La pluie du diable

The Devil's Rain! is a movie that could only have been made in 1975, uniting old Hollywood royalty, television stars, the visionary director of The Abominable Dr. Phibes and the Church of Satan in the Mexican desert.

It is not a perfect movie. You can't even say that it has plot holes, as that would require something of a coherent plot — a fact director Robert Fuest was all too aware of. On the sparkling commentary track which accompanies the new blu-ray release from Severin (picked up from the Dark Sky DVD release), he speaks about discussions with the writers (Gabe Essoe, James Ashton and Gerald Hopman, whose only credit is co-producing Evilspeak, so one assumes that he is Satan) where they assured him that the script made perfect sense. While Fuest claims that he did what he could to clear up his issues with the film, what emerged was a movie that effectively decimated his promising directorial career.

But you know what? I embrace plot holes the way some critics hold dearly onto their Criterion collection films and back issues of Premiere. There's no way I can be objective about The Devil's Rain! The only box it doesn't check for me is a disclaimer stating that it's based on a true story.

The film begins with close-ups of Bosch's painting The Garden of Earthly Delights, along with the wails of the damned as they gnash their teeth in Hell. Then, we're dropped into the lives of the Preston family, who have suffered under a curse for hundreds of years.

Turns out that at some point in the 18th century, the family screwed over Jonathan Corbis (Ernest Borgnine, Escape from New York), a Satanist who was eventually burned at the stake. He had a book containing the souls of all he had damned, which was stolen by Martin Fyfe (William Shatner, who I don't need to tell you anything else about). Before he dies, Corbis vows revenge on the Fyfe family, which changes its name to Preston. He's been stealing them one by one, selling their souls to Satan and trapping them in the devil's rain. They then become living wax figures with melting eyes and black robes.

That's how we meet Steve Preston, the leader of the family, who has escaped Corbis to warn his wife (Ida Lupino, an actress (and director) known for noir classics like The Bigamist and On Dangerous Ground. She often referred to herself as the poor man's Bette Davis, as she was often offered the parts that Davis had turned down. She refused those parts so many times that Warner Brothers suspended her, so she used that time to learn the craft of directing on set. As roles for her slowed, she became the second female director admitted to the Director's Guild, following Dorothy Arzner, the sole woman director of Hollywood's "Golden Age.") and son, Mark (also Shatner). As the old man tells them to give the book of souls back, he melts in the rain.

So what does Mark do? Well, he takes the book directly to Corbis, challenging him to a battle of faith in the desert. That battle quickly turns into Mark trying to escape, but Corbis' disciples are too much for him. He shows a cross to the priest, who transforms it into a snake before using a ritual to erase Mark's memory in preparation for a major ceremony.

Oh the 1970's — when your main character gets wiped out minutes into a movie because he has to leave town for a three day Star Trek convention in New York. That really happened and I have no idea if that was the reason why Shatner goes from hero to geek in such record time.

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Two good brothers,(first William Shatner and after Tom Skerritt) and the evil warlock Corvus(Ernest Borgnine) battle each other in order to take a diabolic book in possession by damned family Preston. Tom Preston(Tom Skerritt) helped by a doctor(Eddie Albert) front for satanic cult leader Corvus who need blood sacrifices and he's willing to fight for his life against the masked, robed and blinded cult members. Corvus in a desperate bid to take over the ancient book, orders his minions to kidnap the Tom Preston's wife(Prather). Only one man can prevent the hellmaster from succeeding, though may be too late.

The picture displays lots of creepy moments. Bizarre, tense, controversial and with eerie scenes about practices of devil worship and satanism ritual .Production values and set design are highlighted by the usual cool scenarios, as exterior in a wood village, as colorful interior. Make-up and visual effects provide some much needed jolts. Some of the effects are little dated now, but director Robert Fuest builds intrigue and tension through a stately pace. Top-notch casting, in this otherwise average production. Ernerst Borgnine as Corvus relishes his showy role. Borgnine's acting, assisted by a witchcraft expert, is one of his strongest in an unconventionally nasty role. Furthermore, extraordinary secondary casting, Keenan Wynn as the sheriff, Ida Lupino as Mrs Preston and John Travolta film debut. Film editing by Michael Khan, Spielberg's usual editor. Rare musical score and dark and luxurious cinematography by Alex Philips Jr.

The picture is professionally directed and gruesomely related by Robert Fuest. He's a nice horror movies filmmaker, such as proved in 'Abominable Dr Phibes(71) and Dr Phibes rises again'(72); 'Soon the darkness and Final programme' among them. Rating : Passable and acceptable. The tale will like to horror pictures enthusiastic and William Shatner fans.

The plot of The Devil's Rain is very simple. It concerns the Preston family and a book their ancestors stole decades ago from a devil worshiper named Jonathan Corbis (Ernest Borgnine). Corbis has spent centuries trying to locate the book and will stop at nothing to obtain it and use its power.

What Works:

• What a Cast! The Devil's Rain is the Airport (or at least The Love Boat) of horror movies. Just take a look at the cast - Ernest Borgnine, Tom Skerritt, Eddie Albert, Ida Lupino, William Shatner, Keenan Wynn, and, although very brief, John Travolta. I'm amazed that the producers could get all of these people to appear in what is essentially a low budget horror film.

• Borgnine the Goat. This is where a lot of people seem to have problems with The Devil's Rain. They seem to find the sight of Borgnine with goat horns too funny to take seriously. I look at it just the opposite. I've always found it a disturbing, well-done visage. The whole idea that someone could literally transform into a demon is frightening to me. And the make-up is very nicely done. I've seen a lot of big budget films that didn't have special effects half as convincing as what's found here.

