Beyond the Door (1974)

Juliet Mills plays a young pregnant woman in San Francisco who is going to have the devil's baby during her strange possession. Richard Johnson shows up to help her... but what does he really want?

Directors:

Ovidio G. Assonitis (as O. Hellman), Robert Barrett (as R. Barrett)

Writers:

Ovidio G. Assonitis (story) (as O. Hellman), Antonio Troiso (story)

Stars:

Juliet Mills, Richard Johnson, Gabriele Lavia

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Juliet Mills	...	Jessica Barrett
Gabriele Lavia	...	Robert Barrett
Richard Johnson	...	Dimitri
Nino Segurini	...	Dr. George Staton
Elizabeth Turner	...	Barbara Staton (as Elisabeth Turner)
Barbara Fiorini	...	Gail Barrett
Carla Mancini	...	(credit only)
David Colin Jr.	...	Ken Barrett
Vittorio Fanfoni	...	Mr. Francis
Luigi Marturano

Storyline

Juliet Mills plays a pregnant woman who becomes possessed by a demon and begins puking split pea soup all over the place. Ex-boyfriend Richard Johnson shows up to save the day.

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Plot Keywords:

baby | possession | demon | vomiting | strait jacket | 

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Taglines:

A horrifying and blood chilling drama of possession.

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Genres:

Horror

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

Italy USA

Language:

English Italian

Release Date:

31 July 1975 (USA)

Also Known As:

Beyond the Door

Filming Locations:

Incir De Paolis Studios, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Box Office

Budget:

$350,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Film Ventures International (FVI), A Erre Cinematografica, Montoro Productions Ltd.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

109 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo (Westrex Electric System)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

First assistant director Peter Shepherd brought Juliet Mills onto the project having worked with her on "Avanti". Director 'Ovidio Assonitis' had actually had Samantha Eggar in mind for the lead role.

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Quotes

Voice of Demon: Ladies and gentlemen, may I ask for your attention, just for a minute. Soon you will be caught up in the events taking place on the screen, and then you may forget all about me... well, almost, anyway. You see, I must confess to a certain feeling of propriety toward the story that's about to begin because, immodest though it may sound, I play an extremely important part in the proceedings. In fact, without me, there really... wouldn't be any story at all. Of course, you won't actually see me. ...

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Connections

References The Exorcist (1973)

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Soundtracks

Bargain with the Devil
Music Composed and Conducted by Franco Micalizzi
Written by Sid Wayne
Performed by Warren Wilson
Produced by Danny Weis (as Danny Weiss)

User Reviews

Beyond the Door / The Devil Within Her (1974) **1/2

I will consider this DVD viewing a first-time watch for me, because I saw the unedited edition now released on disc by Code Red, under the European title THE DEVIL WITHIN HER (not to be confused with the Joan Collins film of the same name). Indeed, this Italian horror movie has gone through several title changes -- from CHI SEI? in its own country, to its most recognizable American name, BEYOND THE DOOR. But the only way to see it is under the complete DEVIL WITHIN HER form, since the U.S. version -- which I did see on a crappy videotape 20+ years back -- is a much more incomprehensible mess. Two directors tackled this (Ovidio G. Assonitis and Roberto D'Ettore Piazzoli), which is obviously a ripoff of THE EXORCIST with hints of ROSEMARY'S BABY. Director Ovidio states he got the idea from seeing the Polanski film, and from only reading the Exorcist novel.

Juliet Mills (of TV's NANNY AND THE PROFESSOR) stars as a British woman named Jessica living in San Francisco with her husband Robert (Gabriele Lavia) and her two small children. She becomes impregnated with what may be a spawn of the devil himself, and as a result she goes through a series of disturbing trends: smashing her hubby's favorite fish tank, eating a raw banana peel from the street, kissing her sleeping little boy lustfully on his lips, spewing blood and vomit, and rotating her head and levitating. A strange bearded man (Richard Johnson) who has had ties with her from the past, follows her husband around and introduces himself as Dimitri, a cultist who is now trying to help Jessica and to also release his own soul.

I don't think this is a good movie, but it's serviceable horror fare with enough shocks and eerie optical effects considering it's an EXORCIST copycat made on a limited budget. Some of the photography is hauntingly done, and Juliet Mills is quite good in her part as the possessed mom. The participation of Richard Johnson also lends something of class to such horrific goings-on. I think this film gets too harshly judged, though I am not surprised if most of those reviewers only got to see the inferior common U.S. Theatrical Cut. **1/2 out of ****