El testamento del diablo

This can't seem to decide if it wants to be a kitch 70s Hammer Horror-em-up, or a glossy romantic US TV movie. Slick moustache man heart throb Sam Elliot clearly thinks he's in the latter, while Roger Daltrey bounds onto the screen like he's auditioning for a part in 'Eastenders: The Pantomime'. To say The Legacy is uneven is putting it mildly, no two characters appear to realise they're in the same film. Shove them all in a grand old mansion in the English countryside, add a touch of supernatural hokum, some surprisingly inventive death scenes, a whole lot of messing around doing nothing, the most pointless random car drive scene in movie history, a cat which has more screen time than half the cast yet has no reason to be involved in the film, and enjoy - but not that much because it drags after an hour or so.

I finally saw THE LEGACY on DVD, after looking for it for ages. Though I'm a fan of horror and know most of every horror film made out there, for some reason, this one always eluded me. Well, the final result is a mixed bag. The horror elements are not really creepy or memorable. In fact, some of the killings are quite silly (for instance, the guy who is burned alive...). There's almost no creepy feel to it, due mainly to the super slick look of the film, which, by today standards, looks more like a high budget TV movie than anything else. Because there's so little violence or gore, and because there's almost no nudity or sex (except for Sam Elliot's famous nude scene), I wonder why THE LEGACY was even rated R. Without Elliot's nude scene, this would be rated PG-13 today. So, even though I was expecting a horror film, I was unimpressed by the final result.

With that said, I have to say that the story is actually great and is ripe for a proper all out Gothic remake. This story is filled with so much potential for amazing horror moments and elements that the lackluster finish product makes it look even worse than it actually because it is so uninspired. The film can be summarized in a few words: yuppies taking over (a very 1970s concept if there ever was one).

Finally, the music for THE LEGACY is point blank awful. It is, by far, the worst soundtrack I've ever heard for a horror film/thriller. No Goblin soundtrack here or expansive Jerry Goldsmith score. Instead, we have the crappiest "music" that doesn't even try to create tension or any mood aside from treacly upbeatness. It's shows how important an effective soundtrack is in creating that unique feel for horror story. And it's yet another reason why this story should be remade, so the cool story can reach its full potential for mind-blowing horror.

Based,as users have pointed out ,on the "and then there were none "aka "ten little Indians" aka "Ten little n...." model which had already begun to be thread-bare at the time (although "mindhunters" recently used it relatively smartly), "the legacy" was mainly a Katherine Ross vehicle ,whose hair is really beautiful.The rest of the cast is faceless,although they hired Roger Daltrey to attract the rock audience:he has five or six lines to say.

"They have all done something wrong in their life and they have not been punished" discovers the heroine,in the grand Christie tradition.this is not only a thriller,it's also a horror flick with some gory scenes .The mixture is stodgy .The ending does not make any sense .

"Nothing works in this f.... country!" yells the hero after a hot shower and a drive in the English country.

This movie doesn't seem to compare to the horror movies of today but I remember really liking this film when it came out. It may have been considered much better back when the film was released. I had read the book first when it came out before seeing the film and thought it was fantastic. I found it to be a great story and played very well in my mind. Though most seem to have a complaint about the special effects/ cheesiness of the film. I think they fair well in the time frame that the movie was made, plus to this day the swimming pool scene still gives me a chill. If the special effects don't work for you try reading the book and see if your imagination doesn't bring this story to life for you. I gave it an 7 because I felt it was a good solid movie and that is what I would have rated it back in 1978.

An excellent little movie, though it might be wasted on anyone likely to get disappointed by 1970s special effects or confused by the intrusion of a plot. It's a well-made supernatural re-working of Agatha Christie's "And then there were None" (Originally "Ten Little Nigger Boys") and starts when the descendents of a 17th century witch gather at an English country house in the hope of receiving part of the family legacy. Instead, they get a dose of poetic justice delivered from beyond the grave. Don't expect to be scared out of your skin, just entertained for a while.