The Dunwich Horror (1970)

User Rating:

5.1/10   

Director:

Daniel Haller

Writers:

H.P. Lovecraft (short story)
Curtis Hanson (writer) ...

Release Date:

14 January 1970 (USA)

Genre:

Horror

Tagline:

A few years ago in Dunwich a half-witted girl bore illegitimate twins. One of them was almost human!

Plot:

Wilbur Whateley pops over to the Arkham Miskatonic University to borrow the legendary Necronomicon and Sandra Dee. But little does anyone know, Whateley isn't quite human...

Plot Keywords:

Necronomicon | Book | Drugs | H.P. Lovecraft | Warlock

Cast

Sandra Dee	...	Nancy Wagner
Dean Stockwell	...	Wilbur Whateley
Ed Begley	...	Dr. Henry Armitage
Lloyd Bochner	...	Dr. Cory
Sam Jaffe	...	Old Whateley
Joanne Moore Jordan	...	Lavinia Whateley (as Joanna Moore Jordan)
Donna Baccala	...	Elizabeth Hamilton
Talia Shire	...	Nurse Cora (as Talia Coppola)
Michael Fox	...	Dr. Raskin (as Mike Fox)
Jason Wingreen	...	Sheriff Harrison
Barboura Morris	...	Mrs. Cole
Beach Dickerson	...	Mr. Cole
Michael Haynes	...	Guard
Toby Russ	...	Librarian
Jack Pierce	...	Reeger

MPAA:

Rated R for some sexuality/nudity.

Runtime:

90 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:R | UK:18 (video rating) | UK:X (original rating) | USA:M (original rating)

Filming Locations:

Mendocino, California, USA

Company:

American International Pictures (AIP)

Trivia:

Carol Lynley was on the ideas list for the female lead.

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): Every person in the movie pronounces the town's name as "Dun-witch"; in fact, it is pronounced "Dun-itch", with a silent 'W' as in "Greenwich village".

Movie Connections:

Featured in Fantastic Fantasy Fright-o-Rama Show Vol. 1 (1996) (V)

Decent adaptation of H.P. Lovecraft's short story.

Sandra Dee (the original GIDGET to you beach bunny fans) is Nancy Baxter, a virginal blonde student at Miskatonic University who meets Wilbur (Dean Stockwell), the grandson of a warlock who was lynched years earlier.

Wilbur shows interest in the Necronomicon and in Nancy, because he needs both to open a gateway for demons called "The Old Ones" to enter our world. He invites her back to his secluded home in Dunwich, where he keeps her drugged, plots to sacrifice her on a seaside altar and fights with his senile, ranting grandfather (Sam Jaffe). A strange-looking, barely-seen, multi-headed flying monster that sees things in negative (and looks kind of like GHIDRAH!), is kept locked in the attic, but escapes for the silly finale.

Sandra Dee fans might want to see her saying sex is "great" and simulating orgasm while being groped on an altar, but she delivers a fine performance as well. Ditto Ed Begley in his last role as a heroic professor. Stockwell is so soft-spoken and weird it's hard to gouge just how good (or bad) his performance really is.

Compared to most recent H.P. Lovecraft adaptations, this isn't half bad and it all looks very cool and colorful. Roger Corman was the executive producer. Director Haller also made DIE, MONSTER, DIE, which was based on Lovecraft's "The Colour Out of Space."