Directed by John Irvin.
Written by Lawrence D. Cohen from a novel by Peter Straub.
Starring Fred Astaire, Melvyn Douglas, Douglas Fairbanks Jr, John Houseman, Craig Wasson, Patricia Neal and Alice Krige.
"The time has come to tell the tale."
In 1981, it was a casting coup, bringing together acting legends in what for some would be their last onscreen performance: Fred Astaire, Melvyn Douglas, Douglas Fairbanks Jr. and John Houseman. These legends would star in a vehicle based on the popular and acclaimed novel by author Peter Straub. So legendary are the actors that two of them, Astaire and Douglas, are mentioned by name (from their younger days) in the novel. The producers would also bring in Dick Smith to handle the ghost make-up. British director John Irvin, recently off the gritty and violent Dogs of War (1980), would come in to direct based of an adapted script by Lawrence D. Cohen who had also adapted Stephen King's Carrie. Cohen and Irvin keep the thrills and chills close to the chest based more on the characters, atmosphere and tension. The settings are dreary, the acting is classy and the ghostly effects are frightening.
In the town of Milburn, four elderly men make up the Chowder Society; they are haunted by the secrets of their past, bound together to protect those secrets. Soon tragedy strikes the group Edward Wanderly's son David is found dead believed to have jumped to his death from a highrise window. Wanderly calls his second son, David's twin brother Donald home for the funeral. Soon we find out about a mysterious woman, David's fiancee and Donald's past lover has a strange obsession with Milburn and has disappeared. Donald is convinced David's death was no accident. The four men, continuing to follow their "monthly spook stories," begin to have terrible nightmares. Soon the men begin to succumb to the terrors of their dreams with both Dr. Jaffry and Edward Wanderly losing their lives. The authorities begin to suspect an escaped lunatic named Gregory Bate, but Donald and the Chowder Society know it is more sinister; they believe they are being haunted by the ghost of Eva Gaffi. To save Donald's life and to end the haunting, Ricky Hawthorne reveals the guarded secret.
Today, nearly 30 years after it initial release, the casting isn't as much a draw as was back then except for cinema historians or movie buffs. I grew up with these names mentioned frequently on TV or in movies, but I wonder how many of today's audience even know who these talented men are. I remember what a big deal, and what a big impression, Fred Astair made when he co-starred in The Towering Inferno. The Exorcist (and other impressive achievements) has made Dick Smith a house hold name. Sadly, I'm not sure many today know his name. The movie was fairly successful for the time, ranking 34 in the top 100 movies of the year, making 23,371,905 in 1981. Upon first viewing, a few years later on cable, I was less than impressed by the film, jaded by the desire for more gruesome material with Halloweens and Friday the 13ths. I remember very little from that viewing, the ghostly visages and tense finale. I hadn't seen the film since then.
The film holds up remarkably well, if for nothing else, because of the solid performances from the four legendary leads. Craig Wasson, as David and Don, holds his own admirably. And Alice Krige is stunning, captivating and frightening as Eva Galli and Alma Mobley. The scenery is a big draw as well, dripping with atmosphere and dread. It's always snowy or snowing, but it's rarely bright white; instead is shades of grey. The make-up effects are remarkable and memorable. The various images of a "zombified" Eva Galli appearing suddenly to confront the Chowder Society are striking, especially the final image where it appears her rotting corpse is rising out of the automobile in which she drowned. It's difficult to find the movie scary by today's standards, but it is engrossing and, at times, tense. In the end, I was pleasantly surprised and rewarded by a revisit to a film once written off years ago.
7 out of 10
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