The Undead (film)
Encyclopedia
The Undead is a 1957
horror film
directed by Roger Corman
starring Pamela Duncan, Richard Garland, Allison Hayes, and Val Dufour. It follows the story of prostitute Diana Love (Duncan) who is put into a hypnotic trance by psychic Quintis (Dufour), thus causing her to regress back to a previous life. Star Allison Hayes
also starred in Attack of the 50 Foot Woman
(1958).
) sends a woman (Pamela Duncan
) back in time to find out about her past-life experiences. She goes back as Helene, a woman from the Middle Ages who is to die at dawn under suspicion of being a witch. In an attempt to save Diana and keep all of time from being distorted, Quintis goes back in time to convince Helene to let herself be killed. If she avoids her death, it will change history.
during the 1950s (as was the film The She-Creature). Notably the book The Search for Bridey Murphy by Morey Bernstein was made into a film in 1956. However by the time The Undead was being made, the popularity of reincarnation was starting to dwindle. Therefore Corman decided that they needed to change it up a little and added the time travel elements of Quintis, and a title change.
The movie was filmed in a converted supermarket, and was completed in only six days. The bats that the imp and witch continually change into were left over from another Corman movie, "It Conquered the World
."
during its eighth season where they comment on everything from small sets, tossing cats, bad dialog, and the horrors of having seen other Corman movies.
1957 in film
The year 1957 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* October 21 - The movie Jailhouse Rock, starring Elvis Presley, opens.-Top grossing films : After theatrical re-issue-Awards:...
horror film
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
directed by Roger Corman
Roger Corman
Roger William Corman is an American film producer, director and actor. He has mostly worked on low-budget B movies. Some of Corman's work has an established critical reputation, such as his cycle of films adapted from the tales of Edgar Allan Poe, and in 2009 he won an Honorary Academy Award for...
starring Pamela Duncan, Richard Garland, Allison Hayes, and Val Dufour. It follows the story of prostitute Diana Love (Duncan) who is put into a hypnotic trance by psychic Quintis (Dufour), thus causing her to regress back to a previous life. Star Allison Hayes
Allison Hayes
Allison Hayes was an American film and television actress and model.-Early life:Born Mary Jane Hayes in Charleston, West Virginia, Hayes won the title of Miss District of Columbia and represented Washington, DC in the 1949 Miss America pageant...
also starred in Attack of the 50 Foot Woman
Attack of the 50 Foot Woman
Attack of the 50 Foot Woman is a 1958 American science fiction feature film produced by Bernard Woolner for Allied Artists Pictures. It was directed by Nathan H. Juran from a screenplay by Mark Hanna, and starred Allison Hayes, William Hudson and Yvette Vickers. The original music score was...
(1958).
Plot
A psychic named Quintus Ratcliff (Val DufourVal Dufour
Val Dufour, born Albert Valéry Dufour was an American actor. Born in New Orleans, Louisiana, Dufour's parents were of Parisian French descent....
) sends a woman (Pamela Duncan
Pamela Duncan (actress)
Pamela Duncan was an American B-movie actress who starred in the cult classic Attack of the Crab Monsters and later appeared in an Academy Award-nominated documentary, Curtain Call a documentary made in 2000 that focused on the lives and careers of the residents of the Lillian Booth Actors Home in...
) back in time to find out about her past-life experiences. She goes back as Helene, a woman from the Middle Ages who is to die at dawn under suspicion of being a witch. In an attempt to save Diana and keep all of time from being distorted, Quintis goes back in time to convince Helene to let herself be killed. If she avoids her death, it will change history.
Cast
- Pamela DuncanPamela Duncan (actress)Pamela Duncan was an American B-movie actress who starred in the cult classic Attack of the Crab Monsters and later appeared in an Academy Award-nominated documentary, Curtain Call a documentary made in 2000 that focused on the lives and careers of the residents of the Lillian Booth Actors Home in...
as Diana Love/Helene - Richard Garland as Pendragon
- Allison HayesAllison HayesAllison Hayes was an American film and television actress and model.-Early life:Born Mary Jane Hayes in Charleston, West Virginia, Hayes won the title of Miss District of Columbia and represented Washington, DC in the 1949 Miss America pageant...
as Livia - Val DufourVal DufourVal Dufour, born Albert Valéry Dufour was an American actor. Born in New Orleans, Louisiana, Dufour's parents were of Parisian French descent....
as Quintus Ratcliff - Mel WellesMel WellesMel Welles was an American film actor. His best-remembered role may be that of hapless flower shop owner Gravis Mushnik in the 1960 low-budget Roger Corman dark comedy, The Little Shop of Horrors....
as Smolkin - Dorothy Neumann as Meg-Maud
- Billy BartyBilly BartyBilly Barty was an American film actor.-Biography:Barty, an Italian American, was born William John Bertanzetti in Millsboro, Pennsylvania...
as The Imp - Bruno Ve Sota as Scroop
- Aaron Saxon as Gobbo
- Richard DevonRichard DevonRichard Devon was an American character actor best known for his roles in television and film.-Career:Devon was born in Glendale, California...
as SatanSatanSatan , "the opposer", is the title of various entities, both human and divine, who challenge the faith of humans in the Hebrew Bible...
Production
The Undead was inspired by an interest in reincarnationReincarnation
Reincarnation best describes the concept where the soul or spirit, after the death of the body, is believed to return to live in a new human body, or, in some traditions, either as a human being, animal or plant...
during the 1950s (as was the film The She-Creature). Notably the book The Search for Bridey Murphy by Morey Bernstein was made into a film in 1956. However by the time The Undead was being made, the popularity of reincarnation was starting to dwindle. Therefore Corman decided that they needed to change it up a little and added the time travel elements of Quintis, and a title change.
The movie was filmed in a converted supermarket, and was completed in only six days. The bats that the imp and witch continually change into were left over from another Corman movie, "It Conquered the World
It Conquered the World
It Conquered the World is a 1956 American science fiction film about an alien from Venus trying to take over the world with the help of a disillusioned human scientist. It was directed by Roger Corman, written by Lou Rusoff , and starred Peter Graves, Lee Van Cleef, Beverly Garland, and Sally...
."
Legacy
The Undead was later featured on Mystery Science Theater 3000Mystery Science Theater 3000
Mystery Science Theater 3000 is an American cult television comedy series created by Joel Hodgson and produced by Best Brains, Inc., that ran from 1988 to 1999....
during its eighth season where they comment on everything from small sets, tossing cats, bad dialog, and the horrors of having seen other Corman movies.