Whistle and I’ll Come to You (1968)

Directed by: Jonathan Miller | 42 minutes | drama, horror, thriller | Actors: Michael Hordern, Ambrose Coghill, George Woodbridge, Nora Gordon, Freda Dowie

This ‘Whistle and I’ll Come to You’ from 1968 is a ghost story from the BBC, often cited as a precursor and major influence to the various ‘Ghost Story for Christmas’ series that the BBC would release in later years.

And indeed, in this ghost story, elements can already be identified that would return in the later films. Here too, the environment and the necessary ominous signals are well chosen: a secluded coastal town, the deserted beaches and dunes that Professor Parkin roams about, the wind that howls past his hotel window, Parkin’s discussions about spiritualism and the skeptical if not to say the arrogant attitude he adopts, the old flute with a warning inscription on it… these are things that lend themselves well to the creation of a suitable setting for the dark things to come. The more threatening signals to the professor are also well designed: the lone motionless figure staring at him from afar, Parkin’s fever dreams – with a remarkably successful nightmarish quality – in which he is followed by vague and floating figures, the extra bed in his room that suddenly turns out to be asleep, the slamming shutters of his hotel room that seem to indicate that something is about to break in, and other faint sounds Parkin hears when he lies awake at night… these are signs that an evil something is targeting the professor. Or are they chimeras that have started to play tricks on the so rational professor?

In any case, director Miller manages to render things so creditably that he manages to achieve a disturbing atmosphere in his story. He does so in the same restrained way that characterizes the more striking parts of the later ‘Ghost Story for Christmas’ and also manages to create an oppressive effect within them. Although, again in comparison with these same later films, one can also speak of an approach that is too restrained. In addition to a too slow pace in most of this film, the signals that present themselves to Parkin remain limited in frequency. And, except for the final scene, it is not so much actual consuming fear as far-reaching anxiety that takes over Parkin. Something of which his murmuring under his breath is a good indication, but in combination with his meandering in the environment and the images of the frequent meals-consuming Parkin, it comes up very often until it adds little more to what has been made clear for a long time.

There are also some technical drawbacks. The sound effects when the professor is awake at night work well to achieve the anxiety that takes hold of him and they also have the desired result with Parkin’s fever dreams, at other times things could have been contained. Sound effects too loud for daily events – too loud banging when Parkin folds his books down on the table and when various characters walk through the hotel corridors, the same with the sounds of running tap water… Also in terms of lighting, things could have been better here and there and the black-and-white footage in which this production was filmed also shows its datedness, although this also has its advantage in emphasizing the slightly dark and disturbing atmosphere in this ghost story.

Neat game of this and that. Despite the mentioned shortcomings, Michael Hordern does a decent job as the rational professor Parkin who gradually comes to realize, albeit out of necessity, that there is more between heaven and earth than he can explain. Even in this ‘Ghost Story’ precursor, the close-ups of his various facial expressions effectively emphasize the nervousness and restlessness that slowly takes over him. This could have been even more striking if the signs that something was in store for him had been more frequent and if Hordern’s character had been more gripped by actual fear. There is also not much to argue with on the performance of the other cast members, although the time they come into the picture or the possibilities they get are limited by the screen time that Hordern is allotted. It makes this ‘Whistle and I’ll Come to You’, despite the points for improvement that can be pointed out, to a qualitatively nice predecessor to the later ‘Ghost Story for Christmas’ series, in which indeed various things that stand out and are decisive also play a decisive role here. This film is therefore not the best, but it is an interesting and largely deservingly designed ghost story, especially for fans of the series mentioned.