(1970)
Dir - Walter Grauman
Overall: MEH
Another in a long stream of ABC Movies of the Week produced in the 1970s, Crowhaven Farm is competently if routinely made. Breaking for multiple commercial breaks and letting its fitting yet very stock musical soundtrack run unchecked almost relentlessly, its by-the-books approach can only wield mildly compelling results. Director Walter Grauman, (who had and would go on to work similar thriller and horror terrain, mostly in television), does an adequate job with a couple of scenes where the music score drops out and the sound of chilling wind, child whimpering, and mocking laughter effectively takes over instead. Moments between a bickering married couple and their clearly menacing adopted daughter are far less interesting and sadly take up most of the time away from the psychologically chilling ones. Low on surprises and ultimately rather forgettable, it hardly overcomes its cliche quota, but it is also far from offensive in doing so.
(1973)
Dir - Bernard L. Kowalski
Overall: MEH
Even with its tongue certainly in cheek, Bernard L. Kowalski's humorously titled Sssssss, (Ssssnake), is a perpetually dull monster/nature horror outing. The slack pacing works very much against the proceedings and Kowalski barely seems to show any interest in elevating the mostly lame material, let alone moving it along at any kind of acceptable rate. Occasionally, the cookie cutter dialog entertainingly serves things in an intentionally schlocky manner while at other times it just comes off as embarrassing. It takes until the film is already into its final act for things to finally get enough of a pulse to seem interesting, at which point the diabolical nature of its otherwise mild mannered, mad scientist snake doctor is revealed. There is enough creepy elements inherent in the story that under more inspired direction and with a tighter script, it may work better than it does here. It is ultimately more notable for its goofy title than anything else.
(1975)
Dir - Robert Fuest
Overall: GOOD
While certainly ridiculous in a way befitting to camp-fueled B-movies, Robert Fuest's satanic tour de force The Devil's Rain is thankfully quite enjoyable in its silliness. The 1970's were a heyday for occult films and all the typical beats are beaten over the head here. There are chanting cult members in black robes, atonal organ music, skulls, upside down crosses, fire, pentagrams, human sacrifices, voodoo dolls, condemned witches, blasphemous sermons in Latin, and even Anton LeVay as a high priest. Everything is in its right place in other words. Some nice additions are given to the overworked mythos like said cult members overtaking an old west ghost town and gaining blacked-out eyes and apparently hot wax internal organs upon initiation. The unintended humor stems from the occasionally goofy yet sincere performances and a script which makes no attempts to properly explain anything logically. If anything else, seeing William Shatner get converted to Satanism by Ernest Borgnine of all people in goat head makeup is hardly an offer anyone of sound mind could pass up.
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