Cult of the Cobra

Last updated
Cult of the Cobra
Cultofcobra.jpg
Directed by Francis D. Lyon
Screenplay by
Story byJerry Davis
Produced byHoward Pine
Starring Faith Domergue
Kathleen Hughes
Richard Long
Jack Kelly
David Janssen
Marshall Thompson
Edward Platt
Myrna Hansen
Cinematography Russell Metty
Edited byMilton Carruth
Music by Irving Gertz, William Lava, Lou Maury, Stanley Wilson (all uncredited)
Distributed by Universal-International
Release date
  • March 1955 (1955-03)
Running time
82 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Cult of the Cobra is a 1955 American black-and-white horror film from Universal-International Pictures, produced by Howard Pine, directed by Francis D. Lyon, that stars Faith Domergue, Richard Long, Kathleen Hughes, Marshall Thompson, Jack Kelly, William Reynolds, and David Janssen. [1] The film was released as a double feature with Revenge of the Creature .

Contents

In the film, six American enlisted men witness the secret ritual of Lamians (worshipers of women who can change into serpents). When the soldiers are discovered by the snake cult, the High Lamian Priestess vows that "the Cobra Goddess will avenge herself". A mysterious woman enters into the life of each service man, with disastrous results: "accidents" begin to happen, and before each death the shadow of a cobra is seen.

Critics noted story similarities with Val Lewton's earlier horror film Cat People , released in 1942. [2]

Plot

Before shipping home at the end of World War II, American Army Air Force enlisted men, Paul Able, Tom Markel, Nick Hommel, Pete Norton, Rico Nardi, and Carl Turner explore an Asian bazaar. There, they meet Daru, a snake charmer. Paul mentions the cult of the Lamians, who worship snakes. Daru says that if the soldiers pay him, they can see it for themselves. [3] He brings the group to the Lamian temple, warning that they will die if caught. In disguise, they see a dance about the Lamian cobra goddess. As the dancer slides back into a woven basket, a drunk Nick photographs her. The Lamians are outraged, and their priest curses the intruders. Freeing himself from two Lamians, Nick grabs the basket. The Lamians kill Daru, and the servicemen set the temple afire to cover their escape. Fleeing in a jeep, the group stops when they see Nick on the road with a woman standing over him. A snake has bitten him.

Advertisement from 1955 for Cult of the Cobra and co-feature, Revenge of the Creature. Fox Theatre Ad - 30 March 1955, San Bernardino, CA.jpg
Advertisement from 1955 for Cult of the Cobra and co-feature, Revenge of the Creature .

In the hospital, Nick says that he can ship out the following day. As he sleeps, a cobra slips into his room through an open window and kills him. Nick's doctors recant their earlier statement that the venom had been purged from his body. The only logical explanation for Nick's death by cobra venom is that the same snake entered the hospital to bite him a second time.

Tom is dumped by his girlfriend, Julia Thompson, who decides to marry Paul instead. In his New York City apartment, Tom hears a scream from Lisa Moya, his new neighbor across the hall. He forces his way into Lisa's apartment and finds her cringing in terror from an intruder who has fled. After calming her down, he persuades her to go on a date with him.

That night, Rico the bowling alley he owns and drives home. A cobra in the back seat strikes at him. The car swerves, crashes, and flips over, killing him.

Carl and Pete, who are roommates, host a party. Carl flirts with Lisa, and a jealous Tom punches him. Tom and Lisa leave. Tom is increasingly smitten with Lisa, who remains standoffish. She returns to Carl's apartment when the party is over and Carl is cleaning up. While fixing Lisa a drink, he sees a cobra in the room and throws a statue at it. The cobra drives him backward out an open window. Bystanders gather. Pete returns and notices Lisa in the crowd.

Tom and Paul become suspects in Carl's death due to the altercation at the party. To redirect their suspicions, Paul tells the police about his theory that Lisa is killing them to make the Lamian curse appear real, but he has no evidence beyond Lisa being new in the neighborhood. Lisa tells Tom that she loves him, but also fears that she is a danger to him and talks about beliefs which she has found to be not true. Tom questions her, but she refuses to explain further.

