Tonight's movie once again deals with devil worship. What's up with these people? Why can't they just go to church like everyone else? Numbskulls....... Well anyhow, it was called "Back From The Dead"(1957), and was directed by Charles Marquis Warren, the creator of the "Rawhide" TV series. I wonder if Clint Eastwood knew about this side project? :)
Peggy Castle stars as "Mandy", the new bride of "Dick Anthony" (Arthur Franz). Dick's been married once before, but his first wife died under mysterious circumstances. Mandy doesn't know about this, Dick's kept his history hidden from her. As the movie opens, they've just moved into a cliffside house overlooking Laguna Beach. Mandy is walking the bluffs one night, when she hears a voice echoing off the waves. The voice is female. "I told you I'd come back, and now I have". Did it come from the water, or from inside Mandy's head?
She runs inside the house and collapses. Her husband summons a doctor, who diagnoses an epileptic fit. Dick and Kate Hazleton (Marsha Hunt), Mandy's sister, watch over her as she recuperates. The next morning, Dick and Kate ask Mandy if she remembers anything about the night before. She startles them by saying, "I'm Felicia, not Mandy". Kate is worried. Mandy's never had epilepsy. The doctor must be wrong. Is Mandy suffering from mental illness?
She continues to identify as Felicia, and later in the day asks Dick to drive her to visit "the Bradleys" (Helen Wallace, James Bell), an older couple Mandy would know nothing about. Dick knows who Mr. and Mrs. Bradley are, but isn't saying. He wants to see where this is leading, and sure enough he finds out. Once inside the house, Mandy/Felicia introduces herself as their daughter. "Mother, it's me, Felicia. I told you I'd come back and now I have". The mother, an unsmiling woman, asks several questions of her "daughter" that only the real Felicia could answer. Satisfied it's really her, she embraces "Felicia". "I will never lose you again", she promises. Mr. Bradley, her elderly husband, is horrified. "This is unholy", he says.
"You worship your God and I'll worship mine", she replies.
Confronted about the meeting by Kate, Dick lets the cat out of the bag. "I was married once before, to a woman named Felicia. The Bradleys were her parents. Felicia died, not far from here. She drowned. Her mother has some unusual religious beliefs, nothing you or I would agree with, but Felicia was an iconoclastic young woman. She was rebellious and headstrong like her mother. If there was something she wanted, nothing could stand in her way. They may have made a pact, and if so, I'm afraid it's come true. What I'm saying is that Felicia has taken possession of Mandy".
Kate is getting the picture : "And what she wants is you".
"I'm afraid so".
They try keeping Mandy locked in the house, under sedation, but every time she awakens she insists she's Felicia. The doctor continues to search for a medical explanation. Kate feels this is a waste of time and seeks outside help, which comes in the form of a neighbor, "Nancy Cordell" (Marianne Stewart), who knew Dick and Felicia earlier. "Felicia belonged to a group here in town, you might call it a religious order, though it's really more of a philosophy. I belong to it myself. We believe in positive energy and the power of the spirit. Folks in town don't approve of us, but they don't understand".
Kate knows she needs to infiltrate this group if she is to free Mandy from Felicia's control, so she feigns interest. "Oh? Tell me more. You know, with all that has happened, I could use some positive energy in my life. Would it be possible for me to attend a meeting"?
"I think so", says Nancy. "First, however, I'd have to introduce you to Maitre Renault. He's our leader. He approves all new members, but I'm sure he'd let you join us. You seem sincere". This is Marsha Hunt she's dealing with, one of our greatest character actresses, so Nancy has no idea she's being played. The rest of movie belongs to Hunt as she investigates the nature of Felicia's death. Nancy takes her to visit the mysterious "Maitre Renault" (Otto Reichow), who speaks in an ominous tone, nearly identical to the voice of Ahh-nold Schwarzanegger. He decides to let Kate join the order. "You say you need my help to save your sister, and I vill help you. But you must do exactly as I say, even if my methods at first seem stwange to you. Go home and think on it, and if you are sure you vish to join, come back tomorrow and vee vill get to vork".
