Forgotten Gems of SPFX Part Nine

Matte Shot – a tribute to Golden Era & Traditional Special Effects is a tribute to the artistry and ingenuity of traditional matte painters, this collection celebrates the hand‑crafted movie magic that once shaped cinema — from grand, epic vistas to invisible effects even seasoned viewers might miss. It’s designed for both casual fans and dedicated enthusiasts, offering a renewed appreciation for skills largely forgotten today.

So, here’s the latest from the Archives of Matte Shot …

Hi there friends and fellow trickshot enthusiasts. It’s time once again for a re-evaluation of another classic event in special visual effects, with todays topic being the substantial visual effects showcase that was Hammer Films 1970 diversion away from their standard fare of vampire bats and stitched together reanimated corpses, WHEN DINOSAURS RULED THE EARTH – the genre and theme of which pretty much speaks for itself.

I’ve always been a big fan of Hammer films and still regard their catalogue and output as standing in a class of it’s own for the most part, with often quite impressive films produced under modest circumstances to say the least. The British studio was a stock company of talent both in front of and behind the camera, with quality showing in most every case. The film being discussed here today is probably a unique entry in the Hammer catalogue as it’s the only film I know of that was deemed worthy of an Oscar nomination, with the category of course being for Best Special Visual Effects. The film lost out to Disney’s BEDKNOBS AND BROOMSTICKS that year which suggests that it would have to be a cold, cold day in hell before a little British Hammer film won out over a big budget American film with the Disney name attached.

Although known mostly for horror pictures, Hammer actually had a wide, across the board range of genres and topics from the 1930’s through to the mid 1970’s, from comedies such as DON’T PANIC CHAPS to meaty war pictures as THE CAMP ON BLOOD ISLAND and YESTERDAY’S ENEMY swashbuckling adventures like THE PIRATES OF BLOOD RIVER and the wonderful CAPTAIN CLEGG; sci-fi excursions MOON ZERO TWO and the QUATERMASS series, and crime dramas such as the excellent little bank heist film CASH ON DEMAND through to delvings into the occult with the sorely under-rated Dennis Wheatley chiller TO THE DEVIL A DAUGHTER as just a few examples…

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