The Abominable Snowman

Rating:
Summary: Peter Cushing.
Review: Peter Cushing shines through,as Dr.John Rollason. An exploration team in the Himalayas searches for the legendary Yeti. Anchor Bay Have done an excellent job in the transfer of this 1957 Black and White film,in original ratio of 2.35:1. Only traces of grain can be seen,otherwise,a sharp,blemish-free picture.

Rating:
Summary: Watered Down Hammer
Review: The Abominable Snowman is in a somewhat different vein from much of the Hammer films of this period. It aims to be more philosophical rather than horrific and comes across more as a long (too long) Twilight Zone or original Star Trek episode (particularly as the Himalayas looked much like a snowish covered version of the planets in which the crew always seemed to find themselves) which is not what one is necessarily looking for in what was once a feature film. The actors, particularly, of course, Peter Cushing, do good work and the film has nice intentions in its message but the slow build-up to the story is unnecessary when the time could have been used more effectively to develop the secondary characters and give a litte more back story to the leads, if not actually creating suspense. Not the best work from a great studio.

Rating:
Summary: Simple and Fun
Review: The move Abominable Snowman was one I remembered seeing on late night tv back when they used to show great older movies on lots of local stations. What I like about the movie is it doesnt depend on a lot of special effects , it has atmosphere and a couple pretty good actors in Forrest Tucker and Peter Cushing. The movie has some suspense , some science fiction and a tiny bit of horror. It is a film the whole family can watch without worrying about foul language or nudity. Great for a late night movie with plenty of popcorn.

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Summary: The Best non Horror Hammer Film ever Made.
Review: There is something really refreshing about The Abomitable Snowman, made in 1957. It's not a low budget cheesy horror film that Hammer Films would regretfully only come out with later. This movie benefits from creative direction from director Val Guest, a good screenplay, and a cast of fine actors led by Peter Cushing and Forest Tucker. It was actually filmed in the Swiss Alps, but it still passes for the Himalayes quite effectively. The movie maintains a mysterious atomosphere throughout the story as the final climax between the scientist and the Yeti shows us that the creatures are really quite gentle after all. This movie belongs more in the genre of science fiction.

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Summary: Best Yeti/Bigfoot movie
Review: This a pretty good movie with excellent actors and a decent plot. While the film is not a big budget production it is still the best of the bigfoot/abominable snowman movies thus far.

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Summary: Man and what eludes him...
Review: This film, much like the Val Lewton-produced movies of the 40s ('Cat People', 'The Seventh Victim'...), belongs to the 'B-cinema of the unseen' - the low budget becomes an asset, and evocating the unknown becomes more important than bluntly showing it. This aspect is especially meaningful here, given the movie's elusive title character. The quest of the film's protagonists symbolizes the general ambition to reach what lies beyond man and his reason; it is the search of mysterious, potentially dangerous knowledge. When the adventurers appear to have reached their goal, deception always ensues and the quest still goes on; the conclusion itself is more open-ended than it may initially seem. It is through the characters' contact with Orient (both its people and environment) that they gradually stop to consider themselves the measure of all things. Man's smallness in the cosmos is illustrated in two ways throughout the film: on the physical plane, Val Guest's widescreen compositions often transform men into ants roaming about in a vast world; on the spiritual plane, the interior scenes show the characters' fears of the unknown take over. Concise and intelligent, this film should be seen.

Rating:
Summary: Will the real monster please stand up?
Review: This great Hammer classic stars Peter Cushing and Forrest Tucker in a gripping thriller set in the Himalayas. Forrest Tucker is Tom Friend a show biz con-man looking for a side show attraction. Aided by an innocent botanist (Cushings) Dr. Rollason. They hunt the great yeti until it is they who are hunted.This creature is definitely a female because of all the mind games it plays..(loosen up) We do not see the monster until the end. But by then you"ve already guessed who the real monster is....Larry Storch.(just kidding) Great acting and you feel the vastness of their surroundings. It must be seen in widescreen!

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Summary: Intellectual horror from hammer!
Review: This is a genuinely unnerving horror from hammer, that unusually focuses more on the unseen rather than the seen. This may make it slow at the beginning, but stick with it and there are great rewards. As always with Kneale the themes run thicker than you may think at first, and the statement on mankind is fairly damning. All very thought-provoking and unnerving, this is one of hammer's best efforts, benefiting greatly from Cushing's presence as usual. The dvd picture quality is excellent for such an old film, and the commentary track is as honest and as revealing as one could hope for from director Val Guest and writer Nigel Kneale. The documentary is interesting for the clips of other hammer films, but is as vapid and cheap as every other one in the series. In summary, Anchor Bay should be congratulated for the extraordinary amount of effort they continue putting into these disks.

Rating:
Summary: Burrrr!! It gave me the chills!
Review: This is a very atmospheric and enthralling movie. It's a big departure from most of the Hammer Films in the sense that its basis is on folklore and speculation rather than "Classic Monster" genre. Peter Cushing and Forrest Tucker give great performances and the film sets itself up well.
It also contains great shots of the Nepal mountain range and also pays a respect to Himalayan culture and religion.
This is a wise decision for any old monster movie buff or fan of the Hammer Films.
Bigfoot enthusiasts will enjoy this especially.
It's a good old fashion creature feature that delivers the goods and is suitable for everyone.

Rating:
Summary: Find the Yeti
Review: This is another fine Hammer movie. Peter Cushing is a botanist on an expedition to the Himalayas in search of the Yeti (Abominable Snowman). Forrest Tucker joins Cushing in the search but Tucker is out to capture and exploit the creature and he doesn't care who gets hurt. One of the Yeti's is killed, Tucker is killed in an avalanche, and the Yetis let Cushing go unharmed.

The movie is well photograph (black and white); the DVD has excellent picture quality and is widescreen.