Like the teenager shown at the beginning of the film, The Appointment simply vanished one day. This British, made-for-TV rarity was essentially the pilot for a potential series of telefilms called A Step in the Wrong Direction. The first and only project produced by First Principle Film — formed by Tom Sachs, Ken Julian, and Lindsey C. Vickers — was financed by the National Coal Board Pension Fund. And Vickers would have helmed several more episodes after The Appointment, but alas, plans for a whole series fizzled out. The first entry, however, had already been completed. The film was instead released on home video in 1982, only to then fall through the cracks in the years that followed.
Those lucky enough to have grown up with video shops might have spotted The Appointment on Betamax or VHS, but digitized copies were, for the longest time, the only way of watching this hidden gem. Although, some folks might have caught it on regional British TV in the early ‘90s which, sadly, Vickers was unable to watch himself. Today, this missing film has since been rediscovered by the British Film Institute; a long-forgotten analog master found in Sony Pictures’ archive made the miraculous release possible. And with it back in circulation, fans of The Appointment remember why the film stuck with them in the first place.
While The Appointment is indeed a slow burn, the cold open seizes everyone’s attention. In what Vickers calls a “precursor to the film itself,” a teen named Sandy (Auriol Goldingham) goes missing on the way home from school. This effective and alarming sequence, which was improvised and shot separately, was intended to keep TV audiences from switching to another program. Had it aired as scheduled, Sandy’s mystifying disappearance in Cromley Woods would have undoubtedly become watercooler talk the next day. Here, Goldingham’s character is traveling alone on a footpath, initially unaware of her peril until a disembodied voice calls out her name. “Sandy… Sandy…”
The audience sees the violinist become more and more fearful of both her surroundings and the intangible stranger beckoning her from what seems to be everywhere. It is only when Sandy stops moving does the tension break and her ill fate is revealed. An invisible force springs from the thicket next to the footpath and pulls Sandy to her presumed death. This startling moment is executed with the help of an obvious dummy, however, the transition from Sandy’s actor to the prop is fairly convincing, even when considering the cut in between shots. Adding to the jolt of the scene is a final shot of Sandy’s abandoned violin being crushed by the unseen attacker.
At this point, the audience is at a loss for words. But considering the narrator whose voiceover gives the scene the semblance of a crime reenactment, people likely expected Sandy’s disappearance to be caused by another human and not a supernatural element. Up until the spectral snatching, this sequence resembles the incidentally scary public information films of yesteryear. Any doubt about the otherworldly presence, though, is soon eliminated as the main story comes into focus. Not only has the wicked thing grown stronger, it is now undeniable.
Three years later, another orchestral student from Sandy’s school has her own uncanny experience. In the same area where Sandy disappeared, Joanne (Samantha Weysom) stops to talk to someone (or something) out of the camera’s view. This is not their first meeting either. Unlike Sandy, Joanne is unafraid of the other party. That kindness only spells trouble for Joanne’s home life, though. The unspoken discomfort between Joanne and her parents starts to manifest once Ian Fowler (Edward Woodward) reveals he cannot make it to his daughter’s recital. From there The Appointment walks, not runs, toward its dreadful conclusion.
Audiences will immediately notice something weird about Ian and Joanne’s relationship. Joanne’s mother Dianne (Jane Merrow) is also well aware of how the two are behaving more like quarreling lovers than parent and child. Merrow’s character comes across as an awful mother at first when she vilifies her precocious daughter. The more she goes on about Joanne, however, it becomes abundantly clear why she is so hostile and resentful. Dianne feels excluded from both her marriage and her family. And as usual with his wife, Ian placates rather than reads between the lines.
Samantha Weysom delivers a chilling performance as Joanne. While she has far fewer lines than either of her adult costars, Weysom still says a lot with just her eyes. Her burning stares at Woodward send shivers down one’s back. The most effective use of this unremitting gaze is when Joanne and Ian are in what can only be best described as a psychic staring contest. At bedtime, the father stops outside his daughter’s bedroom, suddenly transfixed on the closed door and compelled to enter for no reason of his own. Meanwhile, Joanne looks on ominously as if Ian were at her bedside. The more the camera closes in on Joanne’s face, the more her sinister smile becomes apparent. There is no concrete explanation about what is transpiring here, but that is all part of The Appointment’s appeal.
As stated by the narrator during Sandy’s ordeal, the fictitious Cromley Woods is a place haunted by rumors of witches and alien forces. Apart from that bit of information, though, the film is continually vague. It would appear something from the woods has beguiled Joanne, and in turn, she has cast a spell on her father. The Appointment then goes on to fulfill Ian’s prophetic dream of his car crashing. While it might seem as if the film is undermining itself and spoiling any chance of surprise by giving audiences a preview of what is to come, Ian’s inevitable misfortune plays out differently. The outcome remains all the same, but how his nightmare is realized is more elaborate and bizarre. The technical skill involved for the over-the-top car stunt is outstanding for an early ‘80s TV production, and Woodward’s physical commitment to Ian’s bloody destiny is admirable.
The Appointment refuses to rush itself. This film also does not squander the chance to soak in all the domestic dread and psychic panic it has created. From a unique example of psychosexual competition to the suspenseful and hopeless conclusion, Lindsey C. Vickers’ one directorial feature is an achievement in steadily growing unease. And if not for the existence of physical media archives, many people would have never had the chance to experience this remarkable exercise in disquiet.
The Appointment is available on Blu-ray from BFI, and is also streaming at BFI Player Classics.
Horrors Elsewhere is a recurring column that spotlights a variety of movies from all around the globe, particularly those not from the United States. Fears may not be universal, but one thing is for sure — a scream is understood, always and everywhere.
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