Il rifugio del corvo

There was some good stuff made for television during the seventies, and while Crowhaven Farm doesn't stand tall as one of the best horror films ever made, it's a very decent one that is certainly worth seeing. The plot doesn't really offer anything new, and simply follows the idea of a coven of witches, centred around the sinister Crowhaven Farm. The plot focuses on Ben and Maggie Porter, a couple that inherit the farm after the death of her father. Their marriage is tainted by the fact that Maggie cannot bear children, and the couple move to the farm in the hope that the change of scenery will help to pick up their relationship. Under the direction of experienced TV director Walter Grauman, a good cast gives way to a thoroughly interesting tale of witchcraft. Grauman does well with the atmosphere, and while most of the film is build up for the ending; things such as the haunting music score and numerous plot revelations ensure that the film never dries up. Of course, all this build up needs a good climax, and the film gets just that with an ending that definitely justifies getting there. Overall, this is obviously a little thin and it won't be winning any 'greatest horror film ever' awards...but it's good stuff and comes recommended.

1970's "Crowhaven Farm" was among the earliest TV movies that left its mark on impressionable viewers of those many decades ago. The prolific Aaron Spelling never lost his knack for producing entertaining television, and with the small screen unable to serve up much in the way of blood or violence, subtlety was the way they had to go. A tale of witchcraft in Massachusetts seems like old hat today, but in the wake of Roman Polanski's "Rosemary's Baby" it wasn't as overexposed as it is 50 years later. Hope Lange was clearly cast against type as Maggie Carey Porter, whose presence at rural Crowhaven Farm incites memories long suppressed from a past life, sparking great success for her artist husband Ben (Paul Burke) but dire consequences for herself. The two stars are easily overshadowed by the supporting cast, in particular 12 year old Cindy Eilbacher, alternately angelic yet strangely knowing, even alluring little girl taking more than a liking to the oblivious Ben. Cindy's career was just as busy as elder sister Lisa, both of whom appeared in another TV movie of great creepy repute, 1974's "Bad Ronald." Also on hand, all too briefly unfortunately, is veteran scene stealer John Carradine, in typical form playing handyman Nate Cheever, like the girl a not so innocent presence going about his daily duties with some fiendish purpose in mind (Aaron Spelling had first used the actor on his 1959 Western series JOHNNY RINGO). It may be more effective for those nostalgically inclined, but still holds up as one of the better examples of TV terror from its first and greatest decade.

I agree with everyone below who remembers this movie from their childhood as being very scary. There are a couple of vivid images - and story lines - that have stayed with me these 30-odd years. I've sometimes wondered if this is where Sting got the idea for the darker connotations of the song title "I'll Be Watching You"! Whew. The whole Salem thing; the whole story line in Salem; and the whole story line in the present, and how they inter-link. The resolution still chills me, even as I write this. Hope Lange of course is great in it; her husband and the girl on the road. Chilling performances. DOES ANYONE HAVE THIS ON TAPE / KNOW HOW TO GET IT ON TAPE?

While Crowhaven Farm was not the BEST made-for-TV chiller of its era, it does rank up there with the dozen or so that tend to stand out in the minds of baby boomers raised during TV's golden age. Forget the special effects that seem so essential to the success of today's horror movies; this one forces you to rely strictly on your imagination (remember that thing in your head???) to understand its premise. This movie was made in 1970, during the final season of "The Ghost and Mrs. Muir", and, like several typecast actresses of the period, Hope Lange attempted to "break away" from her sitcom character much like Elizabeth Montgomery did in "The Victim" (remember THAT one???) and did it quite effectively. Crowhaven Farm is simply chilling, with the grainy film grade and squealing violins in the soundtrack adding to the unsettling feel of the film. This genre of film will probably never see a comeback, due to the all the computer-technology wars in horror films made today, but at least we'll always have them to look back on. EIGHT STARS.

I saw this movie when I was about 9 or 10 years old. I honestly don't remember much about it except that it scared me so badly that I had nightmares about it for years!!! I would love to see it again. I wonder if it is really as frightening as I remember.