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The Devil's Rain

The Devil's Rain

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A Black Diamond
Review: Technical consultant & actor, Anton LaVey graces the film with his presence, & arcane knowledge of the occult, & the visage of his wife Diane at the time, dwells herein also. John Travolta, Eddie Albert, & Tom Skerritt also star, in this Satanic thriller about a cult of devil-worshippers haunting a ghost town.

Since the Dr. is the technical consultant, all magical text herein is from THE SATANIC BIBLE. Ernest Borgnine plays a most convincing Satan, with LaVey as, most appropriately, the High Priest.

William Shatner {yes, Capt. Kirk himself!} went where no man had gone before, plays the protagonist Mark Preston, whose bloodline is under the curse of Corbis {Ernest Borgnine}, because of his ancestors' betrayal of the group centuries before, & the subsequent loss of the Book of Souls, chronicling those who have sold their souls to Satan, which Corbis had been obsessively searching for ever since. The group was murdered by the pyre, much like the Knights Templar, but Corbis swore to rise again, his "shadow covering the land again, & again....."

Until the book is recovered, Corbis cannot manipulate & control the souls, or, free them to do his bidding, as they remain imprisoned in a beautifully ornate container, bearing the form of the Baphomet goat.

Then, Mark Preston's brother {Skerritt} teams up with a Parapsychologist {Eddie Albert} to retrieve his brother, & mother, from the clutches of the "evil" Corbis {"...Evil? There is no evil here. Only purity..."}

One of the more typically moronic actions done by the normals, was when Preston was talking with Corbis in one of the scenes, & reveals his insecurity & false heroism, as he proclaims that he'll "face whatever lies behind those doors" of that old church {wait until you see that altar!}, while parting open his jacket, & displaying a gun. Where's the "faith"? Well, that made no difference, as you will see, neither did his pathetic, snivling prayers, or his god of weakness.

The Devil's Rain has quite a line-up, & quite a plot. It is thuroughly entertaining, & many of the effects, make-up, & prosthetics were advanced for that time, & continue to be fascinating today. Notice the undertone of black noise in some of the scenes.

This rare film remains as one of the more Satanically-inspirational, & influencial pieces of underground art. It has been featured a few times on Elvira's "Movie Macabre" show, but she unfortunately lacked perception on this one.

It IS so unique, because it features actual Satanic rituals & ceremonies that have been unearthed by Dr. LaVey. Every Satanist worth their sulphur will want to have this in their collection.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Bring your umbrella!
Review: The Devil's Rain is another one of those neglected, yet enjoyable, seventies horror films. The cast is a camp lovers dream: William Shatner, Ernest Borgnine, Eddie Albert, Tom Skerritt, and, briefly, John Travolta. The film moves along at a break-neck pace as the battle between good and evil unfolds, never stopping for long exposition sequences. This is one of the reasons The Devil's Rain is so much fun, the viewer is immediately thrust into the action and the action never stops. The acting is over the top and it fits in perfectly with the crazy storyline. The make-up effects are decidedly creepy and proffesional in appearance, adding to the fun. The only negative has nothing to do with the film itself, but the DVD transfer. It is way too dark for a film shot mostly in darkness. This should not detract you from seeing this film and where else can you see Ernest Borgnine as Satan?

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Made during California's drought
Review: The Devil's Rain isn't a good film. So if you're a fan of the film and expect me to prattle on about how it's an undiscovered gem, you should read the next review. As a kid I didn't even find this film scary. I did find it absurd and a bad movie classic. It's a shame, really, as Robert Fuest directed a couple of really good horror films most notably the two horror satire Dr. Phibes films with Vincent Price. It's not all his fault, though, as he has a lot less to work with here.

Ernest Borgnine chews the scenery as the evil Corbis. He's been searching for his book (I suppose you could call it a book of blood) that has the names of his disciples written in their own blood. Being an evil guy, he does typical evil things. One of the evil things he doesn't do is write the ridiculous dialog he has to recite. When he possesses the book Corbis will be able to take the souls he has collected to Hell and please his master.

What's impressive is the cast that director Fuest was able to assemble. It must have been a very dry season for these Hollywood vets and newcomers. Tom Skerritt wouldn't be discovered by a wider audience until his breakthrough role in Alien. William Shatner was having a tough time of it (as he mentions himself in his autobiography). For a long time after Trek he wasn't able to find steady work. His performance is quite restrained and, actually, quite credible given some of the bombastic performances in other films. John Travolta had just begun to breakthrough on television and he was still a year away from his first major theatrical appearence in Brian DePalma's Carrie. The reason he's mentioned so prominently in the credits is that the film was finally released after his big break in that film and Saturday Night Fever. Ida Lupino and many of the other actors in this film had seen better roles and better days.

Ernest Borgnin clearly relishes his role as Corbin. Cast against type for a change, he plays a character with absolutely no redeeming value. What's refreshing about the film is the no holds barred performance he gives. Clearly he was happy to be working and could care less about the low budget stature of this film.

Fuest manages to create a couple of interesting set pieces in the film. The conclusion, though, is a complete mess (no pun intended). It's the Wicked Witch's worst nightmare come to life. The effects are passable for the mid-70's and the make up pretty decent (it's clear a large part of the budget went into the make up after looking at the sets). There's a general fatigue to the picture that undermines any chance of suspense. Couple that fact with a script that travels in tired cliches and you have an uninspiring mess of a movie. Director Fuest was a talented fellow but he didn't get much of a chance to make too many other theatrical films. It's really too bad as he proved with the Phibes films and Theater of Blood that, given the right material, he could create a memorable minor classic.

