Dr. John Rollason (Peter Cushing), his wife and assistant
are visiting a remote monastery in the Himalayas. They meet another group who
are planning on searching the mountains to find the legendary Yeti. That group is led by a man
named Tom Friend (Forrest Tucker). Rollason decides he wants to go with them, despite
the protests of his wife. The expedition goes bad, and a member dies. The expedition
leader shoots and kills a Yeti, which turns out to be a terrible idea. While a
rescue party desperately searches for the missing group, Rollanson ends up hiding
in an ice cave and discovering that the Yeti may be more than they appear.
After four days of backwoods yokels getting roughed up by
ape-men, it’s very refreshing to see something more cerebral. The script was
written by Nigel Kneale, who brought us the Quatermass films and is a master at
crafting intelligent and frightening scripts. For much of its running time The
Abominable Snowman is brimming with atmosphere and mystery. The black and white
photography enhances the eeriness of the story. Cushing and Tucker are
excellent together, watching Rollason having to deal with an increasingly obsessed
Friend keeps the middle of the film from slowing down too much. The ultimate
revelation of the Yeti is unsettling. I really enjoyed the fact that some
thought was put into their appearance so that they are more than just huge white
apes. They have enough of a human appearance that they hit the uncanny valley
and become something much more sinister and strange.
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