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The special effects in this film are extremely effective and quite good for the time. In fact, the Ghost effects in particular are even good by today's standards. The later scenes of the Emilio Vargas Ghost are especially impressive and very effective. This movie goes to show that newer SFX techniques are not always better. One can only wish Hollywood would begin doing away with CG and embrace these masterful analog SFX methods.

The story is unique for a Haunted House film and the movie takes things to "The root of all evil" which is often overlooked in these movies.

The movie features the always entertaining Richard Crenna as Dr. C.J. Arnold, a likable shrink and professor, who seeks help from his many former students and patients to help him clean-up an old Victorian Mansion he purchases. From here on-out things get weird, unexplained, and downright sinister.

Lots of disproportionate reactions (typical campy under reactions to what would normally scare the hell out of anyone) to the paranormal events unfolding around the actors. While most of the acting is classic camp (overacting/underacting), Crenna manages to entertain and deliver a solid performance as is typical for him.

There are some genuinely scary moments in the film and also some funny ones.

Victor Buono turns in a devilish performance and is perfectly cast.

This movie is really quite good even amongst its peers and will entertain.

A daft, but entertainingly modest low-budget late 70s haunted house variation with horror comic lashings (intentional or not) in what becomes a traditional battle between good vs. evil. Nothing surprises, as no cliché is left untouched, but director Gus Trikonis' able execution is quite well done for what it is. Some creepy or outrageous moments and there's a solid cast led by the ever-reliable Richard Crenna, as he plays a psychologist along with his wife (a doctor) buy an abandon mansion (which does have something of a gloomy past) to hopefully restore to use as a clinic. So some friends and students of his go there to help fix it up, but unknowingly to them a devastating satanic force is unleashed and they find themselves trapped inside trying to survive.

The raw atmospheric make-up emit's a dominating presence, from the grand vast secluded mansion to the eerily placed music score, imaginative camera placement and cue in the cackling evil laughter of the evil entity. It constructs an ominously nightmarish strangle-hold, as it grows claustrophobic but at the same time the whirlwind becomes a random schlock-fest with its climax being the tip of it. It's not as unnerving as it could have been and the ending it feebly done. The story dynamics are old-hat (a stormy night) and it's slow to get going with some plodding opening dialogues, but soon that's made way for impulsively staged deaths / encounters --- consisting of spirit manifestations, possessions, fires, self-mutilation and bodies being thrown about. When these strange occurrences transpire, it's even mentioned for no one to go anywhere on their own, but do they listen… of course not. The dedicated cast also features lively performances by Andrew Prine, Joanna Pettet, Cassie Yates and a memorable sequence with Victor Buono.

I've been watching horror movies for 40 years or more but The Evil has somehow passed me by. That was until now, just watched it on an old VHS tape (this somehow found itself on the British Video Nasties list under Section 3, goodness knows why!). A bunch of people start renovating a large house with a creepy past. One of them, played by the very attractive Joanna Petter, starts to see ghostly apparitions, a warning about an evil force that lurks in the house. They carry on with their work regardless but spooky things start to happen, people start dying (some of these deaths are pretty inventive) and they find themselves trapped inside by an invisible force. All the while a storm rages outside. As haunted house movies go this was pretty good, it held my attention all the way through. The special effects are good and the film does maintain a level of fear. I did feel that the finale was a little weird, but having Victor Buono play the Devil does at least serve as something of a curiosity. One character turns out to be a practical joker, much to his victims' annoyance. We got to see many more of these, turning up in slasher films of the 1980s. Naturally it does look dated - the fashions, the hair, the cars, even the slapping of a woman's face to calm her down. But I enjoyed it and would certainly recommend it as a supernatural horror movie.

"The Evil" is a fun 70's horror movie. Low budget, cool location, some attractive and familiar cast members, the comforting presence of Richard Crenna, a fabulous troll-like Buono cameo...all add up to a demonic good time if you're in the mood for it. And check out those slacks on Andrew Prine--are those Angel's Flight pants you're wearing?? (Anybody remember those disco-era items?)

