Style: Supernatural Horror
Director: Stuart Rosenberg
Starring: James Brolin, Margot Kidder, Rod Steiger, Don Stroud, Murray Hamilton, Helen Shaver, Val Avery
Working Time: 118 minutes
Synopsis: Newlyweds George and Kathy Lutz (James Brolin and Margot Kidder) stretch the household funds and purchase a dream Lengthy Island home, priced at a reduction as a result of it was beforehand the scene of a murderous rampage. Father Delaney (Rod Steiger) arrives to bless the home however is chased away by an evil presence, whereas George turns into sullen and obsessive about wooden chopping and axe sharpening. Different unusual phenomena embrace a self-locking closet, the entrance door blowing off its hinges, the canine clawing on the base of a brick wall, and younger daughter Amy growing an unhealthy attachment to an unseen entity she calls Jody.
What Works Nicely: Initially believed to be based mostly on precise occasions (the predecessor a number of murders did occur), this adaptation of the Jay Anson novel does develop a way of dread. The theme of a household’s monetary stress threatening tranquility underpins the premise, whereas the extra conventional bump-in-the-night scenes are capably staged by director Stuart Rosenberg, who finds the perfect angles to show a home right into a menace. James Brolin and Margot Kidder make for an interesting couple, and the remainder of the solid options succesful expertise.
What Does Not Work As Nicely: Lots appears to occur, however nothing of plot substance truly occurs, exposing the underlying narrative weak spot. Rod Steiger’s priest fumbles round to no impact, Don Stroud and Murray Hamilton are two different clergymen with little to contribute, and Val Avery’s frumpy detective does…what, precisely? Helen Shaver as a psychic household pal appears to have all of the solutions to questions which are by no means requested, and there may be a clumsy marriage ceremony sub-plot that by no means gels. Lastly a muddle of theories encompassing Satanism and the gateway to Hell are trotted out in context-free desperation to create one thing out of nothing.
Key Quote:
The Home (to Father Delaney): GET OUT!
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