Deadly Blessing (1981)

This film is set in Amish Country, at a local farm, where a woman's husband is mysteriously killed by his own tractor!

Director:

Wes Craven

Writers:

Glenn M. Benest (story), Matthew Barr (story),

Stars:

Maren Jensen, Sharon Stone, Susan Buckner

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Maren Jensen	...	Martha Schmidt
Sharon Stone	...	Lana Marcus
Susan Buckner	...	Vicky Anderson
Jeff East	...	John Schmidt
Colleen Riley	...	Melissa (as Coleen Riley)
Douglas Barr	...	Jim Schmidt (as Doug Barr)
Lisa Hartman	...	Faith Stohler
Lois Nettleton	...	Louisa Stohler
Ernest Borgnine	...	Isaiah Schmidt
Michael Berryman	...	William Gluntz
Kevin Cooney	...	Sheriff
Bobby Dark	...	Theatre Manager
Kevin Farr	...	Fat Boy
Neil Fletcher	...	Gravedigger
Jonathon Gulla	...	Tom Schmidt

Storyline

A former Hittite (a member of an Amish-like sect) dies in a mysterious tractor "accident", and his widow is left to face the frightening Hittites who view her as "the incubus" and may have sinister designs on her.

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Plot Keywords:

tractor | incubus | farm | widow | wainscoting | 

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Taglines:

Pray you're not blessed

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Genres:

Horror | Mystery | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 August 1981 (USA)

Also Known As:

Éxtasis mortal

Filming Locations:

Ashtabula, Ohio, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$2,500,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

PolyGram Filmed Entertainment, Inter Planetary

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

When Jeff East meets Susan Buckner in town, the marquee at the theatre shows the title "Summer of Fear" (aka Stranger in Our House), a made-for-TV movie by Wes Craven in which East also starred.

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Goofs

Faith picks up, and holds the broken painting in one shot, then in the next she runs towards it lying on the ground as if she had never picked it up.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Narrator: In the rolling hills of a sinful farm community, untouched by time, a gruesome secret has been protected for generations.

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Crazy Credits

The end credits start rolling before the narrator's dialogue is finshed.

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Connections

Referenced in Eisai to tairi mou: Episode #1.2 (2001)

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Soundtracks

"Maggie May"
Written and Performed by Rod Stewart

User Reviews

One of Craven's best

This film is underrated as hell. I personally consider it Craven's best film aside from The Hills Have Eyes. Of course, I've always been interested in the Amish culture, so this film taking it a step further with the Hittites was something I was intrigued by before I'd even first watched it. The film is thematically interesting in it's juxtaposition of a strict, patriarchal culture with individuals who hold more modern values. Fertile ground for Craven given his stern religious upbringing. while the movie adheres more closely to the slasher formula, the setting and the implications of the supernatural both help to distinguish it.

The entire film is shrouded in an eerie atmosphere from the get-go. The country setting is beautiful, yet strangely menacing in the confines of the film. We also are treated to a few unnerving sequences, the snake in the bathtub and the spider dream sequence in particular. There's also a lengthy set-piece which takes place in the barn, exceptionally well-done.

Maren Jenson is a gorgeous woman (much more so than Stone), and she brings a grounded quality to her leading role. It's a pity she didn't do anymore films, TV or anything after this. This film marked Sharon Stone's first speaking role, and while she isn't great or even good, I did like her delivery when describing her dream early on. Ernest Borgnine and Michael Berryman are both favorites of mine, and they deliver two more solid characters to their resumés. The underrated Lois Nettleton is here too as Jensen's oddball neighbor.

I also have to admit that I loved the ending, which is often bashed. I thought if fit with everything that had come before, like the dog on the prowl, the spiders, Stone's dream sequences, etc. It felt like a malevolent force was influencing the surrounding area.

This film is a long-standing favorite of mine, and I for one think it deserves more respect. Of course, for that to happen, I suppose more people would need to see it first. Probably Craven's least seen film, which is most unfortunate.