The familiarity of the premise (yet another haunted house, ominous sounds, good-vs-evil battles, etc) places a burden on this movie right from the start, a burden that the competent direction and the above-average acting cannot quite shake off. Ultimately, "The Evil" is just as undistinguished as its title, but it remains a respectable, sometimes even imaginative (the "quicksand" scene) time-spender. (**1/2)

Richard Crenna leads in this lackluster 70's horror effort.

It tells the story of a couple who buy a mansion much in need of restoration, they call in some friends to assist but find themselves trapped inside by a supernatural entity.

Alas very little happens, the story doesn't make a tremendous amount of sense and the whole thing is somewhat of a bore.

The IMDB rating for this is quite high so expected more, sadly it misfired on all cylinders and left me scratching my head.

No idea how this got its 18 rating either, it's stupidly tame stuff.

The Good:

Decent setting

The Bad:

Rather bland

Instantly forgettable

Odd ending

Things I Learnt From This Movie:

Satan is an old fat bearded guy with a cross allergy

'The Evil' (1978) is some gloriously spooky vintage horror-house hokum starring the delightfully sleek-limbed scion of celluloid schlock, Andrew Prine! 'The Evil' remains a fun, eerily effective, spectacularly shock-slathered haunted house humdinger! The immaculately stern, splendidly bearded, Richard Crenna and the amiable, Prine disturbingly find themselves at the veritable epicentre of a centuries old battle betwixt the righteous forces of good and the bellicose belligerence of an evil incarnate! Merest minims after entering this foreboding, creepily cavernous abode it becomes patently obvious that this malefic, triumphantly ill-tempered mansion means to do our lovable protagonists a seriously Satanic mischief!

This wickedly entertaining, rigorously told, demonized domicile barnstormer is thrillingly peppered with a shuddersome series of freaky-deakey 'no-more sleepy' set pieces. The full-blooded performances from these talented terror-tweaked Thespians, and Johnny 'Fragment of Fear' Harris's palpitatingly shudder-worthy score really boosts Trikonis's brimstone blasted B-Movie! Any fright fans seeking a supernaturally spooky jolt of old school Satanic panic from the golden age of jumbo cord trews, arbitrary nudity, garish Iron-on transfers and high-heeled sandals will dig heavily on 'The Evil'.

At first, I was expecting a shrieky classic haunted house spook show, but that wasn't it. Granted, THE EVIL suffers from a serious lack of diversity. The movie is wasted only by scenes of people sliding around and people getting killed by electric shocks. There isn't enough to qualify this as spine-tingling fun. It is also laughably dated in visual material! Try to watch that sick girl shake all over the floor in her undies for a change and you'll see why! The only exception would be Andrew Prine sinking in mud and attempting to commit suicide. You know a movie that has a conflicting situation between good and evil, and the end always turns out to be quite simple. Any low-budget horror movie can do A LOT better than this, but for the moment, give THE EVIL some extra credit for its dark and thunderous setting that lives up to my expectations. This one spoils the most hardcore horror fans for not being frightening enough.

The Evil (1978) is a movie that I recently watched on Shudder. The storyline follows a doctor who moves into an old mansion in the south to fix it up and open his new clinic. Unfortunately for him the spirits in the house may not want him there.

This movie is directed by Gus Trikonis (Moonshine Count Express) and stars Richard Crenna (Rambo: First Blood), Joanna Pettet (Casino Royale), Andrew Prine (Gettysburg), George O'Hanlon Jr. (Karate Kid II) and Cassie Yates (Magnum PI).

This is a bit of an uneven movie. I didn't feel there were enough kill scenes and the horror elements were lacking, but there were some scenes I enjoyed. The fire opening reminded me of The Burning. There is a good electrocution sequence, the hanging was fun and there's a unique rape scene. The ghost elements were dated. The acting was good and it was fun watching Richard Crenna in this. The storyline was okay.

Overall, this a slightly above average horror movie that I would recommend seeing once and score a 6/10.

