Agnes Moorhead's big screen debut was 'Citizen Kane' in 1941, an impressive way to kick off an acting career; her final silver screen appearance was in 'Dear Dead Delilah', a rather undignified way to end a movie career.
Moorehead was no stranger to the genre, having already appeared in 'Hush... Hush, Sweet Charlotte' in 1964 and 'What's the Matter with Helen?' in 1971, but those films had an experienced director, a decent screenplay, reasonable production values and a competent supporting cast. Dear Dead Delilah has none of those things: director John Farris's inexperience is more than evident (this would be his first and last movie behind the camera), the trite plot holds very few surprises, the budget was clearly extremely low, and the acting is weak.
Farris also wrote the script, and it's about as inspired as his direction, a wearisome Agatha Christie style thriller in which the relatives of a wealthy old woman search for a fortune in cash hidden somewhere on the family's estate, with one or more of them turning to murder to ensure that they get the lion's share. The prime suspect would appear to be Luddy (Patricia Carmichael), the newest employee at the estate, recently released from prison for chopping up her mother with an axe, but that would be far too obvious. Can you work out who the real culprit is before you fall asleep from boredom?
Only a modicum of hokey gore prevents this film from being completely worthless: I'm a sucker for an axe decapitation, no matter how cheesy, and the film also delivers a victim with a severed hand, an axe in the chest and a shotgun blast to the face. None of the effects are particularly special, but they're the only fun thing about this otherwise worthless mess.
