Der Fluch des Dämonen

Dana Andrews as an American psychologist, newly-arrived in England to attend a convention, who ends up investigating the death of a colleague which may stem from witchcraft. Delectably sinister and crafty UK occult entry from director Jacques Tourneur, who creates a shimmering and eerie mood from Hal Chester and Charles Bennett's screenplay. The two writers, adapting Montague R. James' book "Casting the Runes", reportedly quarreled over the occult elements in the script--with Bennett's attempts at a more subtle approach going unrealized (arguably, we get too many close-ups of the titular demon, but he's a scene-stealer nevertheless!). Tourneur weaves this Hitchcockian tale with a great deal of hypnotic style, and gets fine performances from Peggy Cummins as the daughter of the deceased as well as the always-reliable Andrews (one might say the actor seems a bit stolid here but, since his character is a born skeptic, he should look tense and uncomfortable). Niall MacGinnis is nothing short of amazing as Dr. Julian Karswell, sort of a mama's boy/devil cult leader and one of the very best villains in 1950s cinema. Supporting performances are all first-rate, the picture looks fantastic in chilly black-and-white as photographed by Ted Scaife, and the satisfying finale leaves one both smiling and hungry for more. Initially released in the US as "Curse of the Demon", missing 15 minutes from its original running time of 95 minutes. ***1/2 from ****

"Curse of the Demon" might just be the best horror film I've ever seen. When I saw it for the first time as a teenager in the mid-sixties on television one night, it really frightened me. And even now, at my age, it still gives me goosebumps.

Dana Andrews plays the skeptical American psychologist investigating a devil worship cult in England led by Dr. Karswell, played by Niall MacGinnis. The acting is pretty weak once you get past the two main characters, but it's the craftsmanship of the director that really matters.

Jacques Tourneur manipulates light and shadow to create fear of the unknown in this tale of modern science colliding with ancient sorcery. The monster is pretty tame as far as it goes, but that's not the point. It's not what you see, it's what you imagine that gets to you.

Long, dark corridors ..... dancing shadows ..... strange sounds contrasted with eerie silences ..... the impending sense of doom and apprehension. This film touches our primal fears, like a child waking up during a thunder storm. Is nature an ordered world or can it be manipulated by evil forces?

This piece has stuck with me since I saw it as a child in about 1960. Our family enjoyed horror films, and we always thought that this one was memorable. Seeing it again recently, I haven't changed my mind. Given the effects available at the time and the creepiness factor, I've always though this was one of the better of the older horror movies around.

It is quaint, British, and builds slowly after the initial shock. Some comments say it was boring, shouldn't have shown the creature, Dana Andrews was drunk and sucked, etc. It isn't perfect, but like "The Haunting" and a few others made around that time, it succeeds well in creating an unsettling and generally engaging mood, including some humor, on a very small budget. I still think that the creature F/X was excellent for its time. I can imagine the film without seeing the creature, and maybe that would have been even more effective, again like "The Haunting".

I give it "A-" for effort and execution, and for avid horror buffs, it's definitely worth a watch or two. I've tested this one out with some younger folks, and they seem to really like it. Even a jaded younger horror fan used to blatant gore and in your face monsters said, "That creeped me out." FYI, the "Night" vs. "Curse" versions are different by several minutes of extra footage, which I recall was the séance scene and some connective dialog.

This film comes with two quality labels: it stars Peggy Cummins (best known for 'Deadly Is The Female' a.k.a. 'Gun Crazy') and is directed by Jacques Tourneur who had already shown his talent for suspenseful films with the RKO classics Cat People and I Walked With A Zombie. So you know what to expect: suspense and quality.

By now of course, technology changed a lot of how films look and it is the "show less - scare a lot" attitude of Cat People and I Walked With A Zombie that made them into the classics that they are. 'Night of the Demon' (a far better title than the American 'Curse of the Demon' - and if you see the film, you'll know why) has one nasty side effect: you see the demon and it's a film demon from the 50s. No matter how scary the film makes the demon, he looks like the thing you see on the cover of the movie box. It could be scarier. But now comes the best part... it doesn't matter! Because the suspense comes from something else in the movie and that is what makes this film so great. Dana Andrews is coming to England to prove that a so-called satanic cult is nothing more than a bunch of fakers and illusionists. The cult leader, however, puts a spell on him and warns Andrews that he will die in a few days. Other 50s film that depend more on the monsters and demons do have that problem: e.g. Roger Corman made some movies that could've been a lot better and scarier if the monster had either been more convincing or given less screen time.

Like in the other two films by Tourneur I mentioned, you always sense something scary could happen. That is what makes films work. In 'Night of the Demon Tourneur' succeeds in scarying you on some occasions when you least expect it. Combine that with cleverly built-up suspense and you know why you should watch this classic. Even if you don't like horror films in general.

I thought I had heard awhile back that Jacques Tourneur didn't want to show the demon. Does anybody know if this is so? Having worked with Val Lewton, this would seem possible. If so, it's a shame Tourneur isn't around to put a director's cut on the DVD instead of Curse Of The Demon which is a little redundant being on the same DVD as Night Of The Demon. I found the demon scary when I was 12 years old and would not have enjoyed the film as much without it. Now, of course, the film would seem better without it. The atmosphere of Tourneur's work that I've seen; this,I Walked With A Zombie, Out Of The Past, and that Twighlight Zone episode (one of the best) of the elderly lady getting calls from her deceased husband consistently has that great nocturnal, shadowy and mysterious quality to it. This body of work alone is enough to make him one of my favorite directors. Even if this isn't one of Dana Andrews best performances, his stubborn skepticism is convincing enough to contrast nicely with Carswell's over politeness. As old horror movies go; this ranks up there with The (original) Haunting, Eyes Without A Face, Black Sunday and early Universals as the best among the old black and whites for me. Strangely enough, I happened to have watched it earlier this (yesterday now) evening October 28th which IS the night of the demon. Coincidence? **** out of *****