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an underworld that represents the very worst conditions in which life and 'humanity', however degraded, can survive. Against this underworld are set the LSE students, Alex and Pat, he armed with his insulated New York callousness, she with her limited compassion: sufficiently sympathetic and close to us for the moment when Alex kicks in the Man's head to save Pat from rape (and plague) to be intensely disturbing. More impressively, there is Donald
Pleasence's inspector, set against both 'couples', his absolute separateness (he has no close human ties, no deep attachments) the condition for his independence and splendid resilience. But the Man is the film's real hero, unutterably horrible and repellent, yet irrefutably human; ourselves, as we might survive in the most terrible conditions imaginable."
673:(1968) for the most horrible horror film ever. It is, I think, decidedly the better film: more powerfully structured, more complex, and more humanly involved. Its horrors are not gratuitous; it is an essential part of its achievement to create, in the underground world, the most terrible conditions in which human life can continue to exist and remain recognizably human. is strong without being schematic; one can't talk of allegory in the strict sense, but the action consistently carries resonances beyond its literal meaning."
366:
section, they uncover a room full of corpses laid in bunk beds – the generations of survivors from the cave-in that occurred a century before – including the cannibal, bleeding profusely, apparently dead. The detectives return to meet Alex and
Patricia, and head to the station platform. After they leave, the cannibal is heard screaming "mind the doors!" once more before the credits roll.
687:"an unusually bleak and harrowing horror film...very little in the film offers the audience any relief from the plight of the Man...The violence would be intolerable if it were not for the tragic dimensions of the film, but Hugh Armstrong's performance is one of the greatest and most moving in horror films."
619:
wrote: "Perhaps the title not only refers to railways but is an ironic play on 'life-line'. Certainly the film is a powerful and terribly distressing embodiment of the
Descent myth, built on the relationship between our complacent surface world of technology, social progress, moral emancipation, and
365:
Alex finds them and begins fighting with the cannibal, seriously wounding him with a kick to the head. Patricia begs Alex not to hurt him, and they watch as the cannibal stumbles into a passageway. Calhoun and several other detectives discover Alex and
Patricia. As they search through the abandoned
354:, Alex seeks help from Calhoun, who is dismissive. Alex returns to Holborn station and enters the tunnel. He breaches an abandoned area of the Underground and finds remnants of the miners who worked there over a century ago. Meanwhile, Patricia awakens in the cannibal's lair. She finds him to be
350:. Patricia realises she forgot her textbooks on the train. Alex attempts to retrieve them, but the doors close before he can exit; Patricia yells that she will meet him at home. Once the train leaves, however, Patricia is attacked by the cannibal. When she fails to meet him at their
338:
that a group of descendants who survived an 1892 cave-in still live below ground. Meanwhile, one of the last surviving members of a family of these railway workers watches his pregnant female companion die; they have survived in the underground by resorting to
489:(formerly Strand) station was used for underground sequences, as it was only open for weekday Peak services since 1962, and was subsequently closed completely in 1994. The shots of the platform at "Russell Square" show the exit sign stating "Way Out and to
38:
630:
gave the film 4/5 stars, writing: "Strong stuff in its day, Gary
Sherman never directed a better movie than this grisly chiller, which provides dark scares while presenting an effective commentary on violence. Highly recommended."
563:
in North
American on 26 August 2003. A region 2 edition of the film was released in the UK by Network on 3 April 2006. On 5 April 2011, the film was re-released on DVD in a six-film set alongside other MGM horror titles, such as
327:. They inform a policeman but find that Manfred has vanished. Inspector Calhoun is assigned to look into the disappearance. Calhoun questions Alex and suggests that he and Patricia robbed the man.
837:
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and DVD combination pack. On 27 August 2018 the film was released on Blu-ray in the UK by
Network. This version is notable for featuring the original 'X' certificate card from the
343:
of the patrons. In an empty chamber, Manfred's body lies, mutilated. The man, now left in complete solitude, goes into a rage and brutally murders three maintenance workers.
658:
called the film "a good debut, but it's undermined by several vast improbabilities in the script and by the painfully inept performance of one of its leads, David Ladd."
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493:", but there is no connection to the District Line at Russell Square. The sign had a section blacked out: it would normally read "Way out and to Temple Station (
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362:. She hits him over the head and manages to escape into a tunnel. He corners her and attempts to communicate with her, but becomes frustrated and violent.
