The Collector

source: The Collector

Terence Stamp is fabulous in the part of a brooding etymologist who kidnaps Samantha Eggar in this 1965 weird picture. Everyone knows that he has no intention whatsoever of releasing his true love. In fact, he has been watching her for quite a while. Along the way, Eggar tries to escape to no avail. There is no sex between the two and the piece becomes one of sheer boredom. It is almost laughable in certain scenes. In fact, Eggar developing pneumonia during all this is probably a welcomed relief. Is Stamp another Scarlett? Does he actually realize that Eggar was really never for him?

Saw it in the movies when I was a teen. One of the most disturbing movies ever made. Brilliant acting by both stars. This is much closer to the concept of "Horror" than fantastic monsters or slashers.

No – Not Really. Terence Stamp constantly has the same psycho-look on his face. He actually looks like Mr. Bean – which indicates how much my thoughts were drifting during this supposed thriller. Man kidnaps young lady – holds her hostage. He wants her to fall in love with him. When she does – or pretends too – he has too much psycho impotence to react accordingly. The young lady has innumerable escape opportunities which she does not take advantage of. There is so much credibility lost through-out this arduous 2 hour film that it boggles. The dialogue is monotonously repetitive – He says "Please love me and talk with me"– and she replies "I hate you and set me free why don't you babe – you just keep me hangin' on" (well not quite). At the end she dies blissfully and we hardly know why. Our psycho-killer can continue on his merry trajectory and make a sequel.

I saw this excellent blast from the past on television about three years ago, and couldn't turn away from it. I was immediately enamored of Terence Stamp, a very underrated actor, in this very riveting performance. Freddie Clegg's obsession with the lovely, quintessential 60s young lady, Miranda Grey (the unforgettable Samantha Eggar), is one of those things that, at the time, may have seemed quite radical, and it is obvious that both John Sayles' novel and William Wyler's film were both way ahead of the time. The violence is understated, and the psychology of both the main characters subtle, yet the viewer has no trouble comprehending their thoughts, feelings and actions. Stamp excels in this portrayal of a withdrawn, lonely young man who has an empty life, with only his collection of butterflies to stimulate him. Eggar, as the object of his obsession, represents to him and innocent, wholesome ideal, someone he feels will understand him, accept him, and he hopes, love him. After he meticulously stalks her, plans her abduction and locks her in the cellar of his newly purchased country home, both individuals have to come to terms with the result of his actions, causing conflict, an unlikely relationship, and, ultimately, dangerous consequences. Miranda does try to understand Freddie, even attempts to compromise with him, but only manages to infuriate her captor and fuel his feelings of being a misfit of society. As she becomes more and more desperate to escape, his anger and controlling behavior only intensifies. As a last resort, she attempts to seduce him, but he is obviously very sexually repressed (and hey, so are many of the stalkers out there today!), and is temporarily tempted, but becomes disgusted, basically saying "You're just like all the rest!" After she injures him with a shovel, and he leaves her locked in the cellar as he seeks medical treatment, Miranda is left in a life-threatening situation, and with no escape in sight, succumbs to pneumonia not long after Freddie's return. His mixed feelings of grief and blaming Miranda for her own fate shows a hint of the mental disorders that many offenders of this kind suffer from. It is also obvious that he has learned nothing from this experience, and, as the film concludes, he is out stalking another victim. I found this film disturbing but thrilling, and it's a treat to see such gifted actors bring this story to life. If you liked this movie, see "That Cold Day In The Park" (1968), starring the late Sandy Dennis, and "Kiss The Girls" starring Morgan Freeman and Ashley Judd. I highly recommend this "mod" masterpiece! Don't miss it!

