There’s probably not another '70s horror movie about demonic possession with such an odd cast — not only are directors John Huston (The Maltese Falcon, The African Queen) and Sam Peckinpah (The Wild Bunch, Straw Dogs) part of the madness, but there’s also the craggy Lance Henriksen (Aliens, TV’s Millenium series), classic actress Shelley Winters (Lolita, A Place in the Sun, Night of the Hunter) and Hollywood's Golden Age star Glenn Ford (The Blackboard Jungle, the original 3:10 to Yuma).
Together they form a fabric of characters focused on a little girl who has become inhabited by some alien being, sort of like a cross between Carrie and The Exorcist. That closely miked dialogue, soft lighting, and menacing prophecies that weave their way through such films of the era are all there, plus a whole lot more oddities that make you wonder who the hell greenlighted this project. Obviously, studio execs of the '70s were a lot more willing to take some serious chances.
The Visitor (1979)
Tuesday, August 9
10 p.m.
Alamo Drafthouse Ritz
320 E. 6th St., Austin, Texas
Tickets $1