Pete confronts Lisa about seeing her at the scene of Carl's death, and examines her arm in search of a scratch from the broken statue. Lisa transforms into a cobra and attacks him. Toxicology tests indicate that Carl and Rico were killed by cobra venom. Though there is still nothing pointing specifically to Lisa, the police agree to hold her for questioning. Searching for her at her apartment, they find Pete's body. Paul calls Tom at the theater about Pete's death, asking him to keep Lisa busy until the police arrive. Lisa enters Julia's dressing room. When Julia returns, a cobra attacks her. Tom rushes in. Using a hall tree, he corrals the cobra and pushes it out of the window. The cobra falls, dies and transforms back into Lisa. Tom runs down to the street to view her lifeless body, then covers his face and walks away through the gathered crowd of gawkers.

Cast

Production

Mari Blanchard started the film, but actress Faith Domergue replaced her a few days after shooting began. [4]

Release

Home media

Universal Pictures released Cult of the Cobra on DVD as part of the box set The Classic Sci-Fi Ultimate Collection Vol. 2, which also includes Dr. Cyclops , The Land Unknown , The Deadly Mantis , and The Leech Woman . [5] Cult of the Cobra is also part of Scream Factory's four-movie set Universal Horror Collection: Volume 6, released on August 25, 2020.[ citation needed ] It features an audio commentary on the film.[ citation needed ]

Reception

The Philadelphia Inquirer was as much amused as horrified, writing that "the snaky lady goes into her reptilian act once too often and meets her doom leaving some unfinished business behind. It's all pretty silly, and ... not even remotely frightening. The cobra-conscious lads whose sight-seeing gets them into trouble are played with a minimum of conviction". [6]

See also

Related Research Articles

The Cobra is the name of a number of different fictional characters appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics.

<i>Kiss of the Vampire</i> (film) 1963 British film by Don Sharp

Kiss of the Vampire is a 1963 British vampire film directed by Don Sharp and starring Edward de Souza and Jennifer Daniel. It was written by producer Anthony Hinds and made by Hammer Film Productions.

<i>They</i> (2002 film) 2002 American supernatural horror film, directed by Robert Harmon

They is a 2002 American supernatural horror film, directed by Robert Harmon and starring Laura Regan, Ethan Embry, Dagmara Dominczyk, Jay Brazeau, and Marc Blucas. The plot is centered on a group of four adults experiencing night terrors and attempting to deal with the fallout from their prior childhood experiences. The film was produced by Ted Field and Tom Engleman; Wes Craven served as one of its executive producers and was its presenter.

<i>G.I. Joe: Sigma 6</i> Line of toy action figures; animated series

G.I. Joe: Sigma 6 is a line of military-themed action figures and toys produced by Hasbro, re-imagining the characters of the 1980s toyline, G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero.

<i>The Comeback</i> (1978 film) 1978 British film by Pete Walker

The Comeback is a 1978 British psychological horror slasher film directed and produced by Pete Walker and starring Jack Jones, Pamela Stephenson, and David Doyle. Its plot follows a successful but dormant American singer who retreats to a remote manor in Surrey to record an album; there, he is followed by a psychopath—donning a hag mask—who murdered his ex-wife.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marshall Thompson</span> American actor (1925–1992)

James Marshall Thompson was an American film and television actor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Faith Domergue</span> American actress

Faith Marie Domergue was an American film and television actress. Discovered at age 16 by media and aircraft mogul Howard Hughes, she was signed to a contract with Hughes's RKO Radio Pictures and cast as the lead in the studio's thriller Vendetta, which had a troubled four-year production before finally being released in 1950.

<i>Sssssss</i> 1973 film by Bernard L. Kowalski

Sssssss is a 1973 American horror film starring Strother Martin, Dirk Benedict and Heather Menzies. It was directed by Bernard L. Kowalski and written by Hal Dresner and Daniel C. Striepeke, the latter of whom also produced the film. The make-up effects were created by John Chambers and Nick Marcellino. It received a nomination for the Best Science Fiction Film award of the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films in 1975.

