Messiah of Evil (1973)

A young woman goes searching for her missing artist father. Her journey takes her to a strange Californian seaside town governed by a mysterious undead cult.

Director:

Willard Huyck

Writers:

Willard Huyck (screenplay), Gloria Katz (screenplay)

Stars:

Michael Greer, Marianna Hill, Joy Bang

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Michael Greer	...	Thom
Marianna Hill	...	Arletty (as Mariana Hill)
Joy Bang	...	Toni
Anitra Ford	...	Laura
Royal Dano	...	Joseph Long
Elisha Cook Jr.	...	Charlie
Charles Dierkop	...	Gas Attendant
Bennie Robinson	...	Albino trucker
Morgan Fisher	...	Unknown
Emma Truckman	...	Unknown
Dyanne Asimow	...	Unknown (as Dyanne Simon)
Herb Margolis	...	Unknown
Alex Michaels	...	Unknown
Walter Hill
Laurie Charlap-Hyman	...	Unknown

Storyline

A young woman goes searching for her missing artist father. Her journey takes her to a strange Californian seaside town governed by a mysterious undead cult.

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Plot Keywords:

undead | supermarket freak out | painting | eating human flesh | daughter searching for missing father | 

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Taglines:

Terror reigns when he returns.

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Genres:

Horror | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

1973 (USA)

Also Known As:

Dead People

Filming Locations:

26652 Latigo Shore Drive, Malibu, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

V/M Productions, International Cine Film Corp.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The character of Arletty is named after the french actress best known from Children of Paradise (1945).

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Goofs

When Arletty is tending to Thom towards the end of the film, Thom is on his back and has some blood on his face from his ear, which she wipes away. In the next shot, the blood is back.

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Quotes

Arletty: [narrating] They're coming here. They're waiting at the edge of the city. They're peering around buildings at night, and they're waiting. They waiting for you! And they'll take you one by one and noone will hear you scream. Noone will hear you SCREAM!

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Connections

References The Birds (1963)

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Soundtracks

"Hold On To Love"
Music and Lyrics by Eliane Tortel
Sung by Raun MacKinnon

User Reviews

Aesthetic and unique, in good ways

Virtually all of the praise I've ever seen for this film comes with the word "but", followed by a list of flaws. This is undeserved. True, the film (in its DVD double-bill with The Devil's Nightmare form) has some minor editing issues; true, it has cheesy pop music you'd never find if you search for years (I personally consider this a GOOD thing); true, the film is not a fast paced zombie-action flick with grue and butchery (in fact, it's more cult than zombie film). BUT, what the movie does have going for it is an original edge and some sharp, moody scenes that are rare for the era. Some comments say it is slow ...my view is that the authors of such comments are simply more used to modern, faster-paced cinema. The scenes are aesthetically delightful but certainly not as artsy (negatively so) as some commentors claim (the artsy-ness doesn't really go beyond the story itself: DO NOT fear this is comparable to the so-called artsy-ness of, say, a Jess Franco film ...it is not). The actors have been attacked by other commentors, but this is one of the things I was more impressed with considering the seemingly meager budget. I thought the male lead did a much better job than, say, the female lead. The two girls who are traveling with the male lead are also surprisingly human and real for a film like this, and there is obviously some chemistry in the cast (but for the female lead: she's a bit too dreamy). The albino and the Richard Wagner music-scene felt out of place but perhaps worked with the disorientation of the film as a whole. In all, comparing this film to its genre and period, it really can't be dismissed. A little indecisive, but not nearly enough to detract from the bounty of great scenes and sensations.