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kept them in separate shots until Lee sits down at the end of the scene, so that he would not have issues fitting them both into the same frame.
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534:, the film's distributor, retitled the film for its American release, along with a marketing campaign that made it appear as though it were a
479:. Despite this, the two do not share the screen together for the majority of Lee's only scene, due to their large height difference. Director
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Two university students find themselves at the centre of an investigation involving a man who goes missing on the
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Calhoun's colleague tells him about the history of the London
Underground, particularly the
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This article is about the 1972 British horror film. For the 1997 science fiction film, see
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on 3 October 1973. In the United States, it was released in an edited cut to avoid an
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and unable to communicate with her, although he is capable of uttering one phrase,
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838:"SHOCK WAVES Episode 57: Death Lines, Pimps & Poltergeists with Gary Sherman!"
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boyfriend Alex find an unconscious man on the stairwell. Fearing that he may be
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957:"Going Underground: 'Death Line' (1972) on Blu-Ray reviewed » We Are Cult"
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railway workers who constructed the tunnels under dire conditions, and an
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was the nearest station on the
District and Circle line to Aldwych.
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agreed to do the film for scale, because he wanted to work with
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One evening, Alex and
Patricia take a train home and get off at
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and was later released in the United States under the title
292:. The screenplay was by Ceri Jones from a story by Sherman.
681:
The Penguin Encyclopedia of Horror and the Supernatural
403:
June Turner as Dying Cannibal (credited as "The Woman")
461:
Hugh Armstrong's role was originally to be played by
868:"Filming Locations for Death Line (1972), in London"
638:, the film holds an approval rating of 91% based on
1109:Campbell, Ramsey (August 1985). "Beyond the Pale".
719:Malcolm, Derek (16 November 1972). "Bated breath".
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1031:"Death Line (Raw Meat) (1972) – Rotten Tomatoes"
912:. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Home Entertainment. 2011.
315:, university students Patricia and her American
1187:
807:"How Marlon Brando was Almost the Monster in
667:praised the film, writing that it "vies with
512:premiered in London on 17 November 1972 as a
8:
598:released the film in a Collector's Edition
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714:
712:
697:List of London Underground-related fiction
465:, but Brando had to back out when his son
36:
27:
785:British Film Institute Collections Search
725:. p. 12 – via Newspapers.com.
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418:Heather Stoney as W.P.C. Alice Marshall
400:as The Cannibal (credited as "The Man")
744:
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7:
1364:Films set on the London Underground
805:Alexander, Chris (22 April 2017).
14:
881:Erickson, Glenn (14 April 2004).
16:1972 British film by Gary Sherman
1369:Films produced by Paul Maslansky
394:Sharon Gurney as Patricia Wilson
910:MGM Collection: 6 Horror Movies
532:American International Pictures
166:American International Pictures
1359:Films directed by Gary Sherman
1301:Amy's Book Hunt with Amy Brent
844:. 21 July 2017. Archived from
591:Invasion of the Body Snatchers
1:
1389:English-language horror films
683:, but reprinted later, calls
264:) is a 1972 British-American
1374:1970s English-language films
1295:39: A Film by Carroll McKane
755:AFI Catalog of Feature Films
385:as Detective Sergeant Rogers
559:(MGM) released the film on
469:became ill with pneumonia.
1405:
1003:Radio Times Guide to Films
983:(468): 6. 1 January 1973.
606:at the start of the film.
184:17 November 1972
18:
1210:
1005:(18th ed.). London:
976:The Monthly Film Bulletin
616:The Monthly Film Bulletin
594:(1978). On 27 June 2017,
451:as Stratton-Villiers, MI5
421:Hugh Dickson as Dr. Bacon
35:
1215:The Legend of Bo Diddley
1083:"Raw Meat aka Deathline"
670:Night of the Living Dead
585:Sometimes They Come Back
268:written and directed by
195:3 October 1973
1354:Films about cannibalism
1007:Immediate Media Company
760:American Film Institute
679:, in a review cut from
409:as Inspector Richardson
1344:American slasher films
309:Russell Square station
307:Late one night at the
160:Rank Film Distributors
1349:British slasher films
1258:Wanted: Dead or Alive
1088:Turner Classic Movies
1009:. 2017. p. 236.
