Child of Satan

source: Child of Satan

This is the second film with Nastassja Kinski inside of it. Its a trash-horror-movie with a strange story. The interesting moments have an psychotic-dimension, where the evil things are coming out of the mirror or something like this in the room. This are big hallucinations. There is a telepathie relation between the priest(Christopher Lee) and the girl (Kinski). I like this film but he is "pubertär" - the idea that she become the mother of the devil makes the visitor more fear than herself. That's one of the important point - this free relation to the devil is the same free relation to sexual living in a way. Kinski is more Bardot than Monroe in her liberty - but half a child in this film - and she would be it now a little bit too, I think.

The last Hammer file produced is also the weakest. A young female nun, about to turn 18 is searched after by leaders of a demonic cult. Actually a pretty nice movie until the finale 20 minutes where it starts to fall apart, with a insanely bad special effect. Then the last 10 which contained the worst ending i have ever witnessed..EVER!! My Grade: C (would have been D, but a * Nastassja Kinski helps a lot)

To the Devil a Daughter (1976) *** (out of 4) At a book signing, occult novelist John Verney (Richard Widmark) is asked by a father (Denholm Elliott) to track down his daughter Catherine Nastassja Kinski). At first John thinks that the father is mixed up with the occult but it turns out that a Catholic priest (Christopher Lee) is wanting to use the girl in order to become Astaroth. TO THE DEVIL A DAUGHTER would turn out to be Hammer's final movie (for a time) and it was a notorious flop that pretty much ruined the studio. I first watched this movie around a decade ago and I really thought it was bad. I thought it was a poor imitation of ROSEMARY'S BABY and that it was trying to cash in on countless Satanic films that were popular throughout the decade. There were elements to it that I liked so that's the reason I decided to revisit the film and this second time around I must admit that it worked on me. With that being said, it's easy to see why so many people have such mixed reactions to the picture. Some call it a stellar horror film while others see it as a botched effort for the studio to try and do something serious. I think all of the elements are here for a classic film but it does fall a bit short of that. Having said that, there are still a lot of very good elements here including the fact that it's a very good looking film that manages to hold your attention throughout. The Satanic elements have been done countless times before and there's not too many new things here but I think the film succeeds because of the atmosphere and the slow-burn pacing. It's funny but the first time I watched the picture I attacked it for its pacing but this second viewing had it working a lot better and I'm guessing it was because I was expecting it. I thought the film was rather brave at being slow-paced because by 1976 people were expecting things a lot faster so to have a film that takes its time was unique. I also thought that the performances were wonderful with Widmark, Lee, Kinski and Elliott delivering extremely work. I thought Widmark did a really good job playing the type of tough guy that he was known for. Kinksi also deserves a lot of credit for her performance and Elliott steals the picture every time he's on the screen. Many people attack the ending, although experts in the field will tell you that the happenings would be destroyed so easily. That's fine but I think for the film it needed something a bit better. TO THE DEVIL A DAUGHTER is a film that stirs a lot of debate and I can understand why as I've both hated it and grew to enjoy it.

A heavily pregnant woman arrives at a house and is led in to a bedroom by some members of the clergy one of which resembles Rosa Klebb while another looks like Dracula . They then bind her legs together and if the clergy are binding the thighs of a pregnant woman it's obvious that they've closed the stable door after the horse has gone and bolted With this film the horse has also gone and truly bolted for Hammer Studios . While New Hollywood was coming out with hugely interesting and successful movies with contemporary settings and directed by movie brats Hammer was still bringing out movies with Dracula and Frankenstein and when they did try to move the market in to a modern setting it was obvious they were out of their depth as this movie shows This is really terrible turgid stuff . . Some scenes such as pregnant woman has her legs tied together don't make much sense but at least you're able to read between the lines to understand that the baby will tear itself out of her mother's womb as a sort of precursor to ALIEN . Most of the scenes involving plot turns don't even begin to make the slightest bit of sense except to the screenwriter . You could easily chop the whole film in segments , rearrange them in any order and you'd still have the exact same movie . I notice the director is called Peter Sykes but if it was directed by Eric Sykes the movie would have improved . It says something that Dennis Wheatley the author of the source novel wrote to Hammer saying he didn't want the company to produce any more of his books . He needn't have worried because this was the last horror movie the studio made and is amongst the very worst movies it made