Kate leaves, but is summoned from home by Mr. Bradley's nurse. He's fallen ill and has asked to see Kate immediately. When she gets there, he begs her not to work with Maitre Renault. "But how did you know I saw him"?, she wonders. Mr. Bradley nods in the direction of his wife, who not only is a member of Renault's cult but has likely put a Hex on her husband, causing his illness. Mrs. Bradley is an Evil Witch who now knows about Kate's plot to penetrate the group. Kate promises Mr. Bradley she won't return to Renault but in truth, she doesn't know whom she can trust at this point. I was wondering the same thing myself, if old Mr. Bradley was faking his illness, and if Renault was in fact a good guy. But I digress. In a subplot, there is another man involved in the effort to save Mandy. He is "John Mitchell" (Don Haggerty), a local realtor. He's met Kate through Dick and has become fond of her. Now he's confessed his reason for wanting to help. "I knew Felicia, Kate. I even dated her, but I didn't care for the people she associated with, you know - that group. One night we were driving and got into an argument about them. I really let her have it, and I've felt guilty ever since. You see, she got out of the car and ran over to the cliff, exactly where Mandy was standing the night she heard that voice. I've felt guilty, Kate, because it was my fault Felicia died. She jumped off that cliff before I could save her. That's what really happened and you're the first person I've ever told. Before tonight, no one has known I was there".
Warren doesn't develop this subplot, at least as far as Mr. Mitchell is concerned. There's no payback for his role in Felicia's death, but then it wasn't his fault anyway. Instead, we return to the battle for Mandy's soul. The Evil Mrs. Bradley has alerted her "daughter" Felicia (in Mandy's body), to be on the lookout for Kate, who she knows is out to stop the group and Maitre Renault. When Kate gets home, her sister calls out to her from the bedroom, where they've kept her locked up. "Kate? Kate, are you there? Please let me out. It's me, Mandy"!
Kate is overjoyed at the sound of Mandy's voice. She's all better!
But it's only a trap. It's just Felicia pretending to be Mandy, so when Kate unlocks the door, Felicia conks her on the head with a candleholder. Now she's the one locked in the bedroom, unconscious and tied up. The race is on to re-unite Felicia with Dick, but first Kate must be gotten rid of permanently. A Satanic Sacrifice is prepared by Maitre Renault (oops, I gave him away!), with the help of Mrs. Bradley, who you already knew was Evil Incarnate. She'd give the Devil a run for his money, she would (man, she's awful).
Will John Mitchell find Kate in time? And what about Dick? Where's he been for the last twenty minutes? Will anyone be able to stop Felicia from banishing Mandy forever? All of these questions will be answered on the cliffside, high above Laguna Beach, in the thrilling conclusion to "Back From The Dead". I'll give it Two Solid Thumbs Up for maintaining a steady sense of mystery, though the going is slow for the first 45 minutes. Had the story been tighter, with about ten minutes lopped off, it would've increased the tension, but it's still plenty scary, with an eerie score that adds to the growing unease. Marsha Hunt is great as Mandy's loyal sister. I have a question about Hunt, who's still alive at 102 and was in a ton of movies, many of them well known. She always seems to be wearing a blouse or collar that is buttoned all the way up, covering her neck. I wonder if this was deliberate, due perhaps to a scar? Or was it simply because she had a "spinsterish" image, often playing "nervous Nellies" or "sister roles" like she does here. Anyway, that's my question : why is Marsha always buttoned up? She's a great, great actress, though, so look for her in other movies. :)
Peggy Castle is good in the dual role of Mandy/Felicia, and Arthur Franz is serviceable as Dick. The other notable performances are turned in by Otto Reichow as the Impending Arnold Schwarzanegger......oops, I mean the Ominous Maitre Renault, and by Helen Wallace (born in Van Nuys in 1889!) as the diabolical Mrs. Bradley. Wow......Wallace must be one of the Valley's original residents. 1889......holy smokes. //////
That's all for the moment. I had another nice hike at Aliso this afternoon, hope you had a good day too. See you later tonight at the Usual Time.
Tons of love. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
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