Description:
While visiting Toledo, Spain, American tourist Lisa Reiner (Elke Sommer) experiences a feeling of deja vu when she sees an ancient mural of the Devil carrying away the dead. Hearing a familiar melody, she wanders away from her companions into a series of encounters with men who inexplicably recognize her from a past life. Hopelessly lost as night falls, Lisa begs a ride from a passing Packard, which breaks down outside a mansion where a young man (Alessio Orano) lives with his blind mother (Alida Valli) and a charming butler (Telly Savalas), who just happens to resemble the Devil from the mural! After a night of murder, necrophi
While visiting Toledo, Spain, American tourist Lisa Reiner (Elke Sommer) experiences a feeling of deja vu when she sees an ancient mural of the Devil carrying away the dead. Hearing a familiar melody, she wanders away from her companions into a series of encounters with men who inexplicably recognize her from a past life. Hopelessly lost as night falls, Lisa begs a ride from a passing Packard, which breaks down outside a mansion where a young man (Alessio Orano) lives with his blind mother (Alida Valli) and a charming butler (Telly Savalas), who just happens to resemble the Devil from the mural! After a night of murder, necrophilia and horrific revelations, Lisa comes face-to-face with the secrets of her past identity and her connection to the bizarre rituals she has witnessed. This is the original Mario Bava film later reworked and reshot for American release as "The House of Exorcism."
Directed by giallo maven Mario Bava, House of Exorcism is a truly rare cinematic find: a completely insane film. Sure, there are plenty of movies that are a little quirky, and even more that start off reasonably and then go around the bend later on, but in House of Exorcism, at no time is anything even remotely comprehensible happening. (No, not even if you watch it a second time.) Elke Sommer stars as Lisa, a beautiful tourist who spies an ancient fresco of the devil and seconds later leaves her tour group to become hopelessly lost. Fresco look-alike Telly Savalas, tongue and lollipop firmly in cheek, shows up holding a life-size mannequin and we're off. What follows is a whirl of opulent sets, vaguely menacing Europeans, and plenty of blood. It's the kind of movie where mysterious and weighty significance is given to lines such as "I brought you some cake. It's your favorite... with chocolate sprinkles." Like all great art, House of Exorcism asks more questions than it answers: Aren't we all just mannequins? Is Telly's face supposed to be obscured by that candelabrum? If those ghosts are so powerful, why have they been seated in coach? All this and more awaits you in The House of Exorcism. --Ali Davis
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Manufacturer: Image Entertainment
Release date: 16 May 2000
Number of discs: 1
EAN: 9786305837244 UPC: 014381594027
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