The Skull
Esoterica collector Dr Maitland buys an unusual skull from his ordinary source; the artifact is what remains of the Marquis De Sade. Much too soon, Maitland discovers that the skull is turning him into a frenzied killer.
Why it matters
A slow-burn British occult thriller that channels gothic atmosphere through its legendary leads, even if the pacing tests patience.
- Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee bring gravitas and classic Hammer-era dread to the collector-versus-cursed-artifact setup
- A rare glimpse at mid-60s British horror’s fascination with esoterica and psychological corruption over outright gore
- The Marquis de Sade’s skull as a cursed object taps into horror’s long tradition of haunted relics carrying malignant legacies
- Fans of atmospheric dread and vintage horror lore will appreciate the period detail, despite the film’s uneven narrative momentum
Director
21 horror films in catalog
The Brain 1962
Paranoiac 1963
Nightmare 1964
The Evil of Frankenstein 1964
Dr Terror's House of Horrors 1965
The Skull 1965
The Psychopath 1966
The Deadly Bees 1966
Torture Garden 1967
Dracula Has Risen from the Grave 1968
Trog 1970
Mumsy, Nanny, Sonny & Girly 1970
The Vampire Happening 1971
Tales from the Crypt 1972
Tales That Witness Madness 1973
The Creeping Flesh 1973
Craze 1974
The Ghoul 1975
Legend of the Werewolf 1975
The Doctor and the Devils 1985
Dark Tower 1987
Cast
Horror DNA
Gore
0
Slow Burn
66
Psychological
57
Supernatural
60
Creature
0
Disturbing
0
Fun Factor
33
Cerebral
0
Survival
0
Possession
