[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Night of the Demon (1957)

Night of the Demon is based on the classic chilling tale Casting the Runes by acclaimed British author M.R.James, a master of supernatural horror fiction. The film tells the story of an American psychic investigator played by Dana Andrews who travels to England to find out why his colleague was found dead, amidst claims of the supernatural and ancient cults. Helped by his dead friend's daughter (Peggy Cummins), the pair find themselves in great danger from forces beyond their imagination.

Director Jacques Tourneur was once a protege of legendary horror producer Val Lewton. Together they made the films Cat People, I Walked with a Zombie and The Leopard Man. Night of the Demon both looks and feels like a Lewton production in that its a contemporary thriller using Gothic motifs to chill us. Its well documented that Tourneur never intended to show the demon in all its glory, but was pressured into doing so by Columbia Pictures, much to his displeasure. However the two sequences featuring the creature are the films highlights and have become iconic moments of British horror cinema. The demon itself looks terrific and the way it appears, out of the sky in a swirl of sparks and smoke is ingenious.

The film is a brilliant piece of cinema. I haven't gone into much story detail as its best to allow the story to unfold around you, much like it does to Andrews and Cummins characters. The acting is excellent, especially Niall MacGinnis as the sinister Karswell, and the stark black and white photography a revelation, the film wouldn't be half as creepy if it were in colour. In particular the scenes of the demon stalking its prey in the woods, swirling mists everywhere with claustrophobia setting in.

I watched the American cinema version with the slightly different title of Curse of the Demon. Although it runs approx 14 minutes shorter than the original UK version i didn't really notice an awful lot missing.