O Uivo da Bruxa

Lord Edward Whitman(Vincent Price) is a wicked magistrate who why while not believing in Witchcraft, delights in accusing peasants of the crime. The punishments he dishes out are not always within the law though. Working On a tip off, his men kill many within a coven of witches, the witches leader Oona swears revenge and pleads with Satan to send her an Avenger who will smite him and his family. Such an avenger is the mild mannered stable hand Roderick(Patrick Mower), who was found as a child in the woods and brought up by the Whitmans, around his neck he wears a strange and ancient medallion of unknown origin.

Gordon Hessler has a mixed filmography in Horror, this on the face of it, is a production designed to take advantage of Michael Reeves's Witchfinder General, as wonderfully hammy Vincent Price and the beautiful Hilary Heath, both return, as does DP John Coquillon, who adds oodles of atmosphere and energy with his ever moving camera which captures the location work beautifully. Hessler learnt his trade with Hitchcock and to some extent it shows in this film, he knows when and where to provide the scares. The film itself was much rewritten and Hessler found himself getting further away from the theme of the title which had already been sold as a Banshee film before filming began, but he was reigned back in by the producers, the meddling doesn't quite ruin the film but it does have a lot going on plot-wise, as a result. The witches coven send a "Sidhe" an ancient derivative of the banshee in the form of Patrick Mower, (his make up none to convincing) to kill one by one, members of the Whitman family, not all of which are bad, some are very decent people, this effective ploy is also used with the witches, making it hard to take sides or see who the really bad guys are. Fans of period Brit Horror shouldn't be disappointed, there's copious nudity and plenty of buxom wenches that make for pleasant viewing, there's also an excellent sting in the tale.

Granted that the story line is fuzzy, the ending nasty, and Vincent Price as cheesy and over the top as ever. But the fact remains that the female leads in this confused mess are radiant. Hillary Dwyer in particular is the perfect English rose -- demure, yet oozing understated sex appeal as the headstrong, cheerfully promiscuous aristocrat who knows her own mind and doesn't mind getting her petticoats dirty in romping with the servants. The dismally depressing ending and the garbled, incoherent script make this movie difficult to watch all the way through, but Hillary Dwyer and Essy Pearson are both luminous and compelling enough to make it worth an occasional viewing.

The setting is 16th century England, where obsessions with superstition and sorcery rule the day. Lord Edward Whitman (Vincent Price) is a harsh magistrate punishing any and all people who come under scrutiny for being witches. After a mass killing, he earns the wrath of a witch named Oona (Elisabeth Bergner). You guessed it: she places a curse on him and his whole family, summoning a sadistic demon.

Cult director Gordon Hessler takes a so-so script by Christopher Wicking and Tim Kelly and gives it plenty of flavorful period atmosphere. The story may not be that strong, but all the bells and whistles of this A.I.P. production help to make up for that. One can hardly fail to notice that it's not entirely unsympathetic to the witches, and portrays "the establishment" as a crass and foul bunch of people. Whitman and his entourage will amuse themselves by manipulating and embarrassing their victims in their opulent castle. The pacing is mostly effective, and the "banshee" of the title is appreciably kept as mysterious as possible; it's never very well lit. It also builds up a decent body count, and dishes out some pretty gory violence.

Price delivers a solid performance, refraining from becoming overly theatrical for the most part. Essy Persson is very good playing the unfortunate, ill-fated wife. Hilary Heath, Carl Rigg, Stephan Chase, Marshall Jones, Andrew McCulloch, Michael Elphick, and Patrick Mower comprise an excellent supporting cast. Bergner is good, if also unmemorable, as the antagonist, and Hugh Griffith makes the most of his regrettably minor role, as a grave digger and corpse robber.

"Cry of the Banshee" is not a great horror film, but it is good fun. Trivia item: the opening title sequence was animated by Terry Gilliam.

Available in both an A.I.P. theatrical version and a director's cut.

Seven out of 10.

Vincent Price plays Lord Edward Whitman, a cruel, witch hunting English Lord in the Sixteenth Century. A curse is placed upon his family by the local sorceress. This is a role that suited him well, having already portrayed real life Matthew Hopkins. Again he hams it up, though not overly so. Michael Elphick,a well known face to viewers of British TV in the 1980's and 90's, plays his equally sadistic right hand man, and does a good job too. Though not as good Banshee does fit in well with similar movies such as Witchfinder General and Mark of the Devil. Some scenes are a little poorly staged, such as an almost laughable fight in the dungeon, and I believe that the VHS copy that I watched to be cut. Overall a good combination of horror, witches and their persecutors in old England. I shall seek out an uncut release

Those familiar with the concept of banshees would probably agree that "Cry Of The Banshee" is an interesting title for this film. I think the film-makers probably just decided it was just too good a title to pass up. Nonetheless, those looking for a horror tale containing bona fide Celtic mythology should probably look elsewhere. There is horror to be had here however, and the film still does more or less what it promises.

"Cry Of The Banshee" is set during the height of Middle Ages England, where rampant ignorance and superstition meant anyone could be condemned and burned for alleged witchcraft, and anyone you didn't like could be targeted. However, this being in the horror genre rather than an Arthur Miller play, the local inhabitants' fears are not entirely unjustified. Nonetheless, the greater threat is the Witchfinder General (played by Price) and his family, who abuse their authority and keep the entire local population in their grip. 'Witches' are regularly found, and dispatched in the name of God. The witchfinder gets more than he bargained for however when he annoys a real witch, who decides to take revenge.

Vincent Price is an actor you can rely on to take an average film up a notch, and he does so here. His presence, his voice, his face - he doesn't even have to try very hard. Not that the story is especially bad. It's fairly basic but entertaining enough. Even so, the pantomime acting and thinly-drawn characterisation made it hard to take everything seriously. A melodramatic situation shouldn't mean over-the-top theatricality, but that's what the script and the direction unfortunately settle for.

Fortunately, the horror elements of the film are not so misplaced. Suspense is built up, the 'banshee' of the title is wisely heard rather than seen until the climax, and the end itself is very satisfying. The mood is bleak, the lighting is low, and the score helps the action along without ever being out of place. Like many Hammer Horrors, there's a lot of nudity. just in case everything else isn't enough to draw you in.

Overall, "Cry Of The Banshee" is an enjoyable example of classic horror that fans of the genre should enjoy. It's not brilliant, but it has its moments, and one of the genre's star performers to breathe life into it.