Steve-Calvert.co.uk

HOME                       More Public Domain Horror Films                       ___       Dementia 13  Movie Poster Print - Style A - 27" x 40" (approx.)

Dementia 13 (1963) (a.k.a. The Haunted and The Hunted ) Directed by Francis Ford Coppola Produced by Roger Corman   It's old, it's black and white and I love it. Like a lot of the old classics Dementia 13 is a film with character. The basic story is that of a young woman called Louise (Luana Anders). Louise is married to the rock and roll loving John, who comes from a wealthy family, headed by the matriarchal Lady Haloran. The beginning of the film finds the couple visiting John's family at Castle Haloran. They are out in a rowing boat. John is rowing and Louise is voicing her concerns about the fact that John's mother has willed all of the Haloran wealth to charity.  The charity is set up in the name of Lady Haloran's dead daughter Kathleen who drowned as a child. When John overdoes it on the oars ,and dies of a heart attack, it does not fit in with Louise's plans at all. As John had so rightly pointed out to her, just before his death, she is only a member of the family as long as she is his wife, and if he should die before his mother, then Louise is a stranger. John's famous last words: "Row faster Louise, If I die, there's nothing in it for you." Unwilling to accept this inevitable fact, Louise covers up John's death and slips a forged note under her mother-in-law's bedroom door telling her that he has been called away on business. Louise then sets about trying to persuade the old girl into writing a more Louise-friendly will. Lady Haloran's other two sons Billy and Richard are also in residence at the castle. Billy is probably the quieter of the two and, at night, he is troubled by bad dreams. He is also the one who tells Louise that the castle has a ghost - none other than his dead sister Kathleen.  Richard is more extraverted than Billy and seems to be the dominant brother. Kathleen's death, seven years ago, seems to have cast a shadow over the whole of Castle Haloran. The person most affected seems to be Kathleen's mother and each year she holds a ceremony of remembrance at her daughter's graveside, and each year the ceremony culminates in her fainting. This year is no exception, but this year Louise is watching from the battlements and rushes to help, soon formulating a devious plan to get herself written into her mother-in-laws good books and, of course, her will. Dementia 13 is not just a film about a scheming daughter-in-law's plan to stake a claim on the family fortune though. It is quite a spooky film and the arrival of a discarnate Kathleen always seems to be imminent. Aspects of the thriller also come into play when an axe murderer puts in an appearance. He is a real swinging guy, but remains camera shy to the very end of the film when the family doctor, Justin Caleb (Patrick Magee) steps in and exposes him; and not a moment to soon either.    William Campbell   ...  Richard Haloran  Luana Anders         ...  Louise Haloran  Bart Patton             ...  Billy Haloran  Mary Mitchel          ...  Kane  Patrick Magee         ...  Justin Caleb  Eithne Dunne          ...  Lady Haloran   Peter Read              ...  John Haloran  Karl Schanzer         ...  Simon  Ron Perry               ...  Arthur  Derry O'Donavan   ...  Lillian  Barbara Dowling    ...  Kathleen                     WATCH IT FOR FREE!                    At Google Videos At Veoh.com To watch online        CLICK HERE To download or watch online CLICK HERE   Also available to buy from Amazon       HOME