991:– via ProQuest.
427:as Platform Inspector
415:as James Manfred, OBE
192: (United Kingdom)
1379:1970s American films
932:"Death Line Blu-ray"
379:as Inspector Calhoun
1384:1970s British films
1339:1970s slasher films
848:on 1 September 2017
646:rating of 7.22/10.
557:Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
439:as Police Constable
42:U.S. release poster
1202:Films directed by
1167:TCM Movie Database
883:"Review: Raw Meat"
313:London Underground
297:London Underground
203: (Los Angeles)
1334:1972 horror films
1316:
1315:
1230:Dead & Buried
1061:Chicago Sun-Times
1055:(3 August 1973).
1033:. Rotten Tomatoes
959:. 23 August 2018.
664:The Village Voice
655:Chicago Sun-Times
610:Critical response
383:Norman Rossington
284:, Sharon Gurney,
278:Norman Rossington
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96:Norman Rossington
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1289:Murderous Vision
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1092:. Retrieved
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1064:. Retrieved
1060:
1053:Ebert, Roger
1047:
1035:. Retrieved
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974:
971:"Death Line"
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939:. Retrieved
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892:. Retrieved
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850:. Retrieved
846:the original
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781:"Death Line"
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763:. Retrieved
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588:(1991), and
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336:urban legend
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212:Running time
127:Alex Thomson
69:Gary Sherman
52:Gary Sherman
25:
1251:The Streets
1066:22 December
936:Blu-ray.com
765:28 February
650:Roger Ebert
626:Radio Times
567:Pumpkinhead
540:Los Angeles
514:double bill
445:as publican
407:Clive Swift
341:cannibalism
266:horror film
74:Produced by
48:Directed by
1329:1972 films
1323:Categories
1238:Vice Squad
1222:Death Line
1162:Death Line
1151:Death Line
1140:Death Line
1129:Death Line
1057:"Raw Meat"
989:1305836704
918:B004QF71ZM
809:Death Line
750:"Raw Meat"
703:References
685:Death Line
640:11 reviews
579:Scarecrows
552:Home media
510:Death Line
457:Production
431:Ron Pember
389:David Ladd
282:David Ladd
249:Death Line
216:87 minutes
199:1973-10-03
188:1972-11-17
147:Wil Malone
101:David Ladd
61:Ceri Jones
31:Death Line
1037:1 October
842:Blumhouse
642:, with a
538:film. In
467:Christian
332:Victorian
255:Deathline
221:Countries
133:Edited by
21:Deathline
1134:AllMovie
1094:30 April
985:ProQuest
941:30 April
894:30 April
888:DVD Talk
852:30 April
822:22 April
790:25 March
691:See also
582:(1988),
576:(1987),
570:(1988),
548:(1973).
528:X rating
524:Raw Meat
321:diabetic
261:Raw Meat
238:Language
143:Music by
84:Starring
66:Story by
1165:at the
652:of the
600:Blu-ray
505:Release
487:Aldwych
356:aphasic
311:in the
241:English
197: (
186: (
1309:(2015)
1303:(2012)
1297:(2006)
1291:(1991)
1285:(1990)
1277:(1990)
1269:(1988)
1261:(1986)
1253:(1984)
1247:(1982)
1241:(1982)
1233:(1981)
1225:(1972)
1217:(1966)
1013:
987:
916:
536:zombie
288:, and
1113:: 33.
573:Dolls
516:with
168:(USA)
1274:Lisa
1145:IMDb
1096:2018
1068:2017
1039:2019
1011:ISBN
943:2018
914:ASIN
896:2018
854:2018
824:2017
792:2024
767:2021
624:The
604:BBFC
497:)".
370:Cast
352:flat
303:Plot
162:(UK)
1154:at
1143:at
1132:at
634:On
561:DVD
325:OBE
1325::
1085:.
1059:.
981:40
979:.
973:.
934:.
885:.
840:.
813:.
783:.
758:.
752:.
731:^
711:^
530:.
299:.
280:,
276:,
1195:e
1188:t
1181:v
1098:.
1070:.
1041:.
1019:.
945:.
920:.
898:.
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856:.
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201:)
190:)
23:.
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