Hugely Underrated Classic

It's a wonderful film. It's one of the few horror films my parents used to let me stay up for when it was shown several times in the 1980s. Probably not a very clever thing to do as it did upset me (especially the cliff and cathedral scenes), but still I love the film to bits.

I just got my hands on this. I cant wait to watch it, haven't seen it since I was 8 in 1982!! I remember being fascinated and scared s**tless at the same time.

if this were made today, you have to cast anthony hopkins. Its perfect for him

It's my second-favorite horror film of the seventies, after The Omen (also starring Lee Remick!).

When I was young this movie was on TV regurarly in my country. I loved it so much. I think its one of the best "supernatural power/satanism"-flicks of the 70ies. Even after I knew it I was glued to the screen every time I watched it again. It has a incredibly suspenseful atomsphere mixed with typical British (black) humor (the dialogue between Morlar and his wife or the inspector and Pennington... wonderful and ironic). I also loved Michael J. Lewis score. He has a completely different approach than Jerry Goldsmith in the "Omen" movies with chorus and bombast, but very effective. When young Morlar stares at his sadistic teacher, skin crawls with Lewis´music. Not even to mention the Cathedral desaster at the end. Great stuff!
I admired the elegance of the screenplay evolving from a simple criminal case to a supernatural thriller. Very well done!
Acting was also top-notch, even in the supporting cast with all these classic British actors.

It will forever stay in my mind as an childhood favorite.

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Well said, OP! I agree with all of the above comments. Burton's performance is perfect for the film, and, contrary to consensus opinion, at least one reviewer at the time thought so, too!*

In retrospect, this often unfairly gets lumped in with 'the disastrous, talent-wasting Burton films', by people aiming for a general statement about 'The Great Actors' of that generation, and therefore thinking exclusively of great serious dramatic roles. That sort of analysis is rarely applied to current actors.

I saw this as a child in the 80's, too. It was the first time I saw Burton and he left a lasting impression. As an adult I found even more to appreciate, like the great courtroom speech, which has lost none of it's power. In that, it shares an important point of principle with other classic postwar fiction, one which I think is even more relevant today.


* http://parallax-view.org/2010/02/16/review-the-medusa-touch/

I agree, and it scared the living hell out of me when I was a kid.