Le cercle infernal

I tuned in a bit late, perhaps 15 minutes or so, but I could tell right off that I'd hit upon something worth watching. I highly reccomend this to fans of "Don't Look Now", one of the most frightening movies I've ever seen. "Full Circle" has much the same feel, and some of the same subject matter.

Others here have criticised the film's slow pace: I, for one, especially appreciate the Director's willingness to take time to build suspense and terror. I believe that silence is an important part of a horror movie (perhaps almost every kind of movie) and it's obvious that the Director shares my appreciation for what's NOT said.

I won't risk spoiling this movie in any way: I merely suggest that, should you get a chance to screen "Full Circel", you savor the opportunity.

In London, while having breakfast with her parents Julia (Mia Farrow) and Magnus Lofting (Keir Dullea), the girl Kate (Sophie Ward) chokes with a fruit and dies. The grieving Julia has a breakdown and moves to an institution. When she is released, she leaves her husband and buys and moves to an apartment. However, she does not look for a psychiatrist as recommended by the doctor, and her friend Mark Berkeley (Tom Conti), who is an antique dealer, tries to help her. Julia has the feeling that Kate is watching her. Meanwhile, Magnus, who lives with her fortune, unsuccessfully wants that Julia returns to their house. When Julia meets Magnus' sister Lily Lofting (Jill Bennett), she asks her to not give her address to Magnus. Soon Lily asks Julia to have a séance at her home, and she allows. The medium, Mrs. Flood (Anna Wing), contacts a girl and is scary with the ghost. But Julia believes it is Kate and seeks out answers.

"Full Circle", a.k.a. "The Haunting of Julia", is an ambiguous ghost story developed in slow pace. The flawed plot has characters that vanish, like Lilly and Magnus (nobody misses and seeks him out?). The killing spree is ambiguous, and is not clear that the evil ghost of Olivia does exist or it is a vision of the disturbed Julia. Is Julia possessed by Olivia and commits the crime spree? Or is she disturbed and killing her acquaintances and herself? The performances are excellent, highlighting Mia Farrow, but the screenplay could be better. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "Demônio com Cara de Anjo" ("Devil with Angel Face")

Excellent adaption of Peter Straub's haunting (in SO many ways!) and gothic novel.

Mia Farrow is well cast, and supported by tight direction and an intelligent script.

Read the book first, however... Straub is king! (And not Stephen!)

Julia Lofting (Mia Farrow) is struggling after a tragedy. Her daughter chocked to death. Her desperate intervention failed to save her. Her wealthy husband Magnus is unhelpful. She leaves him and buys her own posh London house. Mark Berkeley (Tom Conti) is her friend. She fears harassment from Magnus, but the house is actually haunted.

Mia Farrow is just spooky in her pixie cut. It's nine years after Rosemary. She has the same haunted frailty. I would like more ghost action and earlier. The girl doesn't appear until the end. As it stands, it's more a personal internal character study than a horror movie. It's atmospheric, but it's never scary. It is odd that the film didn't get its American release until years later. It's very 70's.

The 70's was undoubtedly the heyday for horror cinema, with some well known masterpieces such as Alien, The Exorcist, Suspiria, etc. Still, there were quite a few of them that were just as good, but didn't get the recognition they deserved, and are still quite obscure today. "Full Circle", or as it is better known under it's US title "The Haunting of Julia", is one of these cases.

In many ways a hybrid of Nicolas Roeg's "Don't Look Now" and Mario Bava's "Kill Baby ... Kill", is a slow-burning, intelligent horror film that genuinely scares the Hell out of you. Director Richard Loncraine goes for a stylish yet subtle approach at a somewhat old-fashioned ghost story formula, without resorting to 'in your face' scares that were popular at the time. While it does open with a bang and ends with a bang (probably the films' most powerful and haunting sequences), Locraine goes instead for an interesting psychological analysis of a grieving mother's crisis over her daughter's death. Staring with small things that go grow more and more nasty as the story progresses, and the line between fantasy and reality becomes more and more blurry, The events that go on through the film may well be figment of her imagination, and the fact that, by the film's shocking climax, you still don't know for sure if it did happen at all, only adds to it's creepiness and strange atmosphere.

It's snail-like pace works both for and against it, as some might find it particularly fascinating and delightfully unnerving, while others might find it dull and uninteresting. In fact, it does move a little too slow for it's own sake, but Mia Farrow's gripping, strong performance and Locraime's visual flourishes help it from becoming uninteresting. Speaking of visuals, the film is beautifully photographed by Peter Hannan, but sadly it does show it's full aesthetic power in the bad VHS print it's available on. Nevertheless, one can still see it's impact on the film, particularly on making the wintry streets of London and the old-dark-house setting even more menacing.

The film also benefits from having a lovingly melancholic and often genuinely spooky score by Colin Towns, which blends perfectly with it's visual brilliance, as well as perfectly capturing the characters' emotions.

Overall, a sadly unrecognized classic which, in spite of it's few flaws, deserves much more praise. 9/10