Insanity seemed to be S.F. Brownrigg's greatest interest, as all four of his horror films were about crazy people doing crazy things in some out- of-the-way place where they were allowed to run rampant. "Keep My Grave Open" doesn't have the large cast of his earlier (and better) "Don't Look In The Basement", but what it does have is a great performance by Camilla Carr in the lead role as Lesley, a disturbed woman who carries with her the alternate personality of her brother, Kevin. When Lesley becomes Kevin, she is naturally a murderous psycho, in this case dispatching unwelcome visitors to her rural mansion with a long, sharp sword.
"Keep My Grave Open" is just as beautifully cheap as the rest of Brownrigg's movies. It goes without saying that "Don't Look In The Basement" is the best of his films, but that's mainly because the individual elements (script, concept, acting, direction) were so good. I've never seen "Scum of the Earth", but I did see "Don't Open the Door!", and that one suffered a little in the concept and script. Although "Keep My Grave Open" doesn't have a terrific script either, Brownrigg does better at emphasizing other parts of the production, most notably the cinematography and atmospheric details. Lesley's solitude at the secluded mansion leaves her alone for a lot of the film's lengthy set pieces, such as one sequence that shows her meticulously putting on exaggerated makeup and attempting seduce Kevin, whom she believes lives with her. Brownrigg does this weird point-of-view camera shot where "Kevin" starts to make love to Lesley, the camera getting on top of her and getting right up against her face for these intense closeups.
I could see many viewers being turned off by all of this and finding it dull, but honestly I thought it was unusual and surreal, even disturbing. Carr really brings Lesley and her fragile mental condition to life, and that makes these sequences work very well. There are only a few overt horror sequences in the film, which will definitely turn some viewers off. The gore factor is very low, and the death scenes are not particularly explicit.
I liked this one way better than "Don't Open the Door!", and now I can't wait to see "Scum of the Earth" to complete my quest to see all four of the horror films from Brownrigg's short career as a director.
"Keep My Grave Open" is just as beautifully cheap as the rest of Brownrigg's movies. It goes without saying that "Don't Look In The Basement" is the best of his films, but that's mainly because the individual elements (script, concept, acting, direction) were so good. I've never seen "Scum of the Earth", but I did see "Don't Open the Door!", and that one suffered a little in the concept and script. Although "Keep My Grave Open" doesn't have a terrific script either, Brownrigg does better at emphasizing other parts of the production, most notably the cinematography and atmospheric details. Lesley's solitude at the secluded mansion leaves her alone for a lot of the film's lengthy set pieces, such as one sequence that shows her meticulously putting on exaggerated makeup and attempting seduce Kevin, whom she believes lives with her. Brownrigg does this weird point-of-view camera shot where "Kevin" starts to make love to Lesley, the camera getting on top of her and getting right up against her face for these intense closeups.
I could see many viewers being turned off by all of this and finding it dull, but honestly I thought it was unusual and surreal, even disturbing. Carr really brings Lesley and her fragile mental condition to life, and that makes these sequences work very well. There are only a few overt horror sequences in the film, which will definitely turn some viewers off. The gore factor is very low, and the death scenes are not particularly explicit.
I liked this one way better than "Don't Open the Door!", and now I can't wait to see "Scum of the Earth" to complete my quest to see all four of the horror films from Brownrigg's short career as a director.