City of the Dead (1960) - Archive

|Good "black mass" chiller with naive Stevenson, interested in bringing more depth to her term paper on witchcraft, is given directions by "Professor of the Black Arts" Lee to Whitewood..an old village where a witch was burnt at the stake centuries prior. Unknowingly, Stevenson is the chosen victim of a ceremony held by the townsfolk{who are actually the undead living because of their cultic practices}on "Candlemas Eve". Storeowner St. John is the next possible victim in keeping their eternal stay. It's up to Stevenson's brother Lotis and boyfriend Naylor to stop the evil Jessel who is the proprietor of "The Raven's Nest", a hotel residing right above where the witch Elizabeth Selwyn was burnt to the stake. Plays like a full length Twilight Zone feature and works surprisingly well. The threat of the witch and the city of the dead and how it is photographed brings presence and spooks to the proceedings. Despite it's obvious low budget, this film uses fog, light, and shadow thanks in large part to the black and white photography. The atmosphere of the ghost town and how the characters within are framed creates a foreboding once anyone alive walks among them. It has the look of a teleplay, hence the comparisons to The Twilight Zone, but I couldn't be complimenting it more for making such relations between this creepy film and that great show. The essential elements of exploring witchcraft, and those who adhere to it, is perhaps what makes the film a really great find for horror buffs looking for certain gems out there that rarely get discussed. A great ending in a graveyard as the final battle between good and evil takes place only heightens an already blast of a movie.|

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°June 23|2006°