Madame Flora (Maria Powers) is a phony psychic who scams grieving parents out of money by pretending to talk to their deceased children in the afterlife. Assisting her in her con are her grown daughter, Monica (Anna Maria Alberghetti) and an adopted mute gypsy son, Toby (Leopoldo Savona).
One night Madame Flora is visited by Mr. and Mrs. Gobineau (Donald Morgan and Beverly Dame), who are regulars to her establishment, and like to talk to their dead daughter. Accompanying them is a newcomer, Mrs. Nolan (Belva Kibler), who is anxious to connect with her deceased son.
During the séance Monica dresses in a gauzy veil and pretends to be the dead daughter of the Gobineau family while Toby sits behind a curtain and manipulates the séance table and any other manifestations needed to convince the marks that they are actually talking to their dead loved ones. All this is happening while Madame shakes, wails and goes into a trance.
During the séance Madame Flora feels hands encircling her neck. The sensation freaks her out. She panics and stops the séance cold. She then kicks the Mrs. Nolan and the Gobineaus out of her house. The three visitors leave, upset that Madame is afraid of their children. Once they leave Madame confronts Monica and Toby. Madame becomes convinced that Toby was playing a cruel trick on her. Madame abuses the boy wanting him to confess and desperately looking for confirmation that it was his hand on her throat and not something paranormal.
The more she thinks about the event, the further into paranoia she goes. Monica is caught in between feeling sorry for her mother’s growing fears and feeling sorry for Toby’s victimization. A few days later when the Gobineaus and Mrs. Nolan return to Madame Flora’s she admits that she is a fraud, but they don’t believe her. Madame ends up kicking Toby out of the house. Madame Flora finally becomes insane and allows the demons she has mentally created to take over.
“The Medium” AKA “La Medium” was released in 1951 and was written and directed by Gian Carlo Menotti. It is a filmed version of an Italian opera. Although the movie is not actually horror or a thriller, it does have some dark elements and some serious noir influences.
It’s sometimes difficult to understand some of the words being sung, but the story itself is not complicated. The movie is cinematically haunting and somewhat claustrophobic. As an artistic endeavor, the film is great, just not my cup of tea.
Although it is an actual opera, it is sung in English. Contrary to popular belief, many operas were done in English. Think Gilbert and Sullivan, although they are mostly considered operettas. The opera has evolved over time into musicals and even rock operas such as “Tommy” 1975 and “Jesus Christ Superstar” 1973.