Based on John Fowles' influential novel of the same title, The Collector is a dark and pioneering film that presents us with a character unlike most other cinematic psychopaths and a situation ripe with gripping tension. Helmed by experienced director William Wyler - man who turned his hand to, and was mostly successful with, a number of genres throughout his illustrious career, The Collector is an exercise in classy, high quality horror and is an obvious front runner to films like The Silence of the Lambs. Incidentally, The Collector probably stands up better today than it did upon its release over forty years ago. The story focuses on Freddie Clegg, a wealthy but lonely man who lives in solitude in an old Tudor style mansion out in the country. His hobby is collecting and mounting butterflies, and one day he decides to apply what he knows about his hobby to the world of romance, and proceeds to deck out his basement so that a human can live there, and then goes and captures himself a 'girlfriend'. The unlucky lady is Miranda Grey, a woman who isn't too happy to oblige the collector's strange purpose for kidnapping her. The book that this film was based on not only went on to influence other works of fiction, but also apparently became an influence for real life serial killers. The Collector's influence has allegedly inspired at least five actual serial killers; and if that isn't a harrowing fact about this story; I don't know what is! The story itself never delves into the realms of impossibility, and manages to stay realistic throughout, which lends the film an effective edge. The main focus is always on the relationship between the collector and his captive, and director William Wyler is keen to keep this at the forefront of the film. The conversations they have and the actions between the two represents compulsive viewing, and that is definitely where the true greatness of this film shines through; the scene involving the Catcher in the Eye and Picasso is this film at it's best. The style of the movie is very British, and this is complimented by the central performers. Terence Stamp is wonderfully understated, but still impressively insane, while Samantha Eggar makes a mark as the unfortunate victim. Overall, I guess that the reason why this film isn't too well respected today is down to the fact that it was so ahead of it's time. However, if you want a thriller that offers some brilliant suspense and a realistic story - The Collector is a must see!

In the sunny ,too sunny country,very nasty things happen.A young man goes chasing butterflies which he kills and adds to his collection.But there's more ... William Wyler,unfairly deemed "academic" ,gave with"the collector" his most sustained piece of work in the sixties.With the impressive exception of "best years of our lives" (1945),it might simply be his very best movie.He really took to new limits the psychological drama in huis clos he had already tackled in the past (little foxes (1941),the heiress(1949),detective story(1951) ;desperate hours (1955))But none of these strong works equal "the collector":they often verge on melodrama,convention and sentimentality.None of these setbacks show up in the 1965 work:it's definitely a modern one,ahead of its time ,and of which any great director of the planet would be proud . Using only two characters -John Huston did it before in "heaven knows ,Mr Allison"(1957),but with less startling effects-Wyler sustains interest and suspense till the very end.And I would go as far as saying that the ending prolongates the suspense,because it's an incredible conclusion,thoroughly immoral(I really wonder why the censorship did not ask Wyler to "sweeten" it) Terence Stamp is the collector,and he's probably never been better than in this deadly story.Not only he predates Hannibal,copycats, bone collectors and co for three decades,but he runs the whole gamut of emotions:this character was unique for the time,with only Karl-Heinz Boehm's "peeping tom " character (1960) as a contender.He is a socially washout,an obscure clerk,his colleagues 'laughing stock,his only family is a ridiculous auntie,no future prospects,no love of his own,a life unfulfilled to a fault.To think that it takes the director a one- minute black and white flashback to let us know about his hero's background! Matching him every step of the way is Samantha Eggar's sensational portrayal of Miranda,the young girl he kidnaps and holds in a cellar.She's his prisoner,but he's a prisoner too:of his phantasms,obsessions.The young man suffers in his flesh and his mind ,in spite of his impassive face -Compare Wyler's work with Stamp here with that of Fellini in "spirit of the dead,part 3 "Tobby Dammit":although Stamp is outstanding in the Italian's work too,he's much more convincing here because the "academic " Wyler remains in control of his actor. What Stamp cannot forgive Miranda,and the whole world outside it the normal,legal,licit ,- the society approves of it-,side of her happiness,her "joie de vivre" (check the first pictures of her).Maybe her parents are not that much rich,but her father is a doctor and thanks to him,she's an art student,she's access to culture and to the in crowd,whereas he will always remain a misfit and a dunce.THe "catcher in the rye" sequence reveals the gap between them. The amour fou which Stamp feels for Eggar will remain platonic because he respects her too much -"respects " is the keyword,it comes at every dialogue.But maybe it's because Miranda' culture puts her on a throne ,an inaccessible icon,which makes the epilogue one of the most terrifying ever filmed. The cinematography and Maurice Jarre's music are also brilliant assets for a movie that should be missed on no account. This was to be Wyler's swansong:his last three movies are disappointing:"how to steal a million dollars " is another comedy,"funny girl" a vehicle for B.S. and "the liberation of L.B. Jones",just exploited the success of "in the heat of the night" "The collector" must be regarded as his artistic testament.