Richard Crenna is a psychologist who buys an old abandoned mansion to open his new clinic in. A bunch of friends, colleagues and former students join him for the weekend to help clean up the place, but evil haunted house stuff happens. This is an extraordinarily dull, by-the- numbers evil house flick until it's ridiculous climax where Victor Buono appears as the Devil in a white suit.

I remember seeing this movie as a child, and how it scared me! Well one day I was lucky to find the VHS at a garage sale. Last night I finally put it on to a DVD, where it will never ever wear out.

I think Richard Crenna did a great job in this film. I think the film itself was a bit before its time with some of the special effects. The look cheesy compared to todays standards, but for a movie coming out of the 80's it is remarkable.

I am really surprised at how little information is out there about this movie, It is one of those small classics that got lost, and I am sure glad that I still have it!

Victor Buono as the Devil? Surely somebody must have been drunk when that casting decision was made. That's not the worst part of this silly mish-mash of sundry haunted house devices but it gets my vote for being the funniest part of it. While the film is by no means terrible it doesn't even approach other 1970's "haunted house" flicks like Amityville Horror, The Changeling and The Legend of Hell House. The Evil can be entertaining in spots, but don't expect to be scared. It's better approached as what it is: a silly horror film made all the sillier by it's over-serious approach.

The Evil is a brave but rather lacklustre attempt to make a haunted house film in the same style as "The Haunting". It's not too bad but there are a number of reasons why it doesn't really work. The story is very simple...a number of people rent a large old house for a prolonged stay, only to find once they have moved in that something sinister lives there, but they finds out too late and become locked in. Many terrible things happen before they few remaining survivors confront the evil entity itself and try to defeat it.

Let me start with the things that did impress me. First of all the cast are on the whole pretty good, with only a few weak links in there. Joanna Pettet makes a convincing heroine, and most of the supporting cast are pretty good too. And for a while the ghostly apparitions that confront the cast are quite effective, especially the white hazy figure of a man who appears fleetingly and indistinctly at the start of the proceedings. Some of the other effects are not bad either. People are flung about by unseen forces, which looks pretty convincing, and there is an effective scene of an assault on one woman who effectively portrays the situation without looking like she's doing it all herself. There's even a brief gore shot involving a circular saw which surprised me! Plus the film all seems to be shot on location, and even though it's evidently not a high budget production, the scenes all look good and are well filmed.

Now for the drawbacks...well I said the film is set inside what appears to be a genuine large empty house, but the place is one of the ugliest, drabbest mansions I have seen in a haunted house movie It looks far too modern to have any ghostly atmosphere, and the outside in particular completely lacks any stylish design, with some dismally plain stained glass windows and a ridiculously top heavy tower to round things off. However, it's certainly huge, and some of the interior rooms look like banqueting halls, although they are all completely devoid of any effective period features.. bar one amazing over-sized fireplace that the director wisely sets a few scenes in front of whenever he gets the chance.

Apart from that it's just a few below-par performances and lame death scenes that stop the tension from mounting as much as it could do, but things roll on in an agreeably entertaining fashion until, that is...the CLIMAX! Oh my god. The end of the film has caused much debate among film fans, but I'm afraid I fall squarely on the side of the detractors. The climax of the film is a huge mistake. You can read about it elsewhere (I won't spoil it here), but be warned that the force behind "The Evil" which we all knew was lurking in the cellar turns out to be something so un-frightening that you might lose all respect for the film at this point. Which is a shame as everyone involved in the film is obviously trying hard to make it work. Even the background music swells into completely over-the-top dramatics as each "highlight" appears on screen, but nothing can save things from the really bad closing 15 minutes.

Quite hard to get now, as there seems to be no DVD at time of writing and all VHS versions are out of print. As haunted house films go, it's around the middle mark. It could have been higher in the rankings if the climax had been re-thought, but it's too late now, so "The Evil" is stuck with it's reputation as a failure, and all because of the last 15 minutes, which is a real shame as for most of it's running time, the proceedings are all pretty well handled.

"The Evil" follows a doctor and his wife who move into a historic mansion where they prepare to open a rehabilitation center for drug addicts. Unfortunately for them, there is a portal to hell in the basement, and it's about to cause a whole lotta trouble.

