Witchcraft
Director: Don Sharp
Year: 1964
Rating: 6.0
There
are a few lessons learned from this eerie black and white English horror
film. First, don't bury witches alive. Burning them is the optimal solution
and then spread their ashes on sacred ground. Something that we all learned
when we were young at school. And secondly, if you open a door and see a
coven of witches within, don't scream. It is a dead giveaway and if you are
near Black Sabbath, you quickly become fodder for sacrifice. Things to keep
in mind. This is produced by Lippert who had worked with Hammer earlier on
some low budget noirs and this has a slight Hammer mood to it- especially
their later witch films. Lippert often brought over an American name past
his prime. This time we have the honor of Lon Chaney Jr. playing the head
of an English family that can trace their roots back hundreds of years. The
Whitlocks. With his American accent he is a perfect fit.
One of those ancestors, Vanessa (Yvette
Rees) was found guilty of being a witch and condemned to burial alive by
the Lanier's. Some 400 years previously. Time must be slow buried in a casket.
Biding your time. Because she really was a witch. When the current head of
the Lanier's (Jack Hedley) decides to turn some land into real estate, the
Whitlock cemetery is accidentally bulldozed. Trouble is a brewing. Or molding.
Vanessa is set free and has 400 years of anger and resentment stored up.
Time to go to work. And as in every small English village, there is a witch's
coven who meet in crypts and plan their sacrifices. And a bingo raffle on
Friday nights.
This is directed by Don Sharp who by this
time had directed The Kiss of the Vampire and The Devil-Ship Pirates. Curse
of the Fly, Rasputin and two Fu Manchu films were right ahead. With not much
of a budget, he does an effective job in setting up a suspenseful mood and
a few well filmed scenes. The Gothic house of shadows helps set the tone.
The script from Harry Spalding (House of the Damned, The Earth Dies Screaming)
wastes little time but still manages to throw in some character development.
The grandmother (Marie Ney) in the wheelchair who knows more than she says
is a nice touch. It moves along quickly from the opening when Morgan Whitlock
tries to stop them from desecrating the graves. Who is really the villain
here - real estate developers or witches?
