Residents of a village in early 20th century Europe are dying mysteriously and in a very strange manner. The local authorities are trying to cover up the occurrences, but to some of the village residents it is becoming clear that a Gorgon (think Medusa) by the name of Megaera is haunting the area during the full moon. Anyone who looks upon her face will turn to stone.
Professor Karl Meister (Christopher Lee) is called in from Leipzig after a visitor to the area is turned to stone. Now he has to get to the bottom of this strange series of events while evading the meddling of Dr. Namaroff (Peter Cushing) and local police.
First lets do away with complaints about the make up and special effects. It was the early 1960's and yes, this film shows its age in viewing. The acting does as well, it is the classic over-the-top acting style that was common in films until recent decades. At the same time, The Gorgon is actually quite accomplished visually for its time in terms of scenery, sets, and the atmosphere that the film makers managed to produce. There's an attention to detail here that is noticeable. In this sense, it outdoes many of its counterparts of the time including many of the other Hammer Horror films.
The modern horror movie viewer is unlikely to be terrified by anything in this film. Nor is there anything grisly, provocative, or scandalous to be seen here. The film is unrated due to its age, but would likely come out as PG or PG-13. Still, if you are in the mood for some old-fashioned B-movie fun, you could do much worse than The Gorgon.
3 pointy hats out of 5
Unrated: contains violence.
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