There's not a single scary moment in this boring albeit well made Hammer entry. Christopher Lee is an excommunicated priest who somehow manages to promise to give the Devil a daughter. Richard Widmark is the hack horror novelist trying to stop him. The idea of teaming these two famous screen baddies is promising, but they share scant screen time together. A dubbed Nastassja Kinski plays a young nun and Denholm Elliott is her father, who tries to renege on his deal with Lee. It's a lousy movie all around and even manages to wastes Honor Blackman (as Widmark's sharp tongued literary agent). Based on the (presumably better) novel by Dennis Wheatley, this film surely exists solely to cash in on the EXORCIST craze of the early 70s.

An American occult novelist (Richard Widmark) battles to save the soul of a young nun (Nastassja Kinski) from a group of Satanists, led by an excommunicated priest (Christopher Lee), who plan on using her as the representative of the Devil on Earth. As a White Zombie fan, I was thrilled to hear the Latin of the excommunication scene and finally know where one of their best songs took its clips from. That alone makes the movie satisfying (though it hardly carries the entire film). Despite being a Hammer film and featuring Christopher Lee, the film does not seem well-liked by many people. IMDb rates it below a 6 and Rotten Tomatoes has it holding a 17% approval rating. I feel obligated to defend it, if even just a little bit. I mean, wow, what a truly creepy and disturbing birthing ritual -- the blood, the bondage, Lee's diabolical grin... Oh, and that other ritual... I would say this film is a winner, despite the harsh criticism people seem to have for it. Some parts are a bit slow or bland, but the overall story is interesting and the imagery is fascinating. A lot of work was put into this one.

I finally saw this infamous final theatrical fright feature from the legendary Hammer Studios and was pleasantly surprised to find out that it was nowhere near as bad as its many detractors claim. In fact, I thought this movie was quite good. Granted, it's got its flaws (the much-ridiculed silly monster hand puppet and the weak climax are both below par), but overall this picture has a lot of solid stuff in it. For starters, the plot is fresh and compelling: Sinister excommunicated renegade Satanist priest Father Michael Rayner (a wonderfully wicked Christopher Lee) plots to impregnate sweet innocent nun Catharine (a ravishing and beguiling Nastassja Kinski in her first big role) so she will give birth to the spawn of the Devil. It's up to humble, but shrewd and charming best-selling occult novelist John Verney (superbly played by Richard Widmark, who makes for an engagingly unlikely Hammer hero) to stop Father Rayner and his avid followers before it's too late. Moreover, director Peter Sykes maintains a steady pace throughout and effectively creates a chillingly creepy atmosphere. The smart and intricate script by Christopher Wicking and John Peacock offers a gripping story and a strong pair of refreshingly mature adult characters as the two principal adversaries. David Watkin's polished cinematography and Paul Glass' spare, spooky score are on the money fine. Kinski does well as an extremely fair maiden in distress (and performs a truly startling full-frontal * scene at the movie's conclusion). The stellar supporting cast qualifies as another substantial plus: Denholm Elliott as a wormy, wayward weakling member of the evil cult, Honor Blackman as Verney's spunky agent Anna Fountain, and Anthony Valentine as Anna's suave boyfriend David. Eerie, intelligent and underrated, this undeservedly maligned movie is well worth checking out by general horror film fans and hardcore Hammer aficionados alike.

