"Supernatural creatures exist in a world of darkness"
Professor John Holden (Dana Andrews) is an American professor who is in London for a conference. His purpose is to debunk devil worshiping cults as nothing more than hokum. Unfortunately he finds himself in the middle of the mysterious death of Professor Harrington (Maurice Denham). Harrington's niece Joanna (Peggy Cummins) does not believe that her uncle died because of an accident. She thinks an evil force is responsible.
Since Holden does not believe in the supernatural he is of course skeptical of Joanna's claims. Holden learns that this supernatural demon was supposedly conjured by a devil worshiper named Dr. Karswell (wonderfully played by Niall MacGinnis). According to the ritual a parchment containing rune symbols must be secretly passed to the intended victim. At a specified time the demon appears and kills whoever was the last person in possession of the parchment. Holden was passed such a parchment. His only way of saving himself from the devil’s wrath is to pass the parchment back before it is too late.
"Night of the Demon" AKA "Curse of the Demon" was released in 1957 and was directed by Jacques Tourneur. This is not exactly a two fer. Both movies are the same movie. The only difference is that one is the US release and one is the UK release. The difference between the two releases is that Night of the Demon (UK version) has about 13 minutes of additional running time than Curse of the Demon (US version).
This is more of a psychological thriller than a horror movie. The questions being… Is there really a curse or is it that whoever gets the parchment believes there is a curse? Are the accidents mere accidents or is it really the work of the devil? Does the cursed person really see the devil or is it merely a hallucination? Is the demon that we see real or are we seeing through the victim’s eyes?
I’ve always liked this movie. The suspense builds throughout. Thanks in no small part to director Jacques Tourneur. His talent gives this film a “Val Lewton” quality that it might not normally have. The script is great and the actors themselves are believable and well cast. Although some people called it corny I even like the demon. At first all you see is a billowing cloud coming toward you but as the tension increases the demon face forms as if in slow motion. It towers over the victim and if the victim is you it will mess you up.