Last Updated on July 28, 2021
By ERIC RED
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THE
DEVIL RIDES OUT
(1968)
Director:
Terence Fisher.
Writers: Richard Matheson. From the novel by Dennis Weatley.
Cast: Christopher Lee, Charles Gray.
Satanism is surprisingly underused in horror films,
because when handled believably, the devil-worshipping theme provides powerful
subject matter for films like “ROSEMARY’S BABY” and “THE DEVIL RIDES OUT,” a
well-done Hammer Film from the 60’s and one of the best pictures to come out of
the studio. Perhaps it’s the lack of movies about Satanism that makes films
like this one seem so fresh.
In 1920’s England, wealthy and heroic aristocrat occult
scholar Duc de Richleau battles to rescue his
nephew Simon from the clutches of an upper class Satanic cult and its dangerous
warlock leader, Mocata. Duc de Richleau,
commandingly portrayed with dapper elegance and steely force by Christopher Lee,
is evenly matched by the imperious cool of gentleman black magic priest Charles
Gray.
A cat and mouse chase ensues through the drawing rooms,
estates and countryside of upper class England, ending in a memorable
supernatural showdown between white magic and black magic. Really fast-paced,
straightforward and exciting, this superior flick features good characters, a
tight story, elegant period atmosphere, and a terrific climax.
The film creates a tremendous sense of the power of Satanic
evil, not in anything seen, it is just felt. You can feel the unseen
evil influence in your gut. Best of all, it has Christopher Lee in one of his
rare hero roles as Duc de Richleau and he brings all the powerful authority and
intensity of his Dracula character to a good guy this time.
The film’s high point is the cool climactic sequence where
Lee draws a large circle with chalk on the floor of an empty room in a mansion
and takes cover with the others inside the candlelit circle from the impending
final siege of Satanic power. They are safe as long as they remain in the
circle, because evil can’t enter, but the diabolical forces invoke a gallery of
horrors trying to scare them out.
If the good guys leave the circle and run for
it, they’re doomed. We wait with baited breath along with the protagonists for
what will appear next and the moments of just waiting are scariest of all. It’s
a classic horror movie set piece, clean as a showdown as a western and I won’t
spoil it by telling you what happens.
As Duc
de Richleau and his
American war buddy Rex try to rescue Simon before he is inducted into the coven,
it leads to a beautiful female initiate named Tanith who may hold a key to
Mocata. When our heroes rescue the nephew and the woman from a secret
diabolical ceremony and hide them in the estate of two friends, Mocata comes for
them and all hell literally breaks loose.
In the process, we get a car chase with ‘30’s Rolls and
Bentleys where the Satanic forces blow out windshields and knock cars off the
road, forest Satan worshipping ceremonies and a cameo appearance by the devil
himself.
One of the film’s best scenes shows the gentlemanly warlock
Mocata simply walking into the mansion and sitting down with the woman of the
house, using mind control to uncover the location of Simon and Tanith. It’s a
creepy scene that establishes the nature of Satanic power as the ability to
exert malevolent willpower over weaker minds.
Different from the standard horror fare for sure, “THE
DEVIL RIDES OUT” is fun film to discover for its unique arena and thrilling
pace. The literate script is rich in detail of black magic ritual and the solid
direction is serious and convincing. I love the smart dynamic of “THE DEVIL
RIDES OUT” where the dueling Dark Arts combatants Duc
de Richleau and Mocata go mano a mano with cunning and incantations, not
guns or fisticuffs.
Hell, they never muss up their fine British tailoring! You
have to go back to “THE BLACK CAT” with Karloff and Lugosi to find another film
that utilized this arena. Imagine if Harry Potter grew up and we picked up his
story when he was he middle aged and protecting the Muggles from Voldemort using
charms and spells you basically get the idea.
The movie has plenty of flaws, due to the restrictions of
graphic content and dated execution. The drama is occasionally corny and
melodramatic. The film peaks with the circle sequence, and goes on a few scenes
too long with a convoluted and confusing resolution. The effects are cheap and
cheeseball by today’s standards. Most absurd is a forest orgy where none of the
participants take their clothes off!
But the film holds up quite well. It’s been great fun for
me in this column over the last year to draw attention to some classic films of
the genre newer fans may not have seen. “THE DEVIL RIDES OUT” isn’t in the same
league as those films, but it’s fine velly British entertainment and a
textbook example the virtues of solid film craftsmanship.
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