While the film isn't as incompetent as an Ed Wood epic (Fuest's professionalism and the actors involved prevented that from occurring), it's still quite a disaster and probably one film that isn't on most of these actor's filmographies.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Classic in its incredible badness (and not in a good way)
Review: This film received 4 stars because it is soooo bad, it's enjoyable! Anton Levey had his satanic hands in this one, advising on the script. Apparently, he knows about as much about film-scripting as anything. It really shows his stupidity and the gullibility of the audience to believe it presents anything realistic. Borgnine plays a campy role as leader of a satanic cult hanging out in a desolate ghost-town. Shattner is at his all time campy best, and Travolta is, well, just try to find Travolta in this, because his part is very 'small' (pun intended). As another reviewer, I saw this film at a very young age. I was frightened (pre-teens tend to be easy that way). Mainly, though, I was interested in the cheesy-on -a-second-look effect of people without eyes (achieved by bad make-up laid over obvious black scrims).
Essentially, Borgnine collects souls in a crystal, and searches for a 'McGuffin' (a pointless object to drive the plot) hidden with Shattner's family.
If you're looking for one of the following things; a great performance by Borgnine, Shattner, Travolta, or a classic and frightening horror film, look elsewhere. If you're looking for maximum Nacho Cheese at Camp Hokey, you will not be disappointed! A humorous film to delight the most jaded Ed Wood fan. Great, unintentional fun.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Excellent old Shatner Movie
Review: This is a classic old Shatner horror movie. It's excellent. Devil's Rain is about a family that's being followed by a Devil Worshipping cult down in Texas. It's got good makeup and effects and if you look closely, John Travolta plays one of the "eyeless" worshippers. This tape is a must have for classic horror movie fans. And the ending doesn't disappoint. It leaves you wishing for a sequel. END

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: When it Rains, it Pours
Review: This is a decent horror film that one should watch late at night when the atmosphere is spooky. I actually enjoyed the film because it is something of a hidden item from the 1970's overindulgence. It concerns a small town and a strange cult that appears to be worshippers of an ancient Nordic religion. It wasn't as bad as you'd think, give it a try.



Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Welcome Aboard
Review: This is an outstanding film. Ernist Borgnine does a pretty good job of playing Jonathan Corbis. I like this film because it has fun scenes, good acting, and most of all! I hear the voice of Anton LaVey speaking. I also like the part where Mark Preston gets captured by the satan worshipers as the outcome of the battle of the faiths. It's very unusual that Anton LaVey would serve as technicle adviser on this film. My brother and I watched it. I thought it was a great film. It still is after all these years. None of it is bad. I never got tired of this film. This movie is 100 percent good. A. plus.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Fine film
Review: This movie is a great one. I was surprised to see that Willam Shatner could act. This was John Trovolta's first movie all though he didn't have a big role. Ernest Borgnine gave a real good preformance in this low budget horror movie. Very good indeed.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Borgnine makes the movie...for what it's worth
Review: This movie is a so-so time killer...barely. Borgnine is the only actor who seemed to have a pulse. The rest seem listless and indifferent. For whatever reason this movie never seems to get going nor does it ever engender anything in the watcher other than a detached disinterest followed by annoyance and disapointment though not necessarily in that order. The ending wasn't sufficiently supported by anything that came before in the story so the ending seemed contrived, annoying and a "cheap shot" that was thrown in without much forethought. To sum it up "Dull" comes to mind. So does "waste of money."

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A CULT CLASSIC!
Review: THIS WAS AN HIGHLY ENTERTAINING MOVIE. IT HAD A CREEPY FEELING THROUGHOUT THE MOVIE. IT WAS, HOWEVER, QUITE SLOW! THE CREEPIEST THING ABOUT IT ALL IS THE FACT THAT THERE ARE DEVIL WORSHIPPERS THAT DO EXIST IN THE WORLD TODAY!
THIS MOVIE STARS ERNEST BORGNINE AND WILLIAM SHATNER AND IS ALMOST 90 MINS LONG.
IT WAS MADE IN 1975, HOWEVER IT WASN'T RELEASED UNTIL LATER.
THE ACTING IS FINE, AND THE STORY IS OKAY.
I MUST NOTE THAT THE LAST SEQUENCE OF THE FILM IS QUITE DISGUSTING AND THE EFFECTS ARE QUITE IMPRESSIVE FOR THE TIME!
THE PICTURE LEAVES A LOT TO BE DESIRED AND THE AUDIO TOO.
HOWEVER, IF HORROR MOVIES ARE YOUR THING AND YOU WANT TO SEE A MOVIE ABOUT SATANISM, THEN THIS IS THE MOVIE FOR YOU!
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED! THIS IS A CULT CLASSIC!
NOTE: THIS FILM WAS JOHN TRAVOLTA'S FIRST MOVIE, EVEN THOUGH YOU REALLY DON'T SEE HIM BECAUSE OF HIS SMALL ROLE!
SO, SIT BACK AND RELAX AS YOU WATCH THE DEVIL'S RAIN!


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