HALLOWEEN HORRORFEST 2020: The Devil’s Rain (1975)

I know I promised you Nick Kaufmann’s attempt to leech all hope from me, but here’s the thing: I could not find Food of the Gods on any of the sites I frequent.  So I have set my robotic minions out to locate it and rescheduled Nick’s moment of triumph for the 21st.  But since we still need a film for today, I turned for the first time to the Randomizer, and it spit out the final theatrical film by a beloved director, Robert Fuest’s The Devil’s Rain!

Robert Fuest made a softcore porn film that attracted the attention of one of my heroes, Brian Clemens, who brought him onto The Avengers.  He did some set design before directing seven episodes of my favorite TV series of all time, mainly during the 30 episode Linda Thorson season.  The sensibilities he developed on that series bloomed into a couple of films he made after it was cancelled--including one of my favorite films, The Abominable Dr. Phibes, and the Michael Moorcock adaptation The Final Programme (a.k.a. The Last Days of Man on Earth).  But after he made this film, he retired from theatrical filmmaking, choosing to specialize in television while also serving as a lecturer at the London International Film School.  

The Preston family has been plagued for literally centuries by the attention of Satannic priest Jonathan Corvus (Ernest Borgnine).  It seems that the book in which Corvus keeps the contracts he made with his followers were stolen by an ancestor, and not having that book is preventing him and his cult from...doing something?  Now all of the Prestons have fallen under Corvus’ sway save for Tom (Tom Skerritt) and his psychic wife (Joan Prather), and Tom--with the guidance of Tom’s mentor, Dr. Richards (Eddie Albert)--is determined to save the souls of his family and put an end to this fued.

The thing I find fascinating about The Devil’s Rain is how, the one scene it built its reputation on aside, it feels like the television movies Fuest would go on to make from here.  For long stretches we’re dealing with a lot of flat cinematography and sets that are obviously what was hanging around the back lot.  The cast is very much of the ‘Yesterday’s Stars Today!’ feel that defined TV movies in the 70‘s (in addition to Borgnine and Albert, we’re graced with the presence of Keenan Wynn and Ida Lupina who, given her career as both and actor and director, deserved better than to appear in films like this and Food of The Gods) with a smattering of up and comers like Skerritt, John Travolta and William Shatner.  It’s only when we enter the boarded up old chapel Corvus is making his headquarters in that we’re reminded this is a Fuest picture; the interiors have the same art-deco-y grandiosity that we’ve come to expect from this director.  I wonder if the film was intended to be a television film only for producer Sandy Howard to decide to capitalize on the gooey finale to market it to theaters.

The acting is fairly high quality, which is not surprising given the cast that was assembled.  The practical effects range from adequate to Really Quite Good.  It’s the script (written by three people!) that lets down the team.  The actual plot is so vague that such vital elements as narrative coherence and motivation goes out the window.  As good as Borgnine is, and he is giving this his all, which makes him still feel authoritative despite the silly outfits they make him wear, I was thoroughly befuddled by what his dialogue actually meant.  It also didn’t help that, for a book that was three hundred years old and filled with contracts signed in blood, the MacGuffin is awfully shiny and new, complete with a hasp that looks like it came from the local Staples rather than 17th century New England.

(Oh, yeah...this film was shot in Durango, Mexico, yet a major plot point is that the Satanic Chapel looks like it’s from New England.  Why?  We don’t know.  Surely they had Satanists in the Southwest during the 17th century....)

I suppose it’s time to mention the finale, which lasts for about seven minutes and is composed of the cultists melting into waxy pools.  There are moments where it’s kind of gross, but mainly it’s....okay.  It’s decent for a movie in 1975, but I’ve seen better.

This is not necessarily a bad movie...it’s just kind of mediocre.  I don’t know if I should recommend it or not, so use your discretion.

Our sponsor tomorrow is Will Farry, who made a generous Donation to Black Lives Matter to present me with, just in time for Indigenous Peoples Day, 1974‘s The Thirsty Dead, a Philippine saga about a cult that likes to drink virgin blood....and they’re thirtsy!

There are Eight Sponsorship Slots Left in the Halloween Horrorfest this year.  Besides donating to Black Lives Matter, you can claim a slot by:

1) Becoming a Domicile of Dread Patreon at any level.  Patreons always get a free slot, as well as advance access to podcasts and other goodies!

2) Buying me a coffee at Ko-Fi.  Suggested donation is $3

4) Making a donation to the charity chosen by a sponsor on his/her/their day. Like with the third possibility, please forward me proof of donation.

As with last year, if I end up with more sponsors than there are days in October, I will go into Horrorfest Overtime, which means Halloween goes into November for me--and you!