From The Guardian:
One morning in 1973, Christopher Lee requested a pre-release showing of his latest film. ‘What do you think of it?’ asked Michael Deeley, British Lion’s managing director. ‘It’s an extraordinary movie,’ Lee enthused. He never forgot Deeley’s reply. ‘He just looked at me and said, ‘I think it’s one of the 10 worst films I’ve ever seen’.’ Lee was gobsmacked.
‘Well, you’re entitled to your opinion. But I think you’re totally wrong.’ That year two masterpieces of Gothic horror were released which changed the way directors and audiences saw the genre. William Friedkin’s The Exorcist and Nicolas Roeg’s Don’t Look Now were critically acclaimed worldwide. But Robin Hardy’s The Wicker Man was mishandled and overlooked, only belatedly recognised as an original and audacious debut.
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