MESSIAH OF EVIL

USA | 1974 | 35mm | 90 min.
Director: Willard Huyck, Gloria Katz
Cast: Marianna Hill, Michael Greer, Elisha Cook, Jr.
Best known as co-screenwriters for George Lucas’ American Graffiti (1973) and Steven Spielberg’s Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984), Gloria Katz and Willard Huyck also directed this creepy and distinctly alluring high point of 1970s horror cinema. Searching for her father in the beachfront town of Point Dume, Arletty (Hill) gets more than she bargained for when she encounters unusual happenings in this remote California community. With art direction from the legendary Jack Fisk, Messiah of Evil is a spooky exemplar of the genre that ultimately taps into a dreamier, more disquieting wavelength. Beautifully restored in 2023 by the Academy Film Archive, a recently struck 35mm print, courtesy of the American Genre Film Archive, will be screened. (JM)