The Night God Screamed

When Fanny Pierce (Jeanne Crain) witnesses members of a religious cult crucifying her 'false prophet' minister husband Willis (Alex Nicol), she finds herself paralysed with fear, unable to act until the killers have left. Her subsequent testimony in court sees the cult's leader, Billy Joe Harlan (Michael Sugich), and several of his followers sent to death row, but many of his flock remain free and they vow to take revenge.

After the trial, Fanny agrees to 'babysit' for Judge Coogan (Stewart Bradley), ensuring that his four teenage children remain at home for the weekend; however, not long after the judge and his wife have left the house, Fanny receives threatening phone calls and notes, and fears that the cultists have come a-calling.

With such a great set-up, The Night God Screamed had potential to be a really gritty slice of '70s exploitation, but for reasons that become clear in the final act, the film is fairly restrained in terms of nastiness. Director Lee Madden cranks up the tension throughout, but with the whole thing serving to set up a rather predictable twist (followed soon after by a second twist), it just isn't all that satisfying. I would have preferred it if the makers had done away with the 'clever' surprise and just concentrated on giving us a brutal siege film with lots of gnarly violence (like Assault on Precinct or Straw Dogs).

My rating: 6/10.

What is it with the 70's and religious Horror? What is it with the 70's and Charles Manson? Who the hell knows? All I know is, I'm glad I gave this movie a chance. I've been collecting obscure Horror for years, and I've never even heard of The Night God Screamed until just recently. It's never been on TV, at least not where I live, and there's certainly no DVD's to be had. I just got my hands on an old VHS. It's always extra satisfying to unearth something this rare. This is true quality Horror. Billy Joe Harlan has it pretty good, this guy has a cult of followers, plenty of dope, aspirations to be like Charles Manson, and an ego outweighed only by a God-complex. So, why all the hate? I mean, The uni-brow problem is easily solved, I'm certain they had tweezers in '71, so, it can't be that. Maybe it's the fact that there's a new preacher in town, and this lunatic thinks he's entitled to all the Church's offerings. Mr. Preacher won't give it up so easily. Charles... I mean Billy Joe then does what any insane uni-brow with a God complex would do. Yep, a crucifixion, right in front of the wife, nonetheless. Although unharmed, the now widowed Mrs. Pierce walks away slightly damaged, yet more than sane enough to help put Billy Joe and his accomplices away. Let's not forget the uni-brow has other followers who are more than willing to avenge their leader. Revenge is coming, and you'll probably think you see it coming a mile away, but chances are high you won't. Truly incredible Horror with a truly incredible twist. I can't praise this movie enough. The Night God Screamed is every bit as effective as others from the era, like Don't Look In The Basement, if you liked that one, you'll like this, and if you haven't even seen that one, forget about this one for now, because Don't Look In The Basement should be a bigger priority, trust me. If you're not impressed with all that modern, big-budget, PG-13 garbage that clogs up the theaters, then maybe an unknown, Horror gem which relies on nothing but suspense and atmosphere, is just what you need. Recommended to real Horror fans... and of course, any Charles Manson enthusiasts out there. 8/10

Jeanne Crain plays a woman suffering from PTSD after seeing her preacher husband brutally murdered by a Manson-like cult. She ends up babysitting for the children of the judge who convicted the Manson-like cult leader and strange things start happening. Could this man and his followers have returned to settle the score?

The Night God Screamed has been unfairly hidden and buried since the VHS days. It's not exactly a lost masterpiece of terror, but there's a lot of great suspense on display and a really downbeat and spooky ending that I didn't expect. This seems to be Jeanne Crain's attempt at a "hagspoitation" film and she does well with her role.

If you're expecting buckets of blood, this movie might not be your cup of tea. It's still incredibly brutal and intense at times for a PG movie.

There are certain films that are really well written and very scary, but they are totally unlucky. I recall "Let's scare Jessica to death", which is a very very creepy movie, and you just hope this tension would end, at mean time you hope it would never end. Nobody talks about "Let's scare Jessica to death", and you can't find a DVD or data about it, or even watch it on TV. The same is applicable to "The night God scream", which is a very well written movie, that captures the real essence of horror. There are no zombies or special effects. No bowels or beheading and certainly no rotten corpses, but it's a hell of a movie that makes your blood freeze. You breathe with difficulty and you sit at the edge of the chair. Nobody really understands what the real horror is.. What you see in "Saw", "Van helsing" and "Scream" is just gore. I am not amazed that there was only one comment about such a great movie, because it was born unlucky like "Let's scare Jessica...". If you are not into gore and rotten corpses, and you think that apprehension is the real essence of horror, then do yourself a favor and go find this movie.

Great early 1970's "shocker"...if you are a fan of "Don't Look in the Basement", "Last House on the Left", or various late-night cheapie thrillers. The double shock ending on this one, is surprising and chilling! I'm surprised this movie is not well known by Psychotronic movie fans. The plot is original enough, the cast is a mixture of battle-worn old people and "blah" newcomers. The family / "teens" that Jeanne Craine goes to babysit for...are too old, and all the same age! This movie moves quite well (no boring parts) I think the producer was responsible for the equally obscure and weird 1973 movie "The Baby" (which also has a shock ending). Not on DVD, I had to buy the VHS on E-Bay. Look for this! "The Night God Screamed" must have played at drive ins at one point.