Evil Heritage (1976)

A young girl is caught up in a devil cult run by her evil uncle and cousin. She can trust no one and even people she thought were dead comes back to haunt her.

Director:

Norman J. Warren

Writer:

David McGillivray (screenplay)

Stars:

Michael Gough, Martin Potter, Candace Glendenning

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Michael Gough	...	Uncle Alexander Yorke
Martin Potter	...	Stephen Yorke
Candace Glendenning	...	Catherine Yorke
Barbara Kellerman	...	Frances
Michael Craze	...	John
Gloria Maley	...	Janice (as Gloria Walker)
James Bree	...	Malcolm Yorke
Celia Hewitt	...	Elizabeth Yorke
David McGillivray	...	Priest

Storyline

A young girl is caught up in a devil cult run by her evil uncle and cousin. She can trust no one and even people she thought were dead comes back to haunt her.

---

Plot Keywords:

sexual assault | cult | devil | character's point of view camera shot | suicide by jumping | 

---

Taglines:

It's Catherine's birthday. You're invited to her torture party.

---

Genres:

Horror

---

Certificate:

R

Details

Official Sites:

Crown International Pictures Scorpion Releasing [United States]

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

August 1979 (USA)

Also Known As:

Evil Heritage

Filming Locations:

Pirbright, Surrey, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

£35,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Monumental Pictures (II)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

86 min (cut)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Fujicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

David McGillivray wrote the script in nine days.

---

Quotes

Uncle Alexander Yorke: [both impressed and enraged] You stabbed him right in the eye which went right through into his brain you clearly have some of Camilla in you already

---

Alternate Versions

For years director Warren has mentioned that a longer foreign version of Satan's Slave exists, which was much more violent than anything shown in the UK version. It appears this Continental version was used for the 1997 UK video re-issue, as there is footage in it never before seen in the UK. There is a totally new murder scene and lots more violence in the Satanic mass scenes. Basically every violent scene has newer alternative more gory takes: Martin Potter's eye gauging is notably much more graphic in the video. Unfortunately whereas the censors passed footage deemed too violent to submit to them in 1976, they cut 1 minute 4 seconds of footage that they were willing to pass for its orginal X rated cinema and video release. These cuts include most of Potter's sexual assault on his first girlfriend, and some whipping and branding in the flashback witchfinder sequence. Ironically the orginal UK cinema version was appearing with these cuts intact on cable TV around the same time as the cut video re-release.

---

Connections

Featured in Susu (2018)

User Reviews

Clever & Surprising

This is actually quite a bright spot in the late 70's Brit Horror Film Industry breathing its last few gasps. It comes in a few different versions, some bloodier and sexier than others. It actually works in either the softer or hotter versions. The grue-- including a nude woman threatened with scissors, a head crushed in a door, a gory fall of a ledge, a woman slashed with a jagged piece of glass, and a nail driven into an eye-- is lively, but the central story about the traumatized heroine being cared for by her malevolent uncle and his murderous son is strong enough to stand on its own. There are also the expected scenes of black mass and nude female worshipers. The film plays nicely on our expectations and manages to surprise. With all the garish colors and hazy turn of events, we're never quite certain if everyone is off their rocker, the heroine especially possibly going off on some flight of fantasy triggered by the accident and exacerbated by the legend of the ancestress witch. Plus, characters you expect to play a pivotal role die suddenly, it's hard to tell who is trustworthy and who isn't, and Martin Potter as the cousin vacillates so perfectly between being a morose companion to the girl and a frenzied monster to everyone else that I found myself just as lulled in by him. The violent scenes are shocking and unpredictable, while the talkier sequences have a weirdly cold atmosphere to them. For me, this one gets unfairly written off far too often.