Prey (1977)

You know the big house in the Omen (1976), the secluded stately pile in the English countryside where Ambassador Thorn and his wife intended to raise young Damien before they found out the hard way that he was the Anti-Christ? Well, that big old house was on the grounds of the now-defunct Shepperton Studios, and when cult director Norman J. Warren (fresh from a surprise hit with the slow- burning shocker Satan's Slave) found out it was free for ten days in 1977, he gathered a tiny group of actors (who wore their own clothes on camera) and technicians, and set about making a feature film in little over a week with a largely improvised piecemeal script. Actually, the story behind the making of Prey is a little more complicated than that, but this potted version of events simply underlines the freewheeling, anything-goes state of British cinema in the seventies, when apparently anyone with a few quid to spare and nerves of steel could shoot a film on loose change and have it playing in the Odeons and ABCs alongside the latest blockbusters from America in a matter of weeks. The fact that a turf accountant is mentioned in the credits for Prey tells you all you need to know, really.There's not much of a plot here - a half-man, half-canine alien called Kator / Anders lands in the British countryside on a fact- finding mission and is adopted by a lesbian couple - one slightly butch and prone to possessive hysterics, the other more feminine and submissive. Things very quickly go awry as it becomes clear that Anders / Kator isn't all he seems, chickens are killed, policeman investigating the gruesome disappearance of a motorist are butchered, a fox is found half-eaten, and it's only a matter of time before the awful truth comes out. You've probably guessed the twist already, which is understandable because the title kind of gives it away, but not only are the man-dog-alien thing's alien brethren going to kill us all, but eat us as well. Yikes!Norman J. Warren has been referred to in some quarters as the nearest British cinema's ever come to its very own Fred Olen Ray, but that pat description manages to belittle both parties. Warren was a knowledgeable craftsman and canny director, capable of performing minor miracles on the tightest of budgets, and stands nicely alongside his closest contemporary Pete Walker as one of the true 'wide boys' of seventies exploitation. If Walker offered the public unsentimental tales, however, Warren could be downright misanthropic, presenting a very dim view of humanity with his endlessly shrill and argumentative characters, skew-whiff pocket universes where an attempted rape, a bloody murder or a Suspiria- referencing set-piece lurked around every corner, and happy endings were for wimps and ten-year-old girls. He may have looked like a personable supply teacher, but there's a solid core of pitch-black nastiness at the heart of Warren's best films, and Prey is no exception. Relationships are open wounds, conversations are punctuated by recriminations and hysterics, blood (and vomit) pours off the screen and nobody emerges with any real credit. Throw in some hilariously awkward transvestism, skid row special effects, a commendably gloomy atmosphere of infinite foreboding and you've got a unique, if undeniably flawed little oddity that should please anyone with a taste for the forgotten avenues of schlock horror.A note on the performances, in particular Barry Stokes's turn as the androgynous, almost catatonic alien. Having previously hammed it up in no-budget sex comedies (something he'd do again in the Warren- directed 1979 soft-core science fiction spoof Spaced Out), Stokes proves here that he's just as comfortable with the opposite side of the exploitation coin, and he's hauntingly effective in his role. Sally Faulkner is memorable, if occasionally a touch overpowering, as the dominant half of the partnership, and the late Glory Annen (who would be reunited with Stokes in Spaced Out two years later) should, by rights, have become a legitimate film star - she certainly had the charisma, the acting chops and the looks for it, but it seems she never got the right breaks. Ivor Slaney provides the pulsating electronic score which is appropriately other-worldly and disconcerting, particularly during the genuinely nauseating scene where the three leads thrash around in a heavily polluted river in glorious slow motion - to be honest, in spite of the plentiful blood and viscera on show in certain other scenes, that's the part of Prey most likely to turn the average viewer's stomach.

Alien lands on earth and takes on human form only to end-up being a pawn in the lives of a bickering lesbian couple.The premise of Alien Prey alone will give one a glimpse into the off-beat weirdness that is this strange low budget sci-fi/horror show. Among the crazy offerings you've got animal-men attacking people, an alien in drag, some howlingly bad dialog, a party for a dead fox - its difficult not to find this a tongue-in-cheek effort. Also this bizarre flick has enough sleaze for any exploitation fan thanks to some drawn-out sex scenes. This is all capped off with a surprisingly violent (and bloody) finale and one pleasingly nihilistic ending.The direction isn't bad and the filming locales are nice. The cast's performances are just erratic enough to add even more weirdness to the film. Sally Faulkner throws out a perfectly 'bitchy' vibe only matched by Barry Stokes' deliciously odd 'stowic' performance as the alien - who you just might be rooting for in the end.Alien Prey is simply a hoot for cult fans. There's definitely no other film like it and whether you laugh or groan you're bound to be entertained regardless! *** out of ****

An strange man named Anders (an effectively awkward and freaky performance by Barry Stokes) seeks refuge at the remote rural country cottage of bitter, man-hating, domineering lesbian Josephine (a deliciously spiky and venomous portrayal by the lovely Sally Faulkner) and her sweet, timid lover Jessica (an appealing turn by the cute Glory Annen). Unbeknownst to the ladies, Anders is really a lethal and predatory cannibalistic alien who's on a surveillance mission to find a food source for his race. Director Norman J. Warren, working from a compact and compelling script by Max Cuff, relates the arrestingly peculiar story at a slow, yet steady pace and does an expert job of creating and maintaining a tense, edgy and uncomfortable atmosphere that ultimately culminates in a grisly and terrifying conclusion with an extremely chilling last line. Moreover, Warren delivers a pleasingly abundant amount of in-your-face hideous graphic gore, tasty female nudity, and sizzling soft-core sex to further spice things up. The central narrative offers a weird and pointed critique on prim'n'proper English manners that reaches its gloriously off-center apex with a supremely uneasy and unnerving costume party sequence. The three leads all do strong work with their sharply drawn characters, with Faulkner a stand-out as the spiteful and possessive Josephine. Better still, there's no obtrusive silly humor to detract from the stark severity of the refreshingly grim and brutal horror. Derek V. Browne's fairly slick cinematography astutely nails the pervasive isolation and vulnerability of the sylvan setting while Ivor Slaney's shivery score does the spine-tingling trick. Well worth a look.

I'm glad I didn't go out and buy, or even rent this movie, but watching the low-resolution version on MovieFlix.com was enjoyable enough.Glory Annen played the best character, the somewhat vapid lover of the older lesbian. Trapped in a relationship that doesn't really excite her that much, and wanting to learn more, she plays a key role in bringing the "newcomer" into their lives.This movie was nothing special, fairly typical, if a bit kinkier than usual, Brit fare. But it was entertaining enough to watch it all the way through, which is more than I can say for a lot of films I've watched lately. A mildly interesting plot, a totally hokey alien, enough skin for the prurient, something to make a bowl of popcorn and watch when you have naught else to do.