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Messiah of Evil

Play trailer Poster for Messiah of Evil R Released Apr 23, 1973 1h 29m Horror Play Trailer Watchlist
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100% Tomatometer 11 Reviews 57% Popcornmeter 500+ Ratings
While searching for her missing father, a woman (Mariana Hill) comes to a town crawling with flesh-eating zombies.
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Messiah of Evil

Critics Reviews

View All (11) Critics Reviews
Budd Wilkins Slant Magazine Willard Huyck and Gloria Katz’s eerily brooding Messiah of Evil remains an undervalued gem of American gothic filmmaking. Oct 27, 2023 Full Review Anton Bitel Little White Lies co-writers/co-directors Willard Huyck and Gloria Katz confound life and art, reality and dreams, sanity and madness in their surreal vision of conservative America succumbing to – or biting back against – the encroaching counterculture. Oct 18, 2023 Full Review Marya E. Gates Cool People Have Feelings, Too. (Substack) Truly, I was so nervous watching this film that I wanted to vomit the whole time. Now that’s what I call cinema Oct 11, 2024 Full Review Kathy Fennessy Seattle Film Blog Here's to Willard Huyck and Gloria Katz for giving their first film everything they had. It shows, it thrills--and it endures. Rated: 3.5/4 Oct 6, 2024 Full Review Eddie Harrison film-authority.com ‘…Messiah of Evil is somehow far more than the sum of its parts…catnip to horror genre fans…a key film in the annals of pre-Stephen King American horror...' Rated: 4/5 Aug 14, 2024 Full Review Ray Pride Newcity Pleasingly lethargic, alternately bloody and hypnogogic California pop-art-inflected supernatural horror film. Rated: 8/10 Jul 4, 2024 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Dom L Bizarre and fascinating! Recently came upon this cult film after many years of hearing about it, and it did not disappoint. A truly unique tone. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 06/10/24 Full Review g j Quintessential 70's horror with a broodingly unsettling atmosphere and an arresting visual style. The plot is fairly incoherent, but plays second to the general mood of the film anyway. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 06/02/24 Full Review Jon G I cannot believe I missed this gem so many years ago! So happy to have found it! Rated 5 out of 5 stars 03/02/24 Full Review Marvin H This twisted movie has stayed with me since my childhood viewing. After rewatching resently well " it is better and even creepier than I remember". It starts with the most amazingly awful earworm song (part ballad part hot ass mess) and it just goes all over the place. It fells like a comedown from a bender and it is also what I image a fever dream (or nightmare)to look like on film. So 70's you can taste it. Awesome nightmare. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/22/24 Full Review Deke P 1974 or 75. Eerie zombie movie. 100% rave reviews from the pro reviewers. Takes place in POINT DUME, they pronounce it DOOM, which I have passed many times without much thought, north point of the bay & Malibu. Saw it on the telly, 2.6.24 late nite. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/07/24 Full Review Darren D "Messiah of Evil" visually haunting with ongoing feeling of uneasiness from it's near silent & emptiness from the surroundings within the story. The atmosphere is a fine line between a slow moving dream & the tense build up of a nightmare you can't wake up from. Pure horror. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 11/25/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Messiah of Evil

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Cast & Crew

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Movie Info

Synopsis While searching for her missing father, a woman (Mariana Hill) comes to a town crawling with flesh-eating zombies.
Director
Willard Huyck
Producer
Gloria Katz
Screenwriter
Gloria Katz, Willard Huyck
Production Co
V/M Productions, International Film Corporation
Rating
R
Genre
Horror
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Apr 23, 1973, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Jul 1, 2016
Runtime
1h 29m
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