Rituals (film)

Rituals (also known as The Creeper) is a 1977 Canadian horror/thriller film directed by Peter Carter. It centers on a group of doctors who are menaced while on a camping getaway trip in Northern Ontario.

Rituals
Theatrical release poster
Directed byPeter Carter
Produced byLawrence Dane
Harry H. Novak
Written byIan Sutherland
StarringHal Holbrook
Lawrence Dane
Robin Gammell
Ken James
Gary Reineke
Music byHagood Hardy
CinematographyRené Verzier
Edited byGeorge Appleby
Production
company
Astral Bellevue Pathé
Canadian Film Development Corporation
Canart Films
Famous Players
Distributed byAstral Films (Canada) Aquarius Releasing (US)
Release date
  • July 21, 1977 (1977-07-21) (Canada)
Running time
100 minutes
CountryCanada
LanguageEnglish

Plot

Doctors go on a wilderness weekend retreat deep in the bushes of Northern Ontario. Around the campfire, they begin to drink and bicker among themselves about whose field is more intellectually demanding. Suddenly, they all have their boots stolen. And they find out that someone has left a deer carcass hanging by their campsite. The medics soon realize they're being hunted by someone, or something.

Cast

Release

Home media

Rituals was released on VHS by Embassy Home Entertainment in 1985.[1] It was released for the first time on DVD by Mill Creek Entertainment on February 7, 2006 as a part of its Drive-In Movie Classics: 50 Movie Pack. Mill Creek re-eleased the film on April 10, 2007 in its Horror Classics: 100 Movie Pack. It was released by Code Red on April 19, 2011. On January 24, 2012, it was released by Filmchest under the alternate title The Creeper. It was last released by VFN on July 9, 2015.[2]

Reception

The Terror Trap awarded the film 3.5 out of 4 stars, praising the film's atmosphere, editing, and Holbrook's performance, calling it "[an] above average journey-into-hell gem".[3] Brett H. from Oh, the Horror! gave the film a positive review, praising the film's characters, soundtrack, suspense, and ending; calling it "a gripping nail biter that will please slasher and horror aficionados immensely, and is one of the key pieces to the puzzle of Maple Leaf Macabre."[4] Justin Kerswell from Hysteria Lives! gave the film 4/5 stars, writing, "Not since Deliverance ... has the wilderness held such terror"[5] John Townsend from HorrorNews.net praised the film, writing, "Watching Rituals having seen so many of these subsequent films drives home the fact that it is possible to make a taut, tense horror thriller without the need for huge swathes of special effects and gallons of fake blood. There is more character, story and enjoyment to be had in this film and in much of the current franchise put together."[6] Phil Michaels from The Spinning Image gave the film 7/10 stars, writing, "On the face of it, Rituals is complete rubbish but if you are willing to work at it a little then you might find it rewarding."[7] Stuart Giesel from Digital Retribution rated the film 4.5 out of 5, stating, "Rituals is another reason why the 70's is, in my mind, the best decade for films: it's brutal, unsentimental, unflinching and utterly compelling."[8]

The film was not without its detractors. TV Guide awarded the film 1/5 stars, calling it "[a] cheap north-of-the-border ripoff of Deliverance".[9] Author and film critic Leonard Maltin gave the film 1.5 out of four stars, calling it "unpleasant".[10]

References
  1. "Amazon.com: Rituals [VHS]: Hal Holbrook: Movies & TV". Amazon.com. Amazon. Retrieved 3 April 2019.
  2. "Rituals (1978) - Peter Carter". Allmovie.com. AllMovie. Retrieved 30 June 2018.
  3. "Rituals (1977)". Terror Trap.com. The Terror Trap. Retrieved 30 June 2018.
  4. "Horror Reviews - Rituals (1978)". Oh the Horror.com. Brett H. Retrieved 30 June 2018.
  5. Kerswell, Justin. "RITUALS". Hysteria Lives.co.uk. Justin Kerswell. Retrieved 30 June 2018.
  6. Townsend, John. "Film Review: Rituals (1977)". HorrorNews.net. John Townsend. Retrieved 30 June 2018.
  7. Michaels, Phil. "Rituals Review (1977)". The Spinning Image.co.uk. Phil Michaels. Retrieved 17 August 2018.
  8. Giesel, Stuart. "Rituals VHS Review". Digital Retribution.com. Stuart Giesel. Retrieved 17 August 2018.
  9. "Rituals - Movie Reviews and Movie Ratings". TV Guide.com. TV Guide. Retrieved 30 June 2018.
  10. Leonard Maltin (3 September 2013). Leonard Maltin's 2014 Movie Guide. Penguin Publishing Group. p. 1181. ISBN 978-1-101-60955-2.
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