Burn Witch Burn (a.k.a. Night Of The Eagle) 1962 Now here's a snappy little thriller if you're itching to get into a Halloween mood early......and considering those temporary Halloween shops usually open right after Labor Day, then technically, the scary season's almost upon us.
It's a modest, but quite effective British-produced modern day witchcraft chill-a-thon with a screenplay, strangely enough, by two classic, American writers of sci-fi and fantasy,, Richard Matheson and Charles Beaumont..
So off we go to a cozy little University campus where a psychology prof (the usually excessive Peter Wyngarde, tamping it down a bit here) finds out out his wife (Janet Blair) has been dabbling in witchcraft, casting spells to help his career along.
A strong disbeliever in all things supernatural, Wyngarde demands Blair go cold turkey on the witchery. forcing her to dispose of all her accumulated spellcasting knick-knacks......
Unfortunately for the prof, it seems Blair wasn't the only person on campus wielding a wicked wand....or caldron, or broomstick or whatever......
Before you can say 'double double, toil and trouble', Wyngarde's flourishing academic career flies off the rails with a series of reversals of fortune, including a student's rape accusation against him and the rise in stature of a colleague prof , his rival for a higher position in the school.
Wyngarde and Blair go through all manner of melodramatic angst until they finally realize who's flingin' the dark arts at them. And once that big reveal's out in the open, we arrive at tge film's primary showstopper.......a nasty spell that brings a big stone statue of an eagle to life (or so Wyngarde is made to believe).
This gaudy display of magic gives new to meaning to 'flipping the bird' at somebody as the newly enlivened creature comes flying off its rooftop parapet to swoop down at Wyngarde with a vengeance. For a very low budget film, it makes for an exciting and creepy closeout sequence......and finishing up with a clever comeuppance for the real evil perpetrator behind all this.......
For everyone who loves catching up with classic British horror films, here's one to most surely put on your Halloween watchlist. Wyngarde's always fascinating to watch in action and Blair, a seasoned star of Hollywood musicals and comedies makes for a great out-of-the-box casting choice as the witching wife.
Now thought of as a cult classic, it's a 4 star (****) fright season pick for us. And don't forget to duck when that big bird takes flight........
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