MovieChat Forums > La maschera del demonio (1961) Discussion > Favorite scariest scene

Favorite scariest scene

posted 18 years ago by marilynn25
20 replies | jump to latest

What's your favorite scary scene in this movie? One of the scenes that scared me most when it first came out was when that poor girl has to go milk the cow, and as she does so reluctantly, the camera slowly pans outside the barn to the graveyard so close by to her, and shows what's starting to rise from the grave! Also, the scene where the doctor follows the servant holding the lantern down the hallway in the old castle at night, and the servant gets so far ahead of him, that when the doctor finally catches up, he finds nothing but the lantern slowly swinging, hung up on a hook...that part still gives me chills.

[–] jamisons-1 17 years ago

I thought one of the earlier scenes, when the stagecoach is going down the fateful road, and the driver says the branch tried to choke him, then the stagecoach is later mauled by another tree. That whole sequence is scary in my opinion. And of course the subsequent scene in the crypt.

[–] Yossariananda 17 years ago

Yeah, the part with the milkmaid got me too. I thought for sure she was a goner. Same when our hero almost stabs his beloved in the eye! Even though I was watching it alone, I shouted out "No, no, don't do it!!" Again, disaster is thwarted.

So the scariest parts for me were those that didn't happen. The story wasn't as cruel as it could have been. I think I've seen too many movies where he actually would have stabbed her! Gwyneth Paltrow's head in a box, and all that...

[–] garybartram 16 years ago

I cant believe you were really scared by those scenes or any part of the film. I dont like horror films and rarely watch them, this wasnt scary or suspensfull at all.

I was encouraged to watch Mario Bava by a colleague and I will seek out his other films to see if they are any better than this one.

[–] Fargo_North 16 years ago

Well, so you don't like horror films, let me guess could that be why you didn't like this film in the first place?! You can forget about other films by Bava as all of his movies are horror and/or giallo.

...and your suffering will be legendary even in Hell!!

[–] brand78 16 years ago

Yes, I agree entirely. This horror movie is based on a story by Gogol and in my opinion it is unsurpassed for the scary feeling it creates. I like the scene where the priest find the body of Dr Kruvajan in the cemetery even though he has been seen walking around.

[–] Cinamon 16 years ago

The part when the guy was walking with the lantern...then when the others catch up to him the lantern just hangs in mid air by itself.

[–] Toshi51 9 years ago

That is the scene I recall from watching this movie in 1967 at a drive-in. Chilling!

[–] Woodyanders 16 years ago

Asa's lover and minion Javuto returning to life and rising from his grave is my favorite scary scene.

Chirpy tastes like chicken.

[–] djmolter 16 years ago

Gotta be when the witch's henchman pulls the mask from his face after rising from the grave.

[–] brand78 16 years ago

Yes, that scene as well - it all goes to make a good horror movie and I could well watch it on Halloween.

[–] heelmaster2000 14 years ago

I think the scene that freaked me out a tad was when the witch's eyes suddenly started to reform themselves. I don't know why this freaked me out, but it did.

[–] 16 years ago

[deleted]

[–] PoppyTransfusion 12 years ago

Two favourite scary scenes: at the beginning when the two doctors are in the crypt and Kruvajan break the cross that fell across Asa's corpse. Later when Javutich arrives to collect Kruvajan and drives him to the castle in the carriage that looks really creepy.

An hour isn't an hour but a little bit of eternity in our hands

[–] maudet 11 years ago

No one else has said this scene yet, but my favorite was probably the opening scene, where the mask was placed on Princess Asa Vadja as I feel it set the tone for the rest of the movie. Also, I was surprised that they showed the mask being rammed into her face, as I thought it would be more implied. I mean, I've seen my fair share of on-screen violence and it made me wince a little because that would just be so incredibly painful, so I can't even imagine the reaction it got back in the '60s.

I also liked another scene early in the film, where the two doctors (forgot their names) ride through the woods, as I thought it was incredibly suspenseful.

Those two scenes just really stood out to me, although the climax was very, very memorable as well, and definitely one of my favorite scenes, just maybe not as scary as the two others.