Gothic horror The Black Torment stars John Turner as Sir Richard Fordyke, who returns to his family estate with his new wife Lady Elizabeth (Heather Sears) to discover that, even though he was over 100 miles away in London at the time, the villagers believe him to be responsible for the recent murder of local girl Lucy Judd (seen being throttled in the opening sequence). Other strange occurrences drive Sir Richard to breaking point, including the ghostly appearance of his first wife Anne, who committed suicide because she was unable to produce an heir.
In the tradition of Hammer's gothic classics and many a Euro-horror, this production boasts oodles of eerie atmosphere and quite a few heaving bosoms. The mystery and suspense is well handled by director Robert Hartford-Davis (who also directed the excellent Corruption and the not-so-excellent Incense for the Damned), but it all falls apart in the final act when the truth is revealed, and the spooky stuff turns out to be a rather preposterous plot for revenge (involving Sir Richard's doppelganger imbecile brother) concocted by Anne's sister Diane (Ann Lynn) and her brother Seymour (Peter Arne), who hold Sir Richard accountable for Anne's death.
In the tradition of Hammer's gothic classics and many a Euro-horror, this production boasts oodles of eerie atmosphere and quite a few heaving bosoms. The mystery and suspense is well handled by director Robert Hartford-Davis (who also directed the excellent Corruption and the not-so-excellent Incense for the Damned), but it all falls apart in the final act when the truth is revealed, and the spooky stuff turns out to be a rather preposterous plot for revenge (involving Sir Richard's doppelganger imbecile brother) concocted by Anne's sister Diane (Ann Lynn) and her brother Seymour (Peter Arne), who hold Sir Richard accountable for Anne's death.