Incannerax What a waste of my time!!!

Roy Hart If you're interested in the topic at hand, you should just watch it and judge yourself because the reviews have gone very biased by people that didn't even watch it and just hate (or love) the creator. I liked it, it was well written, narrated, and directed and it was about a topic that interests me.

Erica Derrick By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

Phillipa Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

bkoganbing After the success of Rosemary's Baby and The Exorcist Hollywood put out a whole slew of films dealing with the black arts and Satan worship. This one even had a consultant from the Church of Satan. Several players who ought to know better did this one for a paycheck.Ernest Borgnine hams it up big and broad as the leader of Satan church, a church that he converted from a Congregationalist puritan church to one swearing allegiance to old Scratch. Somebody in the congregation stole the book with the members sworn in blood to the devil and that's held things up with Satan claims in limbo. Been that way for 300 years or so and the church is now out in Kanasas somewhereWilliam Shatner, Ida Lupino, Keenan Wynn and Eddie Albert are all in this together and it's a camp hoot. That last and very soggy climax is one for the books. Are there folks out there besides Satanists who like these films?

Leofwine_draca THE DEVIL'S RAIN is a fine little devil worship horror yarn from '70s America which would go nicely in a double bill with the equally good RACE WITH THE DEVIL, which came out in the same year. There's plenty of similarities between the two movies, but while the other has the slight edge this is still a very good movie. What I liked most about this one is that it's completely unconventional: most movies of this era take a gradual build-up approach, like that seen in ROSEMARY'S BABY, where the movie begins with a depiction of normal, everyday life before gradually stripping away the layers and descending into hell. Not so here: from the start we're in the thick of black magic chaos, as an innocent man turns into a rumpy, rain-sodden mess for no apparent reason and a house is trashed by evil forces.There's little story to this, other than that seen in a flashback, and the film doesn't need it, either. It's set out in the middle of a bleak desert wasteland, brought to life with excellent landscape photography. A dwindling number of 'good guys' are set against an endless number of evil cult members who have extremely creepy, no-eye makeup. The battle for power ebbs and flows between the two factions until a twist ending which is well remembered as the film's highlight.Another great asset is the cast of B-movie notables. William Shatner's here, doing some of his finest emoting, and he shares heroic duties with Tom Skerritt, who's as well used here as he was in ALIEN. You have Ernest Borgnine overacting as the leader of the devil cult, sometimes turning into a goatish devil incarnate although sadly the cheesy goat makeup isn't up to the job and this is the one failing of the movie. There are lots of old-timers, too: Keenan Wynn in a cameo as the Sheriff; Woodrow Chambliss as the loyal retainer; Ida Lupino; good old Eddie Albert is a good guy as well. An unrecognisable John Travolta appears in his first movie role, a year before CARRIE, and even real-life Satanist Anton Lavey and his missus pop up for cameos. Claudio Brook, who was a staple of Mexican horror cinema, turns up as a preacher.The film has plenty of action and moves at an astounding pace, but there's no lack of atmosphere, either. British director Robert Fuest had a good eye for the bizarre (he did the two DR PHIBES flicks) and he uses it to an advantage here. The film is chiefly remembered for its grisly climax, in which all of the bad guys are subjected to the titular phenomenon and end up melting thanks to some thoroughly effective special effects. No doubt the people who made THE INCREDIBLE MELTING MAN were inspired to do so after watching this flick, and good on them, I say.

