A leaky, decrepit boat bearing an illegal and highly dangerous cargo of phosphorus sets out from Africa on the long voyage to Caracas. Also on board is a motley collection of misfit passengers, all with shady pasts which they are keen to escape. When the captain/owner Lansen ignores a hurricane warning, most of his crew desert the boat, which is now in danger of being blown apart by the explosives in the hold. Lansen and the passengers insist on going on, but soon drift into the Sargasso Sea, filled with terrifying monsters and the remains of ancient galleons. Then they discover a land peopled by the descendants of fanatical Spanish conquistadors and ruled by a young boy known as ‘El Diablo’.
Production Details
A Seven Arts-Hammer Film production presented by Associated British Pathe Limited and released through Warner-Pathe Limited (UK) and Twentieth Century-Fox (USA)
Copyright MCMlXVIII Hammer Film Productions Limited – All rights reserved
MPAA Approved Certificate
The characters and incidents portrayed and the names used herein are fictitious and any similarity to the name, character, or history of any person is entirely accidental and unintentional
From the novel “The Uncharted Seas” by Dennis Wheatley
Songs sung by The Peddlers
RCA Sound Recording
Made at the Elstree Studios of Associated British Productions Limited, Herts, England
Technicolor 98 mins
Filming Began: 11th September 1967
UK Release: 14th July 1968
Studio:
Elstree Studios of Associated British Picture Corporation, Hertfordshire
Stills from film
Click an image for enlarged slideshow
Cast & Crew
Red = Uncredited
Crew | Name | Age at Release | Birth | Death | Age | Hammer Credits | Uncredited | Total Hammer | |
Art Director | Arthur Lawson | 60 | 1908 | 1970 | 62 | 1 | 1 | ||
Assistant Art Director | Don Picton | 52 | 22 Feb 1916 | Nov 1981 | 65 | 15 | 2 | 17 | |
Assistant Boom Operator | Peter Margrave | 8 | 8 | ||||||
Assistant Director | Dominic Fulford | 48 | 19 Aug 1919 | 23 Apr 2007 | 87 | 1 | 6 | 7 | |
Associate Producer | Peter Manley | 43 | 28 Nov 1924 | 19 Nov 2009 | 84 | 1 | 1 | ||
Camera Operator | H.A.R. Thompson | 57 | 30 Sep 1910 | Jul 2003 | 92 | 3 | 3 | ||
Casting | Irene Lamb | 10 | 10 | ||||||
Consultant | Arthur Hayward | 79 | 1889 | 1971 | 82 | 1 | 1 | ||
Continuity | Doreen Soan | 42 | 1926 | 01.01.1926 | 98 | 3 | 3 | 6 | |
Costume Designer | Carl Toms | 41 | 29 May 1927 | 4 Aug 1999 | 72 | 7 | 7 | ||
Director | https://www.hammer-graveyard.org.uk/michael-carreras/# | 40 | 21 Dec 1927 | 19 Apr 1994 | 66 | 84 | 8 | 92 | |
Director | Leslie Norman | 57 | 25 Feb 1911 | 18 Feb 1993 | 81 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
Director of Photography | Paul Beeson BSc | 46 | 16 Nov 1921 | 19 Jul 2001 | 79 | 3 | 3 | ||
Ececutive Producer | https://www.hammer-graveyard.org.uk/anthony-hinds/# | 45 | 18 Sep 1922 | 30 Sep 2013 | 91 | 88 | 1 | 89 | |
Editor | https://www.hammer-graveyard.org.uk/chris-barnes/# | 30 | 1938 | 5 Jun 2009 | 71 | 21 | 12 | 33 | |
Hairdresser | Elsie Alder | 62 | 2 Nov 1905 | 1979 | 73 | 8 | 8 | ||
Make-up | George Partleton | 59 | 21 Jan 1909 | 17 Oct 1992 | 83 | 6 | 6 | ||
Modeller | Arthur Fehr | 70 | 1898 | 1990 | 92 | 1 | 1 | ||
Music | Carlo Martelli | 32 | 12 Dec 1935 | 12.12.1935 | 88 | 2 | 2 | 4 | |
Music Arranger | Howard Blake | 29 | 28 Oct 1938 | 28.10.1938 | 85 | 1 | 1 | ||
Music Composer | Gerard Schurmann | 44 | 19 Jan 1924 | 24 Mar 2020 | 96 | 2 | 2 | ||
Musical Supervisor | https://www.hammer-graveyard.org.uk/philip-martell/# | 60 | 6 Oct 1907 | 11 Aug 1993 | 85 | 104 | 1 | 105 | |
Painter | Michael Finlay | 20 | 23 Apr 1948 | 23.04.1948 | 76 | 1 | 19 | 20 | |
Producer | https://www.hammer-graveyard.org.uk/michael-carreras/# | 40 | 21 Dec 1927 | 19 Apr 1994 | 66 | 84 | 8 | 92 | |
