Raw Meat

Raw Meat (aka. Death Line) (1972)

Underneath the streets of London lies a buried and forgotten piece of history, an incomplete subway line that collapsed before the turn of the last century, taking with it several workers. But did the workers die? Now something has come out of the tunnels and is taking away the unsuspecting lone passengers into the depths of the underground. It is now up to an American student who is unwillingly pulled into the mystery and a detective to figure out what is happening, and to stop it if they can. But will they be able to do this before the students beautiful young girlfriend becomes yet another victim?

So I’ve been dying to catch this one for years and finally I got my hands on a copy. Who wouldn’t love a movie about a modern day cannibal that is unleashed on the riders of the subway? The movie starts off with a bang and creates an atmosphere that is both menacing and creepy as hell. But then the movie sort of loses it’s way when it leaves the confines of the subway, which it does almost immediately. The fact that the characters continue to use the subway, knowing that there are people going missing in the area made me want to yell at the television. The one highlight of the above ground stuff is Donald Pleasance, who does a great job as the police inspector. His delivery of the dialogue is a thing of beauty and a real treat to watch. Other than Pleasance the rest of the cast does an acceptable job in their roles, but no one is spectacular. I was also quite disappointed that the movie makes a big deal in the opening credits that Christopher Lee is in the film. He actually shows up for one short scene, that is clearly nothing more than a glorified cameo. I hate “stunt” casting like this, especially in a movie that is decent enough that it doesn’t really need the use of such a gimmick.

Technically this is a fine film. The setting is creepy and the filmmakers make fine use of the strange artificial lighting to give the underground a surreal feel and look. Another thing that will be very obvious is the gore. There aren’t any onscreen kills, unless you count some unfortunate rats. But there is a body room that looks pretty damn cool, especially for the early 70s. I was shocked at how much gore was in the movie considering it was an English production (even though I read that it was cut by a couple of minutes in it release in England). You have dozens of bodies in different states of decay with rats feasting on them. Some pretty cool stuff.

If you consider yourself a fan of English horror than you will probably enjoy this one, if not then maybe you should pass. I can recommend that it is worth a rental at least and maybe a purchase if you are a fan of the British stuff.

2 ½ out of 4

reviewed by John Shatzer