theskylabadventure The Devil's Rain is a totally baffling film, somehow both more and less than the sum of its parts. Borgnine, Shatner, Satanism - sounds like a giggle, right? And yet somehow the fact that it's so silly, and clearly so reticent to take itself seriously for most of its running time, means that it doesn't really fall into the so-bad- it's-good category, yet it's so far short of actually being good at the same time as not really being all that bad. Confused? You will be. Leaving aesthetic appreciation aside, the plot of The Devil's Rain is a total muddle. There are huge plot gaps, in which the audience is presumably expected to make leaps to connect one scene to the next, or to try and establish context which is missing more often than not. I genuinely wonder if there isn't a stash of deleted scenes out there which, if cut back in, would actually help the continuity of the film. Instead, what we're left with is a series of moments - some fun, some dumb, some hilariously badly executed - which only really add up to a coherent movie experience if you're really, really paying attention. The likelihood is that you won't be, given the overall sub-par writing, hammy acting (notable Shatnerisms abound) and direction which clearly has no idea of the tone it's going for.Approach this film with curiosity and you'll have some harmless fun. You'll chuckle at the sight of Ernie Borgnine dressed and made up like a goat. You'll cringe at Shatner's pseudo-pensive-horizon- staring delivery of the ludicrous dialogue. And you'll love the pre Incredible Melting Man melting men. But I'm pretty sure you won't know - or care - what the hell (pun intended) is going on.

Roman James Hoffman The cinema and Satan have always been good bedfellows: ever since cinematic pioneer Georges Melies made Satan's head detach itself and float around in 'The Laboratory of Mephistopheles' (1897), the century or so of cinema's evolution has produced scores of depictions of Satanism of varying quality littered around such classics like 'The Black Cat' (1934), 'The Devil Rides Out' (1968), 'Rosemary's Baby' (1968), and 'The Omen' (1976). Indeed, both occult film-maker Kenneth Anger and noted occultist Nikolas Schreck even go so far as to say that in his guise as Lucifer ('The Light Bringer') there is something inherently diabolical about movies in essentially being light projected through photographic film. So, roping in the assistance of Anton LaVey, the founder of the Church of Satan, was sure to raise the chill factor of this movie no end and hurtle it into the esteemed company of the above listed films. Problem: the film, aside from a couple of creepy moments at the start, is at its most dynamic little more than bland and in several instances inadvertently funny. Amusing if stoned: maybe…a classic, or even a film worthy of sobriety, it most certainly is not.Right, let's start with the positives: the film starts of promising with a haunting title sequence sound-tracked by tormented screams. Following this we are thrown into a disorienting opening sequence on a stormy night with Mark Preston (William Shatner) and his mother defending themselves from creepy ghouls with no eyes as they do the bidding of arch-satanist Corbis (Ernest Borgnine) who wants to get his hands on a book they are guarding. In addition, the first satanic ritual scene, set in a weird church in a ghost-town, has a genuine creepiness to it and it seems that the input of Anton LaVey is bearing some fruit. And…that's about it. The film then treads water in a shallow plot for another hour, firstly filling us in on the whole deal with the book thanks to a woman with ESP (after which her ESP serves absolutely no function) who is involved with Tom Skerritt (whose name you may not know but who is one of those "ahhh, him!" faces) who is William Shater's brother. He then battles the Satanists to save his family…a dramatic climax is attempted but the total absence of suspense from poor characterization and a poorer script (not to mention the derisive snort-inducing "transformation" Borgnine undergoes) renders this impossible. The film then reveals the meaning of the "Devil's Rain" (yawn) and then ends with a predictable twist. All in all, a total let-down.Ironically, 'Rosemary's Baby' is one of my favourite films and Anton LaVey is said to have cut his teeth in the Hollywood as an adviser on it as well as playing Satan himself in the dream scene; however, according to former high-ranking Church of Satan Member Michael Aquino in his book 'The Church of Satan', this is not true and merely a (characteristic) self-serving piece of mis-information on LaVey's part. Now, I'm not saying I sat down expecting another 'Rosemary's Baby' quality film, but I was intrigued by LaVey's indisputable role as a technical adviser in this movie (the film proudly boasts his help in the title sequence and he has a cameo in the ritual sequences) but I was also not expecting this totally forgettable waste of film.So, it would seem that while the Devil may have all the best tunes, he has a thing or two to learn about films.