(aka Horror Hotel)
Director: John Llewellyn Moxey
Starring: Patricia Jessel, Dennis Lotis, Christopher Lee, Tom Naylor, Betta St. John, Venetia Stevenson, Valentine Dyall, Ann Beach, Norman Macowan, Jimmy Dyrenforth, Fred Johnson, Maxine Holden
It’s 1692. A mob approaches the Raven’s Inn of Whitewood, Massachusetts. Through the fog filled streets they arrive at the Inn and pull Elizabeth Selwyn (Patricia Jessel), an accused witch, from inside. The mob quickly condemns her, tying her to a stake outside the Inn and setting her alight. Lucifer grants Elizabeth a reprieve of sorts, while the witch and an accomplice in the crowd promises to serve Lucifer a rain begins to fall. The rain dampens the flames, giving her enough time to issue her curse on the crowd before being engulfed by the flames.
Burn the witch!
Hot on the heels of Mario Bava’s Black Sunday (aka Mask of Satan, 1960), the opening scene in City of the Dead is very reminiscent of that of Black Sunday. In Bava’s classic Barbara Steele places her curse on the crowd before the Mask of Satan is hammered to her face. The mask from Black Sunday is replaced with the more conventional burning at the stake in City of the Dead. While there are many similarities between the two films, including the opening scene, and the dual/reincarnated role of the witches in each film, there are also many differences too. City of the Dead seems to concentrate far more on the witchcraft element which was established in the first few frames, where as Black Sunday concentrates on the resurrection of the vengeful witch after centuries of being dormant.
City of the Dead was produced by Vulcan Productions, which was soon to be known as Amicus Productions. The two producers involved in City of the Dead, Milton Subotsky and Max Rosenberg, formed Amicus in the early 60s soon after City of the Dead was released. Amicus went on to produce classic horror titles like, Dr. Terror’s House of Horrors, The House That Dripped Blood, Asylum and Tales From The Crypt. They were in direct competition with Hammer films during the 60′s and early 70′s, although Amicus’s output was largely based in (then) current times. Something which Amicus were able to do very effectively to a lot of success. Hammer’s output was largely period horror, and they often had real difficulty translating their gothic brand of horror to a more modern time.
The power of Christopher Lee compels you
Part of Amicus’s success, and a reason for its continued cult following is not only because of the quality of the films, but also because the studio produced films with recognizable faces. The use of Hammer favorites Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee worked very much in their favor. Amicus’s association with Christopher Lee obviously began early on, as he also happens to have a starring role in City of the Dead.
When the film returns to modern times, Professor Alan Driscoll (Christopher Lee) is giving a lecture on Witchcraft in the 17th century. He recommends a student, Nan Barlow (Venetia Stevenson) travel to Witchwood, MA to do some first hand research for her senior paper. When Nan’s brother shows up, Dick (Dennis Lotis), quickly gets in an argument with the professor over the plausibility and reality of witchcraft. Dick believes in things he can see and touch, not fairy tales, where as the professor lectures to him that the “basis of fairy tales is reality, and the basis of reality is fairy tales”. It’s not long before we realize that battle lines are being drawn as there is a little more to the professor than meets the eye. This is Christopher Lee after all.
Whitewood doesn't have White Witches!
We are quickly alerted to the fact that Whitewood isn’t the nice place to visit as Nan travels there to do her research into the occult. Nan is warned away from Whitewood by a gas station attendant (Jimmy Dyrenforth), who warns her that God fearing folk don’t travel to the place.
On her journey, she meets a strange figure who bares an uncanny resemblance to Elizabeth Selwyn’s partner in crime. She gives him a rid into town, but he mysteriously disappears from her car when she arrives. The town appears deserted, but guests are arriving from out of town, walking the town with no direction and staring vacantly at the newcomer. Not the small town welcoming one would expect. There is a constant fog that engulfs Whitewood. It is actually hard to tell if there is ever a daylight hour, the black and white nature of the film and the constant fog add to the brooding and oppressive atmosphere of Whitewood and the film in general. One of the films real strengths.
After Nan arrives at Whitewood, she boards at the Raven’s Inn, which is run by one Mrs. Newless. She informs Nan that all the rooms are full, but when Nan mentions her professors name Mrs. Newless remembers she does have one room left after all. She explains to Mrs. Newless what she is doing in town and it is suggested she visit the church.
The welcoming Whitewood
At the church Reverend Russell (Norman Macowan) is as unwelcoming as the other folks in town. The Reverend is obviously scared and guarded. No one worships at the church any longer, and he claims the devil is watching over the town, evil having overcome good. He advises her to leave the town “before it is too late”.
The door is closed on her face, and she is left to the strange figures in town. She finds refuge in a small Antique store, where she finally meets a friendly face. Patricia Russel (Betta St John) is in town the organize the antique store after her grandmother, who originally ran the store, died. Turns out her father is the Reverend. She loans Nan a book on witchcraft, and Nan returns to the Inn to do some work. At the Inn Nan hears chanting and goes to investigate… at this midpoint, we are graced with the somewhat surprising demise of the central character that comes at us like yet another film from the same year, Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho.
The rest of the film centers on Nan’s home, and the people that remain there. Nan hasn’t been heard from for a couple weeks and the people back home become worried and begin their hunt for her, ultimately uncovering the evil in Whitewood.
The coven gathers
While the dead might not be holding their secrets from us in City of the Dead, the film works very well from the 60′s framework. We might not be so forgiving of a film made today that is as predictably plotted, but the steady pace and the atmosphere generated from the unusual town helps maintain our level of interest. The shift in focus of the film half way through was perhaps the most surprising part, and something that made this viewer sit up and take notice a little more. There doesn’t seem to be a thought to killing characters on the side of good, unlike many films of the period, so both sides of the aisle take knocks by the time the film has reached it’s conclusion.
Today, any film that apparently basis itself or shares so many similarities from another, would be a poorly produced and obviously rushed affair. City of the Dead on the other hand manages to do something quite different from it’s contemporaries – Black Sunday and Psycho – and in doing so creates a slightly unique experience. Unfortunately, City of the Dead, is not quite as highly regarded as either film, in fact it is widely overlooked, which is a shame as it’s a worth film.
The UK Redemption release of City of the Dead reviewed here is basically the same as the US version released by VCI in 2001. There are 2 minutes of restored footage that was removed from the US version of the film, known as Horror Hotel; a lengthy interview with Christopher Lee, as well as interviews with Venetia Stevenson and John Moxley; photo galleries and more. The film is presented at 1.66:1, with Dolby 2.o Mono audio track.
