Diary of a Madman *** (1963, Vincent Price, Nancy Kovack, Chris Warfield, Stephen Roberts, Elaine Devry, Ian Wolfe) – Classic Movie Review 8735

An evil spirit called the Horla (voice of Joseph Ruskin) possesses 19th-century French judge and sculptor Magistrate Simon Cordier (played by Vincent Price), who graduates from killing his pet canary to his model Odette Mallotte (Nancy Kovack). Cordier (Price) inherits the spirit when he kills a crazed a condemned prisoner (Harvey Stephens) on death row in self-defence.

Don’t look for new ideas in director Reginald LeBorg’s tired old 1963 horror production Diary of a Madman, with some of the actors and the direction on low voltage when the grandest of Grand Guignol is required. Even so, the commendable star turns of Price and Kovack, the eerie chiller atmosphere, Ellis W Carter’s lurid Technicolor photography, plus Daniel Haller’s art decoration combine to save the day. And the ideally cast Price is, of course, priceless.

The screenplay by producer Robert E Kent is based on stories by Guy de Maupassant, particularly Le Horla (The Horla), written in 1887, and Lettre d’un Fou (The Diary of a Madman), written in 1885, though Kent diverges notably from the source material.

Also in the cast are Chris Warfield, Stephen Roberts, Elaine Devry, Ian Wolfe, Lewis Martin, Mary Adams, Edward Colmans, Nelson Olmsted, Harvey Stephens, Dick Wilson, Wayne Collier, Gloria Clark, Don Brodie, George Sawaya and Joseph Del Nostro Jr.

Diary of a Madman is directed by Reginald LeBorg, runs 96 minutes, is made by Admiral and Robert E Kent Productions, is released by United Artists, is written by Robert E Kent, based on stories by Guy de Maupassant, is shot in Technicolor by Ellis W Carter, is produced by Edward Small and Robert E Kent, is scored by Richard LaSalle and is designed by Daniel Haller.

© Derek Winnert 2019 Classic Movie Review 8735

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The Horla apparition (William Julian-Damazy, drawing, Georges Lemoine, engraving).