The Skull
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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The Skull is a 1965 British horror film directed by Freddie Francis for Amicus Productions. It starred the frequently paired horror actors Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee, alongside Patrick Wymark, Jill Bennett, Nigel Green, Patrick Magee and Peter Woodthorpe.
It was one of a number of British horror films of the sixties to be scored by avant-garde composer Elisabeth Lutyens, including several others for Amicus. The script was written by Robert Bloch, from his own short story "The Skull of the Marquis de Sade".
Plot
The story begins in the 1800s, when a phrenologist (Maurice Good) robs the grave of the Marquis de Sade, in order to get his skull. When he takes it home, however, he meets a mysterious and gruesome death.
The story then moves to the modern day, when a collector (Cushing) is offered the skull by a fence (Wymark), who has stolen it from a friend (Lee) of the collector. Before the deal is confirmed, however, the fence, too, dies in mysterious circumstances. The collector retrieves the artefact, but is soon to regret it, as he gradually becomes possessed by the spirit of the Marquis de Sade.
