Something Evil (1972)

A young couple moves into a farmhouse in rural Pennsylvania. What they don't know is that there is an unseen presence in the house, and that it wants to take possession of the wife.

Director:

Steven Spielberg

Writer:

Robert Clouse

Stars:

Darren McGavin, Sandy Dennis, Ralph Bellamy

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sandy Dennis	...	Marjorie Worden
Darren McGavin	...	Paul Worden
Ralph Bellamy	...	Harry Lincoln
Jeff Corey	...	Gehrmann
Johnny Whitaker	...	Stevie Worden
John Rubinstein	...	Ernest Lincoln
David Knapp	...	John
Laurie Hagen	...	Beth (as Laurie Hagan)
Debbie Lempert	...	Laurie Worden
Sandy Lempert	...	Laurie Worden
Herb Armstrong	...	Mr. Schiller
Margaret Avery	...	Irene
Norman Bartold	...	Mr. Hackett
Sheila Bartold	...	Mrs. Hackett
Lois Battle	...	Mrs. Faraday

Storyline

Sandy Dennis, Darren McGavin, and their kids move into a possessed Pennsylvania farmhouse occupied by the devil himself, eager to assert his powers on new tenants. This early Steven Speilberg TV movie comes on the heels of his classic "Duel" and shares some similarities with his later production, "Poltergeist". Speilberg's camera trickery makes this entry much better than the usual made-for-TV ghost-story movie at the time and the director even makes a cameo appearance.

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Plot Keywords:

strong female character | artist | young boy | little girl | flashlight | 

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Genres:

Horror

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Certificate:

Unrated

Did You Know?

Trivia

Director's Cameo: Steven Spielberg can barely be seen during the first party scene. He's talking to Carl Gottlieb.

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Goofs

The shadow of the cameraman can be seen on Marjorie's red robe when she walks out to the yard on their first night.

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Quotes

Beth: Apples come in chocolate brown, mmmm-mmm, they're wonderful. Apples come in taffy gold, mmm-mmm, they're scrumptious! Listen to me, all you folks, hear me when I say: apple bar, apple bar, sends me all the way!
Paul Worden: Beth, baby, you have got to make me believe you eat this junk, now you just gotta!

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Connections

Spoofed in Reflections of Evil (2002)

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Soundtracks

APPLE BAR CANDY SONG
by Charlie Marie Gordon

User Reviews

Good cast wasted in routine film.

SOMETHING EVIL was one of Steven Spielberg's last made-for-TV efforts before he hit the big time with the big screen release JAWS. The film stars Sandy Dennis and Darren McGavin as a happily married couple who unwittingly put their lives and the lives of their two young children into great danger when they move into a Pennsylvania farmhouse that later turns out to be inhabited by evil spirits. Johnnie Whitaker(of FAMILY AFFAIR fame) co-stars as the oldest child.

Had it been made by anyone else but Spielberg, SOMETHING EVIL would be completely forgotten today. Though it came before the lamentable THE AMITYVILLE HORROR, haunted house thrillers were still pretty old hat by the time this TV-made effort came along. Spielberg injects as much life as possible into the deadly dull material, and the great cast does their usual thorough job, but no one can completely disguise the fact that this is second rate stuff. For a more rewarding look at work from Spielberg's early TV years, see the superior DUEL(1971) starring Dennis Weaver.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

21 January 1972 (USA)

Also Known As:

Something Evil

Filming Locations:

Studio City, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Belford Productions, CBS Entertainment Production

Technical Specs

Runtime:

73 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1