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The City of the Dead (John Moxey, 1960)
When my brother and I used to watch this minor horror classic on TV, it was called Horror Hotel. It was always a cool flick for us to watch because it had some stark, spooky photography for many of the indoor scenes, but then it would get all graphic with bodies bursting into flames while trying to commit a ritualistic female sacrifice in a graveyard on the Witch's Sabbath. The Dead mentioned in the original title are witches who were true worshippers of Satan in Whitewood, Massachusetts in 1692. While being burned at the stake, self-confessed witch Elizabeth Selwyn (Patricia Jessel) curses the townspeople, and as a result, all the "dead" witches are given eternal life by Satan as long as they worship him and perform two sacrifices a year.
The modern day plot involves college professor Christopher Lee recommending that his student Nan (Venetia Stevenson) spend her holidays researching witches in Whitewood, and even though her brother and boyfriend don't like the idea, she drives to the remote, fog-shrouded town. Upon arrival, she finds everything spooky and almost inexplicable, but she does meet one seeemingly-normal woman, Patricia (Betta St, John), who lends her an in-depth book on witches. The plot doesn't really hold any surprises, but there are still plenty of frissons on display. The hotel where Nan stays is menacing in the way that people and strange sounds seem to come and go instantaneously. Plus there are rarely any lights on, but the fireplace always casts dreaded shadows across the rooms. Then there are the actual buildups to the sacrifices presented in the film, and they deliver the goods. The film is just a bit short and repeats a few motifs (especially the fog and the guy who gives everybody directions to the Inn) to qualify as a full-blown classic. Lovers of black-and-white Mario Bava will want to check this out though, and anybody who enjoys "old-time" horror should probably raise my rating by a half-to-a-full popcorn box.
When my brother and I used to watch this minor horror classic on TV, it was called Horror Hotel. It was always a cool flick for us to watch because it had some stark, spooky photography for many of the indoor scenes, but then it would get all graphic with bodies bursting into flames while trying to commit a ritualistic female sacrifice in a graveyard on the Witch's Sabbath. The Dead mentioned in the original title are witches who were true worshippers of Satan in Whitewood, Massachusetts in 1692. While being burned at the stake, self-confessed witch Elizabeth Selwyn (Patricia Jessel) curses the townspeople, and as a result, all the "dead" witches are given eternal life by Satan as long as they worship him and perform two sacrifices a year.
The modern day plot involves college professor Christopher Lee recommending that his student Nan (Venetia Stevenson) spend her holidays researching witches in Whitewood, and even though her brother and boyfriend don't like the idea, she drives to the remote, fog-shrouded town. Upon arrival, she finds everything spooky and almost inexplicable, but she does meet one seeemingly-normal woman, Patricia (Betta St, John), who lends her an in-depth book on witches. The plot doesn't really hold any surprises, but there are still plenty of frissons on display. The hotel where Nan stays is menacing in the way that people and strange sounds seem to come and go instantaneously. Plus there are rarely any lights on, but the fireplace always casts dreaded shadows across the rooms. Then there are the actual buildups to the sacrifices presented in the film, and they deliver the goods. The film is just a bit short and repeats a few motifs (especially the fog and the guy who gives everybody directions to the Inn) to qualify as a full-blown classic. Lovers of black-and-white Mario Bava will want to check this out though, and anybody who enjoys "old-time" horror should probably raise my rating by a half-to-a-full popcorn box.