Rated: Unrated

A genuinely disturbing chunk of Grand Guignol about a maladjusted, butterfly-collecting young man who kidnaps an art student and keeps her in his cellar.

Based on an equally disturbing and complex novel by John Fowles, this was in its day a fashionable shocker and X-certificated. Now it comes across as a fascinating period piece, featuring two quintessential sixties stars in possibly their best roles — painfully handsome Terence Stamp as the collector, and beautiful auburn-haired Samantha Eggar as the victim of his attentions. Kenneth More was also cast as Eggar's older lover, but his whole role was removed in the final edit.

Veteran William Wyler, best known for the 1939 Wuthering Heights, The Best Years of Our Lives and Ben-Hur, was one of the great directors of actors, and thanks to his sure handling this grim charade is both suspenseful and affecting.

OSCARS:

• 1965: Nominations: Best Director, Actress (Samantha Eggar), Adapted Screenplay