The Nightmare Man [DVD]

This is a BBC adaptation of he 1978 book Child of the Vodayanoi by David Wiltshire retitled The Nightmare Man , rather aptly retitled as I can remember watching it aged 12 when it was shown for the first and only time in 1981 and it scared me half to death.It was made by two people who were involved in a lot of Dr Whos best adventures Robert Holmes and David Camfield and has even been described as an adult Dr Who or like a Dr Who story without the Dr. It has atmosphere galore , is truly eerie and creepy and has fantastic performances from all the actors especially Maurice Roeves and James Cosmo as the Islands two Police offcers who really work well together and one other notable thing is that they cast Scots actors to play Scots characters as opposed to nowdays when you would have a Brit or American playing them.The story is set on a remote Scots Island that gets cut off from the mainland in bad weather where something not quite Human is running around and ripping the locals to pieces , this may sound like a cheesy cliched Horror movie but trust me it is so creepy that it still sends shivers down my spine watching it again ( And I am nearly 40 ) the FX are what you would expect from 1981 but they work well and are well done for I imagine they had a tight budget , and for a Horror it is not very gruesome or graphic but is pretty nasty in places leaving your own imagination to do the work.You get brief glimpses of the killer but as the episodes progress you see more and more but like all good horrors and chillers this is done sparingly and there is more speculation by the main characters about what the killer is .All in all if you did not watch this the first time around I recommend you catch it this time , if you did see it the first time them like me you probably want to see it again and remember being scared half to death the first time .I would highly recommend that you watch the DVD first as it has no special features but comes with a very detailed booklet which if read before watching will give a lot away .

Let me be the first to review this DVD, without ever having seen it. I have put it on pre-order, so it's not completely illegitimate.I walked around my house armed (as a child) because of this programme, and it has scared me ever since. The synopsis 'This drama centres on the arrival of a woman and the effect on the inhabitants of Inverdee' is not completely accurate. Something strange happens on an island off the coast of Scotland, there is a woman in it, and it is dramatic, true. This is a horror story of sorts, and we will probably find the better BBC production values of the 1980s when we get to see it again (this series has not been shown on TV for quite some time). I'm quite sure we'll find good actors and I plan to watch from behind my hands, if not the sofa exactly.

(Contains Spoilers)A superb horror serial from the BBC Archives. The four-part horror thriller comes from 1981 and features a wealth of talent in front and behind the cameras. The cast includes James Warwick, Celia Imrie, James Cosmo, Maurice Roeves, Johnathan Newth (who you may recognise from 'Tenko').Behind the scenes you have some terrific talent, Robert Holmes, Douglas Camfield, John Brace, Graham Harper.As other reviewers have mentioned there are many connections here with 'Old Who', but that is nothing to be ashamed of, and is not a surprise as most were BBC staff anyway.There are some chilling moments, such as the killer's point of view, with the very sinister breathing over the top too. The 'inicident' at the Coastguard Station and a general feel of danger stick in the mind. There are some scenes which feel rushed or time was running out to get them done. The ending is one of the scenes.The killer played by Pat Gorman, who was a regular supporting artist on British Television for about 30 years, is chilling. The murder in the tent, which is not seen to begin with, is reconstructed by our heroes, via a tape recording and stills, taken by a camera with motion sensor.The DVD has not extras, but does come with a wonderfully detailed making-of booklet.

I watched The Nightmare man when it went out way back in 1981 (I was 9) and it scared me to death. I only had vague memories of bits and pieces of the actual story, but the oppressive atmosphere and gurgling shrieks of the creature were still razor sharp a few years later. Luckily, I met someone who had taped it from the TV when it screened and he gave me a copy. This was when I was 17 and it still gave me the shivers. It's true that the production values are very 80s and there is some duff dialogue, but Maurice Roeves and especially Jonathan Newth are exemplary. My favourite line is "Have you noticed something - we've all started (calling the killer) 'It' ". I would recommend this serial to anyone, but watch it in the dark and alone...Alex Durrans (on my wife's email)

This particular made-for-TV episodic movie is another proof of the genius that is BBC-creative unit. At a time when run-of-the-mill shows were dominating British TV and "Dallas"-type serials exported by the US TV were becoming standard-bearers of entertainment (whatever that might have meant then), this brilliant adaptation of a sci-fi horror novel into a 4-part movie had set new standards. Yes, the technical aspects are little dodgy. Yes, the monster, once revealed, does not match our thoughts (expectations?) evoked by the red-filtered images and harsh breathing sound that accompanied it, esp. during the killings. But the film is carried forward by some superb acting, gripping suspense, an openness regarding the identity of the monster, and with several undercurrents (islander-v/s-outsider, police-v/s-military) being handled in a deft manner. The Booklet accompanying the DVD is a real bonus, and would be treasured by me.Overall, BBC should hunt their archives for more of such hidden jewels that would turn out to be superior to many of the contemporary sc-fi-thriller works, once we get to watch them again. Recommended!

Perfect!