Friday, October 27, 2023

70's American Horror Part Sixty-Five - (Paul Wendkos Edition)

THE MEPHISTO WALTZ
(1971)
Overall: MEH
 
"Uneven" is a good word to describe Paul Wendkos' Satanic murder mystery The Mephisto Waltz.  The most noticeable issue is the script itself, which is adapted from Fred Mustard Stewart's novel of the same name.  Every character has debatable morals that make it difficult to decide if their illogical actions are on account of bad writing, eccentricities, or just plain old Satan.  A handful of plot points transpire that are either quickly glossed over or utterly ignored, which makes for a sloppy narrative that is flimsy with too many of its details.  As a horror film goes though, look for a dog wearing a mask and an unsettling statue bust latter on as just two of several examples of visual creepiness.  There is plenty of debauchery afoot as well, but due to it being a major release from 20th Century Fox, nudity and gore are both largely omitted.  It fails to really kick into full gear, plus a later protagonist switch and the inevitable rug-pull in the finale are clumsily executed by the otherwise competent Wendkos from the director's chair.  Occult horror certainly has better offerings than this, but flaws and all, it is still adequate in parts.
 
HAUNTS THE VERY RICH
(1972)
Overall: GOOD

A chilling ABC Movie of the Week from veteran television director Paul Wendkos, Haunts the Very Rich has a top-to-bottom recognizable cast and a simple yet effective "paradise as purgatory" scenario.  Shot on location in Miami, Florida, it presents a warped version of Fantasy Island that predates Lost's similar premise by several decades, isolating a rag-tag group of wealthy protagonists on a mysterious luxury resort right at the on-set of a tremendous hurricane.  Well, that could be an explanation as to what is going on since the circumstances continue to get more and more dire, each time escalating right after the distraught hotel guests start to relax and gain some of their much needed hope back.  Lloyd Bridges, Ed Asner, Cloris Leachman, Robert Reed, Moses Gunn, and Anne Francis all deliver effective and singular performances from one another, plus Wendkos keeps things moving after a slow start, which is made acceptable due to the brisk seventy-five minute running time.  The ending is particularly effective, throwing both the characters and the audience a series of psyche-out twists that leave a disturbing impression once the credits hit.
 
THE LEGEND OF LIZZIE BORDEN
(1975)
Overall: MEH

Noticeable for featuring Elizabeth Montgomery playing her sixth, once-removed, real life title cousin, the ABC Movie of the Week The Legend of Lizzie Borden is a sufficient court room thriller based on the infamous, late 19th century, Massachusetts murder case.  Told in sections or chapters that detail each event leading up to and including the murder of Borden's father and step-mother as well as the ensuing trial, it gradually sheds more malicious light on the proceedings as the flashback sequences are divulged, each one stemming from another testimony on the witness stand.  Montgomery's non-grieving portrayal is initially seen as suspicious as she tries to keep her dignified wits about herself, and every piece of evidence brought forth by the prosecution is given reasonable doubt.  This would paint a more innocent picture if not for the fact that the filmmakers also show us what is presumed to be the "actual" murderous acts of Borden's accused spinster, which are presented as soft-focused and demented daydreams just before the verdict is announced.  Montgomery turns in a coldly aloof performance and the recognizable supporting players, (many of whom are fellow television alumni), fair just as respectable.
 
GOOD AGAINST EVIL
(1977)
Overall: MEH

Another failed pilot-turned ABC Movie of the Week, Good Against Evil boasts a screenplay from none other than Hammer regular Jimmy Sangster, with television director Paul Wendkos handling the material efficiently as usual.  While the concept of a Rosemary's Baby/Exorcist/The Omen hybrid for TV may seem downright obvious for the 1970s as all three films represent the most copied in the genre for the time period, it comes off as a redundant re-hash of such cliches in its lone, feature-length form.  Losing points for originality then, it gets by with some intense, Satanic atmosphere and dialed-in performances.  Richard Lynch and his naturally villainous looks makes for an ideal Astaroth High Priest, both Dack Rambo and Elyssa Davalos are a charming if doomed couple, and even Kim Cattrall joins the party in one of her earliest roles, though she lays on the old school, melodramatic cadence just thick enough to be jarring.  Being a television production, there is only suggested nudity and comparatively mild violence to what was already being accepted in theatrically released genre works, and Wendkos has no choice but to stall the middle of the proceedings with Rambo and Davalos' budding romance.  Still, an old woman gets killed by her own cats, Lynch spouts some evil alter ramblings, and it ends on an appropriate cliff-hanger that leaves us guess as to how many more occult tropes would have gotten dished-out.

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