Night of the Demon (1957)

Director:

Jacques Tourneur

Writers:

M.R. James (story)
Charles Bennett (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

July 1958 (USA)

Genre:

Fantasy | Horror | Mystery

Tagline:

Who will be the next in line to defy the curse?

Plot:

Dr. John Holden ventures to London to attend a paranormal psychology symposium with the intention to expose devil cult leader...

Plot Keywords:

Cult | Curse | Witchcraft | Demon | Deep Focus

Cast

Dana Andrews	...	Dr. John Holden
Peggy Cummins	...	Joanna Harrington
Niall MacGinnis	...	Dr. Julian Karswell
Maurice Denham	...	Professor Henry Harrington
Athene Seyler	...	Mrs. Karswell
Liam Redmond	...	Professor Mark O'Brien
Reginald Beckwith	...	Mr. Meek
Ewan Roberts	...	Lloyd Williamson
Peter Elliott	...	Professor K.T. Kumar
Rosamund Greenwood	...	Mrs. Meek
Brian Wilde	...	Rand Hobart
Richard Leech	...	Inspector Mottrarn
Lloyd Lamble	...	Detective Simmons
Peter Hobbes	...	Superintendent
Charles Lloyd Pack	...	Chemist (as Charles Lloyd-Pack)

Also Known As:

Curse of the Demon (USA) (recut version)
Haunted

Runtime:

95 min | USA:83 min (cut)

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Certification:

UK:PG | UK:X (original rating) | Argentina:13 | Australia:PG | Finland:K-16 | USA:Approved (PCA #18459)

Filming Locations:

Associated British Picture Studios, Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, England, UK

Company:

Sabre Film Production

Trivia:

Released in the U.S. as the lower half of a double bill with Hammer's The Revenge of Frankenstein (1958).

Goofs:

Factual errors: The stones at Stonehenge do not have any runes on them!

Quotes:

Dr. John Holden: All good scientists are from Missouri: in other words, they should continually be saying, 'Show me'.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Ken Adam: Designing Bond (2000) (V)

Ever wonder where the RHPS line "Dana Andrews said prunes, gave him the runes" came from? This is the movie!

"Curse of the Demon" (aka "Night of the Demon") is one of those weird little lost films that everyone agrees is wonderful and yet very few people seem to have actually seen. This is one of those rare British movies that is set, not in the city, but rather in the chilly, fog-choked countryside where little seems to have changed since Stonehenge was built. Niall McGinnis holds sway here as the impish leader of a Satanic cult, who swiftly dispatches of his critics by summoning a huge, horrific demon to rip them to shreds.

Into this isolated world walks psychologist John Holden, played by yet another seriously underrated actor, Dana Andrews. Andrews, who made a name for himself playing tough guys in films like "Laura" and "The Best Years of Our Lives" is wonderful here as the skeptical, even slightly smarmy, American who absolutely refuses to believe in demons, even when strange, unexplainable things begin to happen to him. Peggy Cummins is his love interest, the open minded schoolteacher whose uncle may have been a victim of the Demon. Niall McGinnis is disturbingly likable as the head of the Demon Cult, chucking aside a chance to play Aleister Crowley and opting for Benny Hill instead. He is very disarming as the films central villain, and Andrews confusion mirrors our own as the movie stalks relentlessly through a seance, a stormy Halloween party and a frightening hypnosis session to its surprisingly violent conclusion.

This movie is, by turns, sarcastically funny, suffocatingly tense and shockingly scary. The demon looks a little corny nowadays, and was revealed much too quickly with no suspenseful build-up, but the movie is so smart, so moody, so creepy and well done with an excellent cast to boot, that one can easily forgive the demon, which looks a lot like a slightly deformed bear with a pig nose and goat horns.

This is an excellent adaption of the short story "Casting the Runes" by M. R. James and still has the power to scare even 50 years later. Highly recommended!