House of Whipcord

Directed by Pete Walker in collaboration with screenwriter and former film critic David McGillivray, the first chapter of what has been called an “Anti-Establishment Trilogy” aims its invective directly at a fanatic and sadistic (a key character unsubtly calls himself “Mark E. Desade”!) conception of justice that advocates rigid reeducation practices and vicious corporal punishment in the name of a moralism that’s as extreme as is it hypocritical. The movie’s ironic introduction is worth bearing in mind: “This film is dedicated to those who are disturbed by today’s lax moral codes and who eagerly await the return of corporal and capital punishment”.

Still, despite the prompt appearance of unsettling deviates typical of Walker’s oeuvre, and Sheila Keith’s customary pitch-perfect performance in one such role, “House of Whipcord” fails to get off the ground – weak pacing and an unconvincing plot quickly make for a boring story.

But we’ll take some consolation from the fact that the director already demonstrates greater expressive maturity later that same year with “Frightmare” (this time, Walker’s critique is aimed squarely at the institution of the family), before closing out the trilogy on a high note with the anticlerical “House of Mortal Sin” (1976).

Rough around the edges.