The Devil Rides Out

  

 

The Devil Rides Out

1968

Director- Terrence Fisher

Cast- Christopher Lee, Charles Gray, Nike Arrighi, Leon Greene, Patrick Mower, Sarah Lawson, Paul Eddington

            With absolutely no amount of hyperbole I can say that this is one of the best occult movies ever made. The Devil Rides Out (billed as The Devi’s Bride in the U.S.) is intelligent and suspenseful. It takes the subject of magic seriously and seems well informed. Despite centering around a Satanic cult it never detours into the lurid or sensationalistic. In short, like The Ninth Gate, this is an occult movie for the thinking person. But don’t think it’s dry or slow. It moves at a good pace, keeps the viewer’s attention and has memorable imagery. This is a horror classic brought to you by Hammer, the masters of horror.

            Two old friends (Christopher Lee and Leon Greene) discover that the son of a dead friend has gotten himself involved with a Satanic cult led by a powerful magus (played wonderfully by Charles Gray). Conflict ensues when they try to prevent their young friend from going through with his Satanic baptism.

 

 

            Most folks would say that Dracula was Christopher Lee’s best role but I think it was this. He plays the Duke de Richleau, an aristocrat with no small amount of occult knowledge, kind of like an upper class John Constantine. Lee looks rather satanic himself with his goatee but he goes against type as the hero. He is so charismatic and intense that you can’t take your eyes off of him.

            Charles Gray’s portrayal of the cult leader is strong. He is obviously an Aleister Crowley figure but plays it very dapper. He pushes the evil to almost Bond-villain levels but doesn’t make it cartoonish. He seems to be smiling to himself no matter what horror is occurring. At one point, after being rebuffed by a family guarding an escapee from his cult, he says, quite charmingly “I shall not return. But something will. Tonight.”

 

        

    

    Nike Arrighi is also good as the young girl caught up in the cult. She is a sympathetic character who seems to have resigned herself to the eventual loss of her soul. She had a small appearance in another Hammer film, Countess Dracula.

            The film is based on the 1934 novel of the same name, by Dennis Wheatley. Though Wheatley wrote a lot of spy novels he was also very knowledgeable of the occult. His book, The Devil and All His Works is an excellent survey of occult lore through the ages. No less than three of Wheatley’s novels became Hammer films including the similarly themed To the Devil a Daughter (which also starred Lee but as the villain). The other, Uncharted Seas, was filmed by Hammer as The Lost Continent.

 

            If you want an intense, well-crafted thriller then you’ll enjoy The Devil Rides Out. Its imagery will stick with you. Two moments in particular stand out. The first is the summoning of the Devil, which appears as a goat headed man presiding over a cult of worshipers.  The other is the appearance of the Angel of Death as a black knight on a winged horse. It’s a good companion piece to another British occult thriller, Night of the Demon. Of interest to metal fans, the film's poster was the inspiration for the album cover for Witchcult Today, by the English band, Electric Wizard.