• Melting Bodies. Another special effects moment that is a winner as far as I'm concerned. Sure, the bodies look like they are spewing forth melted orange and lime sherbet, but I still find it effective. I've seen any number of melting body scenes over the years, but the ones in The Devil's Rain are among my favorite.

What Doesn't Work:

• Did I Miss Something? The movie gives no introduction as to what is taking place at the beginning of the movie. The viewer is literally dropped into a scene with people and actions that are a mystery. It's almost like the first half of the movie is missing.

• Silly Story. If you try to think too hard about what's going on with the plot, it can make your head hurt. My suggestion is to just enjoy the cheese and forget about trying to make sense of it all. Don't over-analyze it, just go with the flow.

In the end, I realize that The Devil's Rain really isn't that good of a movie, but it's just so much cheesy fun that I can't help but rate it as high as I do. It's a movie that could have only been made in the 70s. It seems to me that anyone with a half-baked idea and enough money could see their vision on the big screen. Many of today's horror movies are so glossy and over-produced that all the fun has been sucked out of them. And, for me, much of the appeal of horror movies is having fun.

Say whatever you want about "The Devil's Rain", but it undeniable has one of the coolest and absolute creepiest opening credit sequences in the history of horror cinema! Whilst the camera extendedly shows freaky images of Hieronymus Bosch's grim paintings, agonizing screams of people that are seemingly trapped somewhere can be heard. They're screaming: "Let me out of here" and those same voices play an important part later in the film as well. The eerie images, mixed with the even eerier screams, result in a truly scary intro and it sets a very promising & atmospheric tone. Too bad the film continues after the credits and the quality level immediately sinks and keeps on sinking until the end credits roll over the screen. "The Devil's Rain" probably has the most incoherent and muddled script any director ever had to work with. Poor Robert Fuest! None of the characters are properly introduced; we're literally dropped in the middle of satanic events and it's up to each viewer's personal intelligence to figure out the connection between the different players, their backgrounds and whether or not they're good or evil. For a good half hour, we're presented to a series of grotesque and cheesy events that don't make the slightest bit of sense, but hey, at least they're entertaining. Ernest Borgnine is the leader of a devil-worshiping coven and he's desperately trying to recover a book that is in the hands of the Preston family since more than 300 years. Mark Preston (William Shatner) refuses to hand over the mysterious book and thus evil Borgnine takes possession of his eyes and soul. Meanwhile, Mark's younger brother Tom (Tom Skerritt) comes to the rescue and he tries to defeat the forces of Satan by stealing the Devil's Rain; a glass urn containing the restless souls of all the people who joined the cult during the past 300 years. An overlong flashback – taking us back to a genuine 17th Century witch burning - finally explains the motivations and fury of each and every character, but the plot only gets dumber and less menacing as it approaches the finale. The story soon plunges into ludicrous occult ceremonies where Borgnine transforms into a hideous goat (!) and particularly the infamous climax needs to be seen in order to be believed, as it's one gigantic slimy and gooey melting-orgy. The make-up effects are pretty damn amusing and over-the-top disgusting, especially when the eyeless faces start turning into sticky puddles of green hodgepodge. "The Devil's Rain" has an impressive cast and one can't help but wonder how all these stars ended up in a trash-masterwork like this. Their performances, however, range from uninterested (Eddie Albert) to downright hammy (Tom Skerritt) and Ernest Borgnine overacts like as if he's possessed by the devil for real. Apparently, Anton LaVey, the founder and high-priest of the actual Church of Satan, made some extra money as the 'technical adviser' of the film. What did he do? Give instructions on how to sacrifice virgins to Satan without spilling too much blood on your garment? Advise Borgnine how to comb over his hair in order to look more like a goat? Either way you look at it, "The Devil's Rain" is an incredibly strange and curious little film. Even in its decade of release, when horror was an experimental genre and boundaries kept on getting crossed, "The Devil's Rain" is somewhat of an outsider. I strongly suggest every open-minded horror fanatic to check it out, if only to experience suspense, laughter, disbelief and utter camp all in one film!

Two of the most acclaimed occult horror films of the 1970s—William Friedkin's notorious shocker The Exorcist and Richard Donner's biblical prophecy classic The Omen—succeeded in terrifying audiences by treating their supernatural subject matter with absolute realism. For his 1975 Satanic horror The Devil's Rain, Robert Fuest (director of the absurdly enjoyable Dr. Phibes movies) employed Anton LaVey, founder of the Church of Satan, as technical adviser, presumably to lend his film a similar sense of credibility and level of authenticity.

Despite this, however, Fuest still managed to turn out one hell of a cheesy film, one rife with trite occult stereotypes and embarrassingly creaky old-school horror trappings. Hooded eyeless acolytes, a raging thunder storm, an ancient tome written in blood, a centuries old curse, a deserted church in a ghost town decorated with Satanic symbology: it's all there, along with tinted flashbacks to 'ye olde days' and a demon with curly horns and a goat-like face.

For audiences still reeling from Linda Blair's rotating head, this approach proved less than thrilling, but for today's cult movie fans, for whom a high level of kitsch can only be considered a bonus, Fuest's seriously daft slice of diabolical horror should still prove a reasonably entertaining oddity. The Devil's Rain is by no means a good film, but it conjures up a strange hallucinatory atmosphere (largely due to the sheer incoherence of the script), offers some impressively gloopy special effects during the film's melt-tastic finalé, and delivers plenty of unintentional hilarity at the expense of its usually reliable cast (any film that features John Travolta in a blink-and-you'll-miss-it role as a blind devil worshipper, sees Ernest Borgnine sporting hilarious demonic makeup, and has William Shatner reciting the Lord's prayer in his trademark staccato style has surely got to be worth a look for curiosity's sake).