Props | Mickey Pugh | 24 | 1944 | 01.01.1944 | 80 | 3 | 3 | ||
Recording Supervisor | https://www.hammer-graveyard.org.uk/aw-lumkin/# | 55 | 1 Feb 1913 | 25 Oct 1985 | 72 | 30 | 30 | ||
Screenplay as Michael Nash | https://www.hammer-graveyard.org.uk/michael-carreras/# | 40 | 21 Dec 1927 | 19 Apr 1994 | 66 | 84 | 8 | 92 | |
Second Assistant Director | Dusty Symonds | 24 | 3 May 1944 | 3.05.1944 | 80 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
Sound Editor | https://www.hammer-graveyard.org.uk/roy-baker/# | 41 | Jul 1927 | Feb 2011 | 83 | 29 | 1 | 30 | |
Sound Mixer | Dennis Whitlock | 40 | 1928 | 2008 | 80 | 13 | 1 | 14 | |
Soundtrack | Roy Phillips | 27 | 5 May 1941 | 5.05.1941 | 83 | 1 | 1 | ||
Special Effects | Robert A Mattey | 58 | 27 Jun 1910 | 14 Jan 1993 | 82 | 1 | 1 | ||
Special Effects | Cliff Richardson | 63 | 20 Feb 1905 | 5 Dec 1985 | 80 | 1 | 1 | ||
Special Effects | John Richardson | 22 | 10 Jun 1946 | 10.06.1946 | 78 | 2 | 2 | ||
Special Effects | Roy Whybrow | 40 | 18 Jan 1928 | 20 Aug 1984 | 56 | 1 | 1 | ||
Special Effects Assistant | Peter Hutchinson | 25 | 10 Feb 1943 | 10.02.1943 | 81 | 1 | 1 | ||
Supervising Editor | https://www.hammer-graveyard.org.uk/james-needs/# | 48 | 17 Oct 1919 | 4 Feb 2003 | 83 | 110 | 1 | 111 | |
Wardrobe | Mary Gibson | 13 | 13 | ||||||
Cast | Name | Age at Release | Birth | Death | Age | Hammer Credits | Uncredited | Total Hammer | |
Braemar | Charles Houston | 37 | 1931 | 2006 | 75 | 5 | 5 | ||
Captain Lansen | Eric Porter | 40 | 8 Apr 1928 | 15 May 1995 | 67 | 2 | 2 | ||
Chief | James Cossins | 34 | 4 Dec 1933 | 12 Feb 1997 | 63 | 5 | 5 | ||
Crewman | https://www.hammer-graveyard.org.uk/maxwell-craig/# | 7 | 7 | ||||||
Customs Man | Mark Heath | 42 | 1926 | 2106 | 89 | 2 | 2 | ||
Customs Man | Horace James | 40 | 1928 | 17 Jun 2000 | 72 | 2 | 2 | ||
El Diablo | Darryl Read | 16 | 19 Sep 1951 | 22 Jun 2013 | 61 | 1 | 1 | ||
Eva | Hildegard Knef | 42 | 28 Dec 1925 | 1 Feb 2002 | 76 | 1 | 1 | ||
Helmsman | Reg Lye | 55 | 14 Oct 1912 | 23 Mar 1987 | 74 | 2 | 2 | ||
Hemmings | Neil McCallum | 39 | 20 May 1929 | 26 Apr 1976 | 46 | 2 | 2 | ||
Hurri Curri | Shivendra Sinha | 1 | 1 | ||||||
Inquisitor | https://www.hammer-graveyard.org.uk/eddie-powell/# | 41 | 9 Mar 1927 | 11 Aug 2000 | 73 | 2 | 14 | 16 | |
Jason | Alf Joint | 40 | 22 Sep 1927 | 25 Jul 2005 | 77 | 2 | 2 | ||
Jonathan | Norman Eshley | 23 | 30 May 1945 | 30.05.1945 | 79 | 1 | 1 | ||
Mate | Victor Maddern | 40 | 16 Mar 1928 | 22 Jun 1993 | 65 | 2 | 2 | ||
Native Girl | Cynthia Myers | 17 | 12 Sep 1950 | 4 Nov 2011 | 61 | 1 | 1 | ||
Pat | Jimmy Hanley | 49 | 22 Oct 1918 | 13 Jan 1970 | 51 | 2 | 2 | ||
Ricaldi | Benito Carruthers | 31 | 14 Aug 1936 | 27 Sep 1983 | 47 | 1 | 1 | ||
Sarah | Dana Gillespie | 19 | 30 Mar 1949 | 30.03.1949 | 75 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
Sea Lawyer | https://www.hammer-graveyard.org.uk/michael-ripper/# | 55 | 27 Jan 1913 | 28 Jun 2000 | 87 | 34 | 2 | 36 | |
Sergeant | Frank Hayden | 39 | 1929 | 1988 | 59 | 5 | 1 | 6 | |
Sparks | Donald Sumpter | 25 | 13 Feb 1943 | 13.01.1943 | 81 | 1 | 1 | ||
Traveller on Boat | Sylvana Henqriques | 1 | 1 | ||||||
Tyler | Tony Beckley | 40 | 7 Oct 1927 | 19 Apr 1980 | 52 | 1 | 1 | ||
Unity | Suzanna Leigh | 22 | 26 Jul 1945 | 11 Dec 2017 | 72 | 3 | 3 | ||
Webster | Nigel Stock | 48 | 21 Sep 1919 | 22 Jun 1986 | 66 | 1 | 1 |
Original Poster
Click to enlarge
Footnotes
The screenplay for this film was written by Michael Carreras under the pen-name Michael Nash, which was apparently the name of his gardener.
Special Effects man Robert A. Mattey went on to create the famous shark for Steven Spielberg’s blockbuster, Jaws (1975).
In the first interior boat scene, the Doctor is reading Uncharted Seas by Dennis Wheatley, the book on which the film is based.