi’s name was a mostly
unfamiliar one, his face certainly was. The child actor was frequently seen on television screens in a cavalcade
of small roles. Linda Lawson, cast to
play Chrissie’s aunt Justine, was a virtual novice looking for a break. Castle had met Lawson four years earlier when
she delivered mail to him at his Columbia Pictures office.
It’s unclear if Nigel Green was originally sought out by
Castle to play the “Uncle” role. There
were reports as late as December that Leslie Nielsen “had worked out his
shooting schedule on Beau Geste so he
can accept a role in Uncle.” If indeed Nelson was Castle’s first choice to
play the Major, the resulting film - as it stands - might have benefited from the actor’s gift for light-comedy. Whatever the case, Green – just recently seen
as another “Major” in the Len Deighton/Sidney J. Furie production of the
spy-thriller The Ipcress File (1965) –
was brought on. Green’s comedic skills
were not his strong suit, and it wasn’t the best bit of casting. But then everything about Let’s Kill Uncle seems a bit askew.
The shortcomings of this film weighed heavily on the scripting. Castle’s schedule 1963-1965 was a
particularly busy one, so it’s not surprising his optioning of Let’s Kill Uncle was not exercised immediately. In April of 1965 things started moving, Variety reporting the playwright Robert
L. Joseph had been conscripted to adapt O’ Grady’s book as a film treatment, with
tentative plans to start production sometime “next summer.” Whatever the circumstances, Joseph’s
treatment – if submitted at all – was found not up-to-snuff. The responsibility of delivering a workable
adaptation fell to Mark Rodgers, a writer almost exclusively known for his work
on television.
It was, to be fair, a tough work to adapt, as the grim
humor and dark whimsy of O’ Grady’s novel was seamlessly embroidered into a
textual tapestry – a bit of psychological chess-game plotting not easy to
convey visually. Castle chose to dispense
and/or modify many of the novels’ original elements. The setting of the novel is an island off of
the Canadian Pacific coast, there are Mounties trooping about, the treacherous
Uncle” is named “Sylvester,” and there’s even a “soliloquizing” talking cougar
named “One-Eye.” The filmmakers of Let’s Kill Uncle chose to move the
action to an un-named sub-tropical location of palm trees and bananas, there’s
no Mounties or (worse yet!) a talking cougar. The killer Uncle’s moniker was changed from Sylvester to “Kevin
Harrison.” (As has “Chrissie’s.” She’s “Christie”
in the novel).
While these small name changes don’t really figure in or
matter to the final product, the absence of “One-Eye” is unforgivable. As is the lack of suspense one might have expected. The only good thing about moving the locale
from the Canadian coast to the tropics is the welcome – if brief - appearance
of Nestor Paiva as the Steward of the steamer bringing Barnaby and Chrissie to
their new island homes. Paiva, one might
recall, was the captain of the Rita,
the ship slow-trolling the wilds of the Amazon in search of The Creature from the Black Lagoon. It’s Nestor who informs young Barnaby that the
island is cursed, which isn’t too far off the mark, at least for him.
The film never really catches fire. I was hoping to glean Castle’s thoughts on Let’s Kill Uncle in his memoir Step Right Up! I’m Gonna Scare the Pants Off America,
but the director/producer makes no mention of the film’s production nor
reception in the book. The slight filmography
in his book’s back pages gives Let’s Kill
Uncle only the briefest of notice: “Technicolor
murder movie starring kids and Nigel Green.” (It should be noted Director of Photography
Harold Lipstein delivers a film of eye-popping color saturation, the film’s
singular saving grace).
The film was mostly dismissed by critics upon its release
– but there were a few actually enjoyed it. One critic from Box Office
mulled the film’s failure was due to the “scene-chewing and downright brattish
character traits” of Cardi and Badham, that the “homicidal plans” of Uncle
Kevin might have proved “a blessing in disguise” had they been carried out. I generally like William Castle’s shoestring
1960’s psycho-horrors as much as the next guy (assuming that “next guy” also
has lowbrow tastes in cinema), but I found the ninety-two minutes of Let’s Kill Uncle a slow torture. Castle’s fans will at least enjoy the bonus featurette
Mr. Castle and Me: An Interview with
Actor Pat Cardi, which offer a small peek behind the curtain.
This Kino Lorber Studio Classics Blu-ray edition of Let’s Kill Uncle is presented in 1920 x 1080p,
with a ratio of 1.85:1, dts sound, and removable English sub-titles. The film looks absolutely brilliant, Kino
having struck the print from a “Brand New 2K Master.” The set rounds off with two theatrical
trailers of the film as well as the commentaries of film historians Kat
Ellinger (Diabolique magazine) and the
(now sadly recently deceased) author of Teen
Movie Hell, Mike McPadden.
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