Eyes of Fire

 Eyes of Fire

1983

Director- Avery Crounse

Cast- Dennis Lipscomb, Karlene Crockett, Guy Boyd, Rebecca Stanley, Sally Klein, Kerry Sherman

            In colonial America, a family has to flee persecution into Shawnee indian territory. While the father was away, the mother was having an affair with a less than holy preacher, Will Smyth. Will also has with him a companion, Leah, who seems insane but also seems to have some special gifts. When the father, Marion, returns, he gets news of his wife’s infidelity and tracks them down. Surrounded by Shawnee, Marion leads them into a valley that the Shawnee seem to be scared of.

            Though they thought the valley was uninhabited they find evidenced of that they are not alone. The devil lives in the valley and is served by a group of wildlings that seem to be able to vanish at will. They capture people’s spirits in trees and generally harass the refugee colonists. The group welcomes into their midst a little girl that seems to have been left for them as a present. Leah, though, is having disturbing visions telling her that all is not as it seems. She tries to keep the evil forces at bay as those around her are killed or driven mad.

            This is an unusual film combining elements of folk horror with the American west. The narrative is straightforward but is told with surreal, sometimes disjointed, visuals.  The nature of things is never explicitly spelled out. Is Leah a witch? Psychic? Something else? It’s not the kind of movie that you can watch again and again. However, it does  provide a unique, often dreamlike, experience.