Rituals

Rituals is a 1977 Canadian horror-thriller film directed by Peter Carter, and starring Hal Holbrook, Lawrence Dane, and Robin Gammell. It centers on a group of doctors who are stalked and murdered while on a wilderness trip in remote Northern Ontario. The film was also released under the alternate title The Creeper. Plot Five surgeons, all former medical school cohorts, go on a wilderness weekend retreat deep in the wilderness of Northern Ontario. Among them are a stalwart neurologist, Harry; Mitzi, a general surgeon; Martin, who has left his surgical career behind and now works as a general practitioner; Martin's brother, D.J.; and Abel. After being dropped off by plane, the men hike into the woods and build a campfire on a lake. As the night goes on, they begin to drink and bicker among themselves about whose field is more intellectually demanding. The following morning, they find that each of their boots have been stolen. D.J., already tired of the animosity among the group, volunteers to hike to a hydro-dam that, according to his map, is several miles away, presuming there will be people operating it who can help them. After D.J. leaves, that night, Mitzi finds a severed deer head hanging in front of their campsite, along with a snake curled around its spinal cord, resembling the caduceus. Everyone but Martin believe that D.J. is responsible. In the morning, the group embark to find D.J., but inadvertently set off a booby trap unleashing a beehive. Harry, Mitzi, and Martin flee, tumbling down a steep hill to a lake below to escape the bees, with Abel trailing behind them. From the water, Martin briefly glimpses a shadowy figure throwing Abel over the steep incline, causing him to break his neck, killing him. Harry and Mitzi again suspect D.J. for having caused the incident. The three remaining men push onward, stopping along a river at dusk, exhausted. As Mitzi explores upstream, Harry and Martin have a brief conversation in which Martin confesses to Harry that he never wishes to pursue surgery again. He also reveals details about his alcoholism, as well as his failed relationship with a male lover. Harry responds with an anecdote about how he stopped drinking while serving in the Korean War. The conversation is interrupted when Mitzi locates a rope hanging over the river, which he suspects was left by D.J. The group plan to cross the river the following morning, camping overnight.