They've issued a beautifully re-mastered print of an old 50s horror movie called "Night Of The Demon" (released as "Curse Of The Demon" in the U.S.) on BluRay and I watched it for the first time in years. It's a dark, classic British film but with an American star (Dana Andrews) to give it added cachet to audiences here and across the pond (a popular move in those days, and easy work for some American stars who had slightly passed their prime). Peggy Cummins, who passed away just over a year ago, provides the romantic glamour opposite the lead. But it's Niall MacGinnis who steals the show, as the initially unflappable sinister practioner of dark arts who becomes increasingly edgy as he realises he has started something no one, not even he himself, can stop....
The tension is expertly ratchetted up with a tingling, palpable sense of mounting dread towards the finale. So much more than some schlocky B Movie, rather it's acknowledged as something of a cult classic - counting down inexorably towards some grisly denouement...without spoiling the plot for anyone who might wish to give it a go, it revolves around the passing of a deadly parchment which spells doom for whomsoever happens to be in posession of it when "the time" comes...
Most controversial issue is the demon itself. Opinions remain divided - the director didn't want it shown, preferring the "leave it to the viewer's imagination" approach and hoping to rely on smouldering shadows, terror on victims' faces and creepy sound effects etc. Somebody with sufficient clout pulled rank and insisted that a 1957 audience would feel shortchanged by being denied sight of the monstrosity itself...for me, whilst the creature could have been better realised, by 1957 standards the effect was pretty darn good.
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Topic: Last movies you saw & what you thought of them (Read 200941 times)