John Cassavetes stars as a surgeon in a small Wisconsin town where a series of bizarre rapes-turned-murders are occurring left and right against the area's female residents. Thrown into the mix is his teenager daughter whose boyfriend claims to be witnessing the crimes as they are occurring within nightmares he experiences.
As far as I'm concerned, John Hough is one of horror's unsung heroes when it comes to mood and atmosphere- if "The Legend of Hell House" or the marginal Disney thriller "The Watcher in the Woods" aren't enough proof of that, "The Incubus" is. This dreary thriller is considerably more violent than Hough's other horror pictures, but has his signature stylistics that I absolutely love.
Like in most of all Hough's work, the cinematography is slick and thoughtful, making goosebumps-inducing use of POV shots. In the film, the camera follows the victims almost like a predator before launching its vicious assault, and each attack is just as effective as the next. There is also a strong gothic feel underpinning the events, and the photography accentuates the haunting landscapes (actually Ontario, serving as a midwest stand-in). The film's musty and discomforting atmosphere is underlined by an unnerving string score, another signature element of Hough's films. A somewhat withered Cassavetes is still at the top of his game here, with John Ireland supporting as the miffed sheriff and Kerri Keane as a nosy local reporter.
The film's bucolic setting is recurrently upended by instances of explicit sexual violence, and it features some of the most disturbing and visceral assault scenes I've ever seen in a horror film (the library sequence near the beginning especially stands out). Despite the picturesque pastoral setting, a sense of decay can be felt bubbling beneath the surface. The script's medley of violence and female sexuality under attack is effectively grotesque, and even more bizarre are the incestuous undertones and gender-bending revelation at the film's twisted conclusion. While the finale is irrefutably shocking (and the monster makeup surprisingly scary, even by today's standards), I can say that the narrative build-up could have been a tad better handled as it all does seem to come crashing down rather awkwardly; a bit more finesse in script and editing could have remedied this, but the film still works in spite of it.
Overall, I found "The Incubus" to be a formidable and disturbing film. Hough's handling of the bucolic locales is wonderful, and the effective, moody cinematography really establishes a menacing and inauspicious feel. The film's one major flaw is the hackneyed pacing in its last act, but I personally found this a forgivable sin given how strong the rest of it is. It is definitely one of the more aggressive horror films of its era in terms of themes, but the quaint and gothic feel hearkens back to a more classical and almost British sensibility. A fantastic thriller best suited for viewing on a chilly autumn night with all the lights off. 8/10.
