‘The ULTIMATE in Satanic possession!’
The Devil’s Rain is a 1975 American supernatural horror film directed by Robert Fuest (The Abominable Doctor Phibes; Doctor Phibes Rises Again; And Soon the Darkness) from a screenplay written by Gabe Essoe, James Ashton and associate producer Gerald Hopman (Evilspeak). It has also been released as Satanic Blood.
It was one of the several films, such as The Horror at 37,000 Feet and Kingdom of the Spiders, that William Shatner starred in between the original Star Trek TV series and Star Trek: The Motion Picture.
Other familiar names in the cast included Tom Skerritt (Poltergeist III; The Dead Zone; Alien), Ernest Borgnine (Deadly Blessing), Eddie Albert (Sorceress; The Demon Murder Case), Ida Lupino (The Food of the Gods), and Keenan Wynn (Piranha; The Dark).
John Travolta appears in an early minor role before Carrie but he was top-billed “at his most exciting Fever-pitch” when Joseph Brenner Associates re-released The Devil’s Rain in 1978 on a double-bill with Virgin Witch.
“Not one moment of The Devil’s Rain is coherent. Each scene seems disconnected from whatever happened before it, and dull spots deaden the film like raindrops during a hurricane. Nonetheless, The Devil’s Rain is a crackpot classic. What seemed like an amazing joke when it first opened has remained in the popular consciousness ever since.” Mike “McBeardo” McFadden, Heavy Metal Movies
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” …things become heavy-handed, revealing the ragged direction, a dire script, and performances which range from the bemused (Albert) to the awful (Borgnine). Fuest butters on the special effects, which culminate in a tediously extended final splurge when almost the whole cast dissolves into a puddle of green slime.” Time Out Film Guide
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“The plot structure robs the film of its most interesting characters early on, and the heavily scrutinized special effects only reveal them for what they are: special effects. The Devil’s Rain is a sad punctuation for Fuest’s 1970s horror career.” John Kenneth Muir, Horror Films of the 1970s book
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“Confused and confusing horror movie which gets by on its excellent special effects and make-up, a starry cast that appears to believe every word of the script and stylish direction by Fuest.” Alan Frank, The Horror Film Handbook
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“Contemporary horror-Western ought to be better than it is. It boasts an impressive cast doing fair work and a talented director. But the light touch that Robert Fuest displayed with the Doctor Phibes films is buried under a leaden pace.” Mike Mayo, The Horror Show Guide
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Cast and characters:
Ernest Borgnine … Jonathan Corbis
Eddie Albert … Doctor Sam Richards
William Shatner … Mark Preston
Ida Lupino … Emma Preston
Tom Skerritt … Tom Preston
Joan Prather … Julie Preston
Keenan Wynn … Sheriff Owens
John Travolta … Danny – Carrie
George Sawaya … Steve Preston
Woodrow Chambliss … John
Lisa Todd … Lilith
Erika Carlsson … Aaronessa Fyffe
Tony Cortez … First Captor
Anton LaVey … High Priest of the Church of Satan
Diane LaVey … Priscilla Corbis
Robert Wallace … Matthew Corbis
Filming locations:
Durango, Mexico
Technical details:
1 hour 26 minutes
Audio: Mono
Aspect ratio: 2.35: 1
Film facts:
Some of the special effects makeup was provided by Tom Burman (Howling II; Cat People; One Dark Night; Prophecy; Empire of the Ants; Gargoyles).
Bryanston trailer:
Joseph Brenner Associates 1978 radio ad:
Full film – free to watch online on YouTube [1080p]:
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