City of the Dead (Horror Hotel)

The City of the Dead (Horror Hotel)

1960

Director- John Llewellyn Moxey

Cast- Christopher Lee, Venetia Stevenson, Dennis Lotis, Betta St. John, Patricia Jessel

           

The movie begins in the colonial New England town of Whitewood with the burning of a witch, Elizabeth Selwyn. She curses the village, vowing that she would serve Lucifer for all eternity. Fast forward to the modern era and college professor Alan Driscoll (played by Christopher Lee) teaching his students about witchcraft.

            On his recommendation, one of his students, beautiful blonde Nan Barlow, travels to modern day Whitewood for research on witchcraft. What she finds is a creepy town filled with ominous warnings and suspicious characters. She finds out too late that the town is peopled with Satanists, and they’ve lured her in for a sacrifice. The coven is led by the previously burned witch, Elizabeth Selwyn, now apparently immortal due to these regular sacrifices.

            Eventually, others begin to investigate her disappearance and they are likewise lured into the trap. The story culminates with a conflict with the coven in a creepy graveyard.

            The movie is black and white which contributes to the creepiness. Christopher Lee is not the main villain, but rather a supporting character. Nonetheless, he turns in a charismatic performance that adds to the movie.  The film may seem reminiscent of psycho. What seems like the main plot of the film, the young girl being lured into a trap, is just a set up for the rest of the film. The similarity is pure coincidence as the two movies were made at roughly the same time. The only detraction is the jazz score which seems too upbeat for such a dark film.

            Most impressive is the film’s matter of fact portrayal of the forces of darkness, given when it was made. There is little euphemism or shying away from the satanic themes. There are also some interesting images, such as a Satanist bursting into flames as he is confronted by a man bearing a cross, while impaled with a sword! Metal fans may recognize a snippet of Lee’s dialogue “Superstition, fear, and jealousy” which is sampled at the beginning of Rob Zombie’s Dragula.