"Eye of the Devil" and Dark Shadows

[Patti Feinberg]

I've just received a used copy of the original book from the 1960s on which the movie was based.  Fairly easy to find inexpensive paperback versions; the title is "Day of the Arrow."

I'm quite curious to see whether the book bears any relation to the movie that followed ...

Let us know....so, if I went to the library, I should  try to borrow "Day of the Arrow"?

Thanks again!

Patti


woman's romance novels....lol...don't think I've actually read one of them!!

[Philippe Cordier]

I know ... witches AND homosexuals ... sounds like what typical housewives of the 1960s were reading, doesn't it??  I'm not sure if I can handle it           I don't actually remember either from the movie (guess I'll have to make a point to watch it a third time ...) although I did read on someone's website (but not verified elsewhere) that cuts were made due to censorship (Leonard Maltin refers to studio-mandated cuts but says nothing about censorship issues).

Patti, I'm not sure when I'll get to the book, although I did read a few pages last night, and so far it bore no resemblance to the movie!

You could probably get it at your local library. I planned to go that route before buying it, but our city library is in a temporary setting and this book (and about 75 percent of the library's holdings) are in offsite storage until 2006.   

[Gothick]

Vlad, I think the David Hemmings character was supposed to be gay, but it was so understated in the finished film as to be practically unnoticeable.  It was also implied, I thought, that the Sharon Tate character had a queer side, and isn't there dialogue that identifies her as a witch?  basically anybody who was in tune with the outdoors, animals, herbs, etc. was often described as a witch in village society.

G.

[Raineypark]

  basically anybody who was in tune with the outdoors, animals, herbs, etc. was often described as a witch in village society.

"Plus ce change, plus ce la meme chose"....

[Mysterious Benefactor]

"Plus ce change, plus ce la meme chose"....

Now, ain't that the truth - and not just in this case.

[Raineypark]

You're agreeing with me again.    Cut it out.

 

[Philippe Cordier]

Vlad, I think the David Hemmings character was supposed to be gay, but it was so understated in the finished film as to be practically unnoticeable.  It was also implied, I thought, that the Sharon Tate character had a queer side, and isn't there dialogue that identifies her as a witch?  basically anybody who was in tune with the outdoors, animals, herbs, etc. was often described as a witch in village society.

G.

There was some remark in the movie that Odile hated all men.  But she seemed to have a very close relationship with her brother, which I vaguely wondered about ...

You're right, I thought of the "witch" association after I was home ... Since our pre-Christian ancestors were pagan, magic was central to their lives.  Post-Christianity, I imagine the former magical practices came to be viewed as "witchcraft," with all the negative associations ...

Regarding Odile's possible witchcraft:  this was ambiguous.  The little boy sees her change a toad into a dove, but the little girl -- who excitedly professes to believe in magic -- does not see anything happen.  The implication is that Odile may be using her hypnotic powers.  The movie has a theme of trance states ...

But the boy is also clearly marked for carrying out the age-old tradition ...

Now ... what should I watch this weekend?  "Eye of the Devil" ... "The Innocents" ... DC's "Picture of Dorian Gray"??  1970 PT??

 

[Patti Feinberg]

Well, I was at the library...and all I could think of was "Wickerman".....(God help me)

Patti

[Philippe Cordier]

Patti, the title of the book is "Day of the Arrow" and the author is Philip Loraine (please note this is the exact spelling of the author's name).

My library's online catalogue listed about a dozen titles by Philip Loraine among their holdings, including such salacious titles as "A Mafia Kiss" and "Ugly Money."  When I was looking up the book in out-of-print listings, one resource stated that "Philip Loraine" was a pseudonym of "Robin Estridge" (who is credited with the screenplay for "Eye of the Devil.")  If that's true, I'm surprised my library did not show that information, as I've seen them do so with other writers using pseudonyms.

I'm anxious to read beyond the first chapter, but now I've also gotten the playscript for "The Innocents," and a couple of Harry Potter books to catch up on ...

 


BTW, this may not be necessary, but I do apologize to any fans of Victoria Holt out there -- I've never read any of her books, so who am I to judge?  If she writes things reminiscent of "Eye of the Devil," maybe I should check her out!

Also, when I mentioned something about "our" pre-Christian ancestors, I was writing quickly and didn't take time to reconsider the phrase, since some of us may be of Jewish heritage or any number of traditions.  Hope this didn't offend anyone.

And a further comment on my comment ... although it is popularly thought that the Christians alone brought the practice of witchcraft into disrepute, some of my reading on Scandinavia showed that malevolent witchcraft was much feared even in pagan, pre-Christian times, and people may have been burned for it even before Christianity.  (In certain Scandinavian countries where Christianity arrived late, this would have been in the early Middle Ages).