We begin with the end -- the funeral of Magistrate Simon Cordier (Vincent Price). It was his wish that certain individuals gather after the funeral, for the opening of a small chest he had entrusted to Jeanne D'Arville (Elaine Devry). At the D'Arville Gallery, the chest is opened and they learn that he kept a diary of his last days.
Simon Cordier, was a judge who sentenced a murderer to death -- a man who claimed to have been possessed by the HORLA (an evil spirit) that had driven the man to commit murder. The HORLA then holds Cordier responsible for the death of his slave and reveals that he has chosen Cordier to take his place.
The creature constantly taunts Cordier, breaking him under it's will to kill and commit acts that he had always condemned.
Is he mad? Or is the HORLA real? These questions are the core of the story -- and we are left (along with the mourners at the end) to ponder and answer the question ourselves.
This film was written and produced by Robert E. Kent and adapted from the stories of Guy de Maupassant . This film was done with the same level of quality that Roger Corman would exercise with Price in his adaptations of the stories by Edgar Allen Poe.
I have always considered this to be one of Vincent Price's finest performances.
It is a classic.
Simon Cordier, was a judge who sentenced a murderer to death -- a man who claimed to have been possessed by the HORLA (an evil spirit) that had driven the man to commit murder. The HORLA then holds Cordier responsible for the death of his slave and reveals that he has chosen Cordier to take his place.
The creature constantly taunts Cordier, breaking him under it's will to kill and commit acts that he had always condemned.
Is he mad? Or is the HORLA real? These questions are the core of the story -- and we are left (along with the mourners at the end) to ponder and answer the question ourselves.
This film was written and produced by Robert E. Kent and adapted from the stories of Guy de Maupassant . This film was done with the same level of quality that Roger Corman would exercise with Price in his adaptations of the stories by Edgar Allen Poe.
I have always considered this to be one of Vincent Price's finest performances.
It is a classic.