Recently featured in Sinister Film's "arthouse horror" series, The boy saw the killer and must die (aka Eyewitness and Sudden Terror) is definitely a thriller worth rediscovering. Directed in 1970, the film is one of the earliest features by British director John Hough, who would later also work on horror films such as Dracula's Daughters (1971), Incubus - The Power of Evil (1982) and the better-known After life (1973) e American Gothic (1988), the latter of which are considered cornerstones of horror genre cinema.
Plot of The boy saw the killer and must die: On a Mediterranean island, an African statesman on an official visit is assassinated. The only witness to the assassination attempt is Ziggy (Mark Lester), a young boy with a great imagination and, for this very reason, considered unreliable by his family members because of his constant stories and lies. The killers are intent on eliminating the little boy who lives with his grandfather (Lionel Jeffries), a retired colonel and lighthouse keeper, his sister (Susan George) and housekeeper. Ziggy, terrified, runs away from home and attempts to contact the police with the help of a female friend. Inspector Galleria (Jeremy Kemp) meanwhile, having discovered the identity of the two ruthless criminals, will try to get little Ziggy and his family to safety.
The boy saw the killer and must die is an interesting thriller, well-paced and well-paced, although it suffers from a fairly slow first half. The film enjoys successful and tension-filled sequences, some of them quite gory and ruthless (see, for example, the part about the little girl, Ziggy's friend). Also leaving a mark are the excellent character actors of British cinema (Jeremy Kemp, Lionel Jeffries and Peter Vaughan) and also the performance of Mark Lester (Ziggy), a character forced into a relentless escape and around whom the whole film revolves.
The boy saw the killer and must die in fact focuses mainly on the grueling pursuit of the skilled young boy by the two killers who will easily commit heinous crimes in order not to lose sight of their target.
All in all, this is a little thriller "gem" that lingers and is appreciated for its evocative Maltese setting and a script that, while simple and obvious, holds one's breath.
With Mark Lester, Lionel Jeffries, Jeremy Kemp, Susan George, Peter Vaughan, Tony Bonner, Betty Marsden, and Peter Bowles.
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The DVD of The boy saw the killer and must die offered by Sinister Film and distributed by CG Entertainment presents decent audio and video. Extras include only the film's trailer.
Format: DVD
Video: 16/9 1.66:1
Duration: 88′
Audio: Dolby Digital Dual Mono | Italian, Dolby Digital Dual Mono | English
No. discs: 1
Label: Sinister Film
Subtitles: Italian
Extras: movie trailer
