We are of course concerned here with the 1973 classic of British cinema and not the 2007 remake, which should never be mentioned by anyone ever again. In fact, the only noteworthy aspect of the remake was Nicolas Cage's performance, as only he had realised the film was a parody. The original was largely the vision of three men: writer Anthony Schaffer, producer Peter Snell and actor Christopher Lee, who clubbed together to buy the film rights from the author of the novel Ritual David Pinner. The three were joined by director Robin Hardy, who also had a hand in the film's writing. A self-proclaimed conservative, Lee often stated that it was the best film he ever acted in. It is also, sadly, a film of which we will never see the director's cut, for the film was cut short by fifteen to twenty minutes and the footage edited out lost. Lee always maintained that there was a film ten times better than the one shown in theatres, if only the cans of reel could be found. That said, some of the lost scenes have since been recovered, which certainly give more of an insight into the premise of the film.
