The City Of The Dead (1960)

A college student (Venetia Stevenson) is doing her thesis on the history of witchcraft. Her professor (Christopher Lee) suggests she visit a small out of the way village which has a history of witchcraft going back to 1692. Directed by John Llewellyn Moxey (CIRCUS OF FEAR), this British cult horror film is rich in atmosphere and suggestion with moody B&W lensing by Desmond Dickinson (the 1948 film of HAMLET). It also bears some resemblance to Hitchcock's PSYCHO released the same year such as plot points and reactions. Originally intended as a TV pilot, it was rewritten to feature length. The American release was cut by some two minutes and retitled HORROR HOTEL. The movie works very well although the film's final six minutes are disappointing. It simply does not have the inventiveness of what preceded it. With Betta St. John, Patricia Jessel, Dennis Lotis and Valentine Dyall.