In London, an occult novelist (Richard Widmark) is asked to protect a man's daughter, a young nun (Nastassja Kinski), from a cult of satanists led by a towering man who seems to possess supernatural powers (Christopher Lee). They require her for some diabolical ritual. Honor Blackman has a peripheral role. The story of "To the Devil a Daughter" (1976) is loosely based on Dennis Wheatley's 1953 novel. It was Hammer's answer to American horror hits like "The Exorcist" (1973) and "Rosemary's Baby" (1968), but Wheatley was furious with the numerous changes and called the film "obscene." It's a slow-burn occult-oriented mystery with good locations and a notable cast. Producers seemed to have more money to work with in this regard than most Hammer films. Speaking of Hammer, "To the Devil a Daughter" doesn't FEEL like a Hammer picture from the '60s and early '70s, which is a nice (and unsuspected) change, I guess. For those who care, Kinski is shown completely naked from the front near the end, which was/is controversial since she was still 14 years-old during shooting, almost 15. Unfortunately Lee is also show in the *, albeit from behind. One thing I never cared to see in life was Christopher Lee's butt (actually, it was his stunt double, Eddie Powell). There's a fairly shocking and obscene "devil baby" sequence. The creators obviously wanted to take "Rosemary's Baby" to the next level. In any case, they did a good job with the infant F/X, at least for the mid-70s. While the mystery is sometimes interesting the story is flat and the last act somehow doesn't work. Yes, they throw in some bizarre things - the aforementioned "devil baby" scene and a wild satanist orgy (which is more silly than shocking) - but I was left feeling disappointed. This was Hammer's penultimate film and their final horror production. Surprisingly, "To the Devil a Daughter" was a hit and made lots of money, at least in Europe, but Hammer Studios had debts to pay and the movie's success couldn't save 'em. At the end of the day, it's okay at best, but not as good as flicks like "Bay Coven" (1987), "The Crimson Cult" (1968), "The Devil Rides Out" (1968) and "Race With the Devil" (1975). The DVD includes an informative and entertaining 24-minute "making-of" documentary that discusses the film and the demise of Hammer Studios called "To the Devil... The Death of Hammer." It features interviews with Lee, Blackman, the director, the producer and many more. By all accounts Widmark was arrogant and a real bastage to work with. The Hollywood "star" frequently insulted the English filmmakers (calling the picture a "Micky Mouse production"), walking off the set, arguing, brawling and kicking over expensive equipment (!). Every aspect of the movie is addressed, including changes from the novel, Wheatley's objections, the ending's failure, etc. Needless to say, the documentary is way more compelling than the film itself and is available on Youtube for those interested. The film runs 1 hour, 35 minutes, and was shot mostly in the greater London area of England, including Elstree Studios, with a bit in Bavaria, Germany. GRADE: C-

Popular occult author Dennis Wheatley was so pleased with Hammer's 1968 movie version of his novel The Devil Rides Out that he happily agreed to them making further adaptations of his work, even going so far as to granting the rights for nothing. It was an offer that, eventually, the ailing studio could not afford to ignore. Choosing to develop To The Devil A Daughter, however, was probably a bad decision: budgetary constraints meant that a faithful interpretation of Wheatley's book was impossible to achieve, and after much script wrangling, filming went ahead whilst further revisions were still being made. To add to Hammer's problems, star Widmark was not a happy bunny on set, being displeased with the non-Hollywood film making process employed by director Peter Sykes and his crew. However, despite all the problems, somehow, eventually, a finished product was delivered—only to suffer from some hasty re-editing when some bright spark commented that the original ending bore too much resemblance to that of an earlier Hammer movie, Scars of Dracula. With such a troubled production, To The Devil A Daughter is an understandably less than perfect film, but despite its flaws, it still proves to be an entertaining dose of Satanic nonsense. Widmark plays John Verney, an American occult novelist who is approached by a strange man named Henry Beddows (Denholm Elliot), who claims to be involved with a cult named The Children of the Lord, led by the sinister Father Michael Rayner (Christopher Lee, in fine form). Intrigued, Verney agrees to pick up Beddows' daughter Catherine (Nastassja Kinski) from the airport and look after her until they can meet again. In reality, Beddows is trying to protect his daughter from Rayner, who selected the girl at birth for a ritual—scheduled to take place on her impending 18th birthday—that will see her becoming an avatar for the demon Astaroth. With such a great cast (that also includes Honor Blackman), and Wheatley's well researched black magic mumbo jumbo forming the basis of the script, To The Devil A Daughter trundles along quite nicely for the majority of its running time, offering audiences plenty of fun devilish goings-on, including the nasty birth of a demon child (which exits via the abdomen), Blackman being stabbed in the neck with a metal comb, one poor character going up in flames, Lee terrorising a trembling Elliot over the phone, and the lovely Nastassja giving viewers an eyeful of her hot bod. Unfortunately, the messy finalé (which sees Lee's character disappear mysteriously after receiving a bump on the head) does mean that the film closes on something of a bum note and admittedly cannot hold a (black) candle to the real Satanic hit of '76, The Omen, but it's also nowhere near as bad as some Hammer fans would have you believe. 6.5 out of 10, rounded up to 7 for IMDb.