Beyond the Door (1974)

Beyond the Door (1974)

Rating:  

Beyond the Door is one of several knock-offs that immediately followed the success of The Exorcist.  It is the story of Jessica Barrett, wife and mother of two, who begins to show signs of possession while pregnant with her third child.  As she seeks help from her husband and doctor, a mysterious man approaches her and seems to have some answers.

The acting and dubbing is pretty ridiculous overall, especially from the children.  On the other hand, all effects (which is what is important in any possession film) are a hell of a lot of fun.  As cheesy as they are, and obviously ripped off almost directly from The Exorcist, they still make the film an amusing imitation.  We get the standard multiple voices, unnatural body movement, head spinning, and of course bile spewing.  None of these are executed to the full effect that The Exorcist pulled off, but are certainly still well done.  The other element that falls short is the atmosphere.  Beyond the Door develops a decent feeling of atmosphere, but various hiccups throughout the film and a slow pace don’t allow that tension to build or hold.

Beyond the Door gets quite a bit of undeserved hate for following directly in the footsteps of The Exorcist.  That’s not to say it isn’t a complete knock-off, because it is, but really how many dozens of possession movies have been created since 1973 that aren’t anything original.  Therefore, for what it is, Beyond the Door is an entertaining film.  Fans of 70′s horror and demonic possession films should certainly check this one out.  In fact, thanks to our friends at bmovies.com, you can watch it for free here.