This aptly-titled, New Mexico-filmed supernatural horror flick is a romp that is somewhat off the beaten path in terms of the genre; it is not a film that is much talked about, and not one I was even aware of until recently. The good? "The Evil" boasts a fantastic setting: The house in which it takes place is glorious, atmospheric, and has a "Scooby Doo" quality that is delightful. It's a menacing, beautiful house that gives the proceedings an ambiance. The film is also fairly heavy on gore, dispatching the group who become trapped inside the home in a number of ways. The special effects are top-notch for the era, and there is a fantastic poltergeist attack that is well-shot and choreographed.

The bad? "The Evil" is a bit predictable, and when it reaches its final act and the bodies start to pile up, it does begin to feel somewhat rote--not enough to weigh it down entirely, but there is a stiff by-the-numbers quality. The film's real cardinal sin as far as I'm concerned is that it goes to the length of visually representing the devil in a kitschy sequence in a white chamber, with Victor Buono portraying Lucifer himself. It's rather ridiculous, and strips the fear of the unknown that permeates up to that point; on the flip side, it does add to the silly "Scooby Doo" nature of the film. This somewhat ties in with a subplot regarding a Spanish colonel ancestor who haunts the house, but the connection here never feels fully-formed.

All in all, I found "The Evil" an amusing product of its time. In some ways, it feels like a hyper-gory made-for-TV movie, and it has a handful of inventive sequences paired with a fantastic, dark atmosphere accentuated by the sets. For genre fans who appreciate the supernatural horror films of yore, there is some legitimate (and at times outrageous) fun to be had here, despite its shortcomings. 6/10.

Nothing to see here. If you are even a mild horror film fan you will find this mostly laughable. All powerful haunted house. Based on what happens it seems the house could kill everyone in an instant. A 70s curiosity at best.

The Evil could easily be seen as a front runner to eighties classics such as The Evil Dead and Night of the Demons. I don't doubt the possibility that this film had some sort of influence on the aforementioned titles, probably some others too; but in it's own right, it's not all that special. The plot is something of a mixture between the popular demonic horror theme, and the even more popular haunted house theme as we follow a group of people trapped inside an old house that happens to have something to do with an old Indian burial ground. The film was obviously shot on a low budget, and it's nowhere near as grisly as its eighties counterparts - so The Evil is unlikely to give you any nightmares. The plot follows psychologist C.J. Arnold. He buys an old mansion at a low price and decides to ask some of his college pupils to help him fix things up. Everything's going fine until somebody is stupid enough to remove an old cross from a basement door - and then all hell breaks loose! It would seem that the devil wants everyone inside dead, and so begins a night of terror as the occupants try to escape.

'Evil' is a very general term, so any film dealing with it as an entity needs an original way of handling things. This film does it in a similar fashion to how The Evil Dead went on to do, as the evil is explored through certain characters going mad and others being chased by a disjointed camera angle. The film does feature a number of set pieces that show the effect of 'evil', and these vary in quality although in the main body of the film is really terrible. The film features things such as a man sawing through his own hand, a ghost taking possession of a woman and a man being dragged into the ground quicksand style after escaping from the house. The acting is all pretty terrible, and the copy I saw was of rather poor quality; so my overall impression of the film's production values isn't exactly good. The Evil isn't exactly a famous film, but one sequence that does have a fair amount of people talking about comes at the end. Victor Buono gets to appear as the Devil in one of the most of the oddest satanic scenes I think I've ever seen. Quite why the producers decided to film the Dark Lord in this way is anyone's guess - but I can't say too many bad things about it because it is at least memorable! Overall, I wouldn't exactly call this film a must see; but its decent enough and you could do a lot worse!

A very good horror-movie about some demons who have their home in an old mansion. The action starts when the new owners tries to move in. -------- This is a real horror-movie of the very rare kind. You seldom find many of this type. And it's scary as hell. The atmosphere manages to thrill over and over and the whole film moves towards a climax that I barely find in horror-films today. Highly recommended (((((9 out of 10))))