I started watching this movie by chance and the first few scenes were so captivating that I had to watch it till the end.. at that time I was not aware that its a movie by 'William Wyler' who's famous for movies like 'Ben-Hur', 'The Best Years of Our Lives', and 'Roman Holiday'. A two hour drama focused mostly on only two characters (Freddie Clegg and Miranda Grey) with many long scenes with no dialog at all apparently seems a boring idea but screenplay is brilliant, editing is prefect and each moment is deliberate.. the element of suspense is heightened to the point of tension that just kept me hooked into watching more to know what will happen next.. and above all, the dark instability of Freddie's character and his gradually intimate series of arguments, conflicts, confrontations and negotiations with Miranda was more than enough to keep me on edge throughout.. Freddie Clegg, the shy and introvert bank clerk who got a chance to make true what had previously been only his fantasy.. there are so many shades in this character.. driven by obsession & regression.. one moment he seems harmless, eager to please, and dismal in his desire for love and care.. and next moment he is bitter, stubborn and self-centered to the point of becoming blind to anyone else's feelings and thoughts.. one is always uncertain of what to expect from him next.. Terence Stamp is just terrific as Freddie Clegg and portrayed each and every shade of Freddie's personality with utmost brilliance.. Miranda Grey, a young art student.. the object of Freddie's desire.. her real personality is of an extrovert, confident, independent and dynamic girl who want to do so much in life but owning to circumstances imposed on her, she has to become an obedient and submissive person.. Samantha Eggar played this character perfectly.. one can see how initially she's in anger and pain of denying her real personality but near end how she actually become the one.. Stories where characters are portrayed as black & white, evil & innocent, wrong & right seems boring to me.. I enjoy situations when both the right and wrong person are equally confident that they're right.. confident to that extent that you become doubtful that who is right in real.. or if both are right at the same time.. this movie certainly offer such experience.. throughout the movie viewers must try to understand both character's perspectives.. I love how the title of the film reflects the hobby of collecting butterflies and the subject of the film as two sides of the same coin.. smart, beautiful yet creepy.. dialogs are effective and kind of that stays in memory.. one that is on my mind is 'It's no good shouting. You can't be heard. And anyway, there's no one to hear.' and yes, 'They're looking for you, but nobody is looking for me.', and then that entire argument over the Picasso's painting.. so many scenes, dialogs are just stuck into mind and will stay here for long I guess..

A brilliant movie that was a first in its time and so many movies built up their success on it. People know about hundreds of movies that are so similar to this one and don't know about it! It really saddens me that good movies like this one with a skillful actor like Terence Stamp and the attractive Samantha Egger are not played enough on channels like other silly movies that they keep repeating so many times over the same day and week. The movie has so few actors that can be counted on one hand and all the time you can watch without being bored for a second only the two main actors while filled with suspense and waiting anxiously to know what will happen next. The ending is pretty much what nobody would expect.

Classic psychological suspense. The Collector creates sympathy and understanding for Clegg,a shy,impotent bank clerk who wins a fortune in a football pool that enables him to carry out his plan to kidnap Miranda, an art student. Miranda becomes his prisoner, and Clegg believes his captive will fall in love with him once she gets to know him. Miranda comes to realize that she has become an object to be collected,like Clegg's butterflies. Ironically, Miranda matures in her prison. It becomes a struggle between life(art/Miranda) and death(the collection/Clegg). Wyler's film is a true tour de force. He sustains the film with basically 2 characters;no gimmicks or diversions. Excellent performances. Stamp and Eggar are beautifully matched. And the ending is genuinely chilling. Though overused,the music is effective. 9/10