The team of Donald Pleasance ("Halloween") and George Rose (veteran musical comedy star) create a deadly duo here as they procure bodies for doctor Peter Cushing's medical class on performing autopsies. Cushing is secondary to the story, appearing quite a bit at the beginning and the end, but not much in the middle, that section devoted to the real life Burke and Hart's reign of terror in using nefarious means to get bodies. I've seen two other variations of this story: the 1945 Val Lewton classic "The Body Snatcher" (quite fictionalized, but undoubtedly influenced by the story) and the 1948 Z grade British horror film "The Greed of William Hart" (aka "Horror Maniacs") with England's own early master of the macabre, Tod Slaughter. "The Body Snatcher" is a classic under any circumstance, while "The Greed of William Hart", greatly edited in its public domain print, is only memorable to Tod Slaughter fans. This version, however, utilizing the names of both Burke and Hart (dubbed over with different names in a re-release version of "Greed"), makes no bones about exploring the horrific ways in which these two men from the slums of Edinburgh make a living.
While no film version of an actual event like this can ever be completely accurate, from what I've read, this is pretty close, and it is indeed very chilling. The very first murder (with a drunken old lady as the victim) is deviously crafted, both by Burke and Hart and the writers in the way which they present her demise. An encounter with a drunken prostitute is also quite chilling. But the most profound and disgusting is the murder of simpleton Melvyn Hayes who reminded me of Toby from "Sweeney Todd" with his eagerness to please and the way he is thanked for information he provides. That sequence is extended to the point of making its viewers quiver, ending up in a pen of pigs. There were several moments in this when my jaw truly dropped. There's not really much detail as to what occurred at Burke and Hart's trial, only the outcome, and the final scene for Donald Pleasance's Hart is quite ironic. I could see Rose's Burke in real life going out to face his execution like John Wayne Gacy, showing absolutely no regret and cursing up a storm at those about to flip the switch, or in Rose's case, pull the lever. The end of the two main villains, however, is not the end of the film, as the last reel dedicates itself to showing how society's anger at the events impacted the previously respected Dr. Knox. Cushing is extremely classy throughout, and when he confesses the truth to his wife (June Laverick), it is quite chilling. A great showy supporting performance comes from Renee Houston as Rose's wife, who knew exactly what the two were doing and didn't seem to mind, as long as she says here, "women like that are done away with".
While no film version of an actual event like this can ever be completely accurate, from what I've read, this is pretty close, and it is indeed very chilling. The very first murder (with a drunken old lady as the victim) is deviously crafted, both by Burke and Hart and the writers in the way which they present her demise. An encounter with a drunken prostitute is also quite chilling. But the most profound and disgusting is the murder of simpleton Melvyn Hayes who reminded me of Toby from "Sweeney Todd" with his eagerness to please and the way he is thanked for information he provides. That sequence is extended to the point of making its viewers quiver, ending up in a pen of pigs. There were several moments in this when my jaw truly dropped. There's not really much detail as to what occurred at Burke and Hart's trial, only the outcome, and the final scene for Donald Pleasance's Hart is quite ironic. I could see Rose's Burke in real life going out to face his execution like John Wayne Gacy, showing absolutely no regret and cursing up a storm at those about to flip the switch, or in Rose's case, pull the lever. The end of the two main villains, however, is not the end of the film, as the last reel dedicates itself to showing how society's anger at the events impacted the previously respected Dr. Knox. Cushing is extremely classy throughout, and when he confesses the truth to his wife (June Laverick), it is quite chilling. A great showy supporting performance comes from Renee Houston as Rose's wife, who knew exactly what the two were doing and didn't seem to mind, as long as she says here, "women like that are done away with".