<i>Punnami Naagu</i> (1980 film) 1980 Indian film

Punnami Naagu is a 1980 Indian Telugu-language horror drama film directed by Rajasekhar and produced by AVM Productions. The film brought recognition to Chiranjeevi and his first Filmfare nomination. The other leads in the film, including Rati Agnihotri, Narasimha Raju and Padmanabham played important roles. The film was released on 13 June 1980. It is a remake of the director's own Kannada film Hunnimeya Rathriyalli. It also marked the Telugu debut for Malayalam actress, Menaka G. Suresh.

<i>King Cobra</i> (1999 film) 1999 American film

King Cobra is a 1999 Trimark Pictures direct to video horror/sci-fi film directed by Scott Hillenbrand and David Hillenbrand with featured special effects by The Chiodo Brothers. Starring Pat Morita, Scott Hillenbrand, Hoyt Axton, Joseph Ruskin, and Courtney Gains, the film was released April 27, 1999.

<i>The Prowler</i> (1981 film) 1981 American slasher film by Joseph Zito

The Prowler is a 1981 American slasher film directed by Joseph Zito, written by Neal Barbera and Glenn Leopold, and starring Vicky Dawson, Christopher Goutman, Lawrence Tierney, Cindy Weintraub, and Farley Granger. The film follows a group of college students in a coastal California town who are stalked and murdered during a graduation party by an apparent World War II veteran who killed his ex-girlfriend in 1945.

<i>The Snake Woman</i> 1961 British horror film by Sidney J. Furie

The Snake Woman is a low budget black-and-white 1961 British horror film directed by Sidney J. Furie and starring Susan Travers and John McCarthy. It was produced by George Fowler. The film is set in a small English village at the turn of the 20th century. It tells the story of Atheris, a young woman who has the power to transform from human to cobra, and the Scotland Yard detective sent to investigate a series of deaths, unusual because all the victims died after being bitten by snakes that are not native to the UK.

<i>The Flesh and Blood Show</i> 1972 British film by Pete Walker

The Flesh and Blood Show is a 1972 British horror slasher film directed and produced by Pete Walker, and starring Ray Brooks, Jenny Hanley, and Luan Peters. It follows a group of actors being stalked and murdered by an unseen assailant while rehearsing a play at a derelict seaside theatre.

<i>Venom</i> (comic book) Several comic book series by Marvel Comics

Venom is the title of several American comic book series published by Marvel Comics focusing on the various heroic and villainous incarnations of the character Venom, which have usually consisted of a human host and amorphous alien being called a symbiote. The first incarnation of the character was the one created by the third and current human host to the symbiote, Eddie Brock, and—since 2011—its fifth host, Flash Thompson. Beginning with Venom: Lethal Protector, eighteen limited series following Brock's adventures were published monthly between February 1993 and January 1998. A monthly Venom series began publication in 2003, following a new character, Patricia Robertson, and a clone of the original symbiote. The series concluded in 2004 after 18 issues. In 2011 another monthly series, following the adventures of Flash Thompson, was launched. The series resumed with vol. 3, vol. 4, and vol. 5 from 2016 to present.

<i>Widow Blue!</i> 1970 American film

Widow Blue! is a 1970 pornographic horror film written and directed by Walt Davis and starring Alex Elliot, Walt Davis, Charles Lish, Rick Cassidy, John Holmes, Andy Bellamy, Susan Wescott, and Sandy Dempsey.

<i>Holidays</i> (2016 film) 2016 American film

Holidays is a 2016 American horror anthology film of short horror films, each inspired by a different celebration. The directors include Kevin Smith, Gary Shore, Adam Egypt Mortimer, Scott Stewart, Nicholas McCarthy, Dennis Widmyer and Kevin Kolsch, Sarah Adina Smith, and Anthony Scott Burns.

<i>Legacy of Satan</i> 1974 American film

Legacy of Satan is a 1974 horror film written and directed by Gerard Damiano. It stars John Francis, Lisa Christian, Paul Barry, Deborah Horlen and Sandra Peabody, who respectively portray Dr. Muldavo, Maya, George, the High Priestess, and a cult member. Set in New York, the film revolves around Maya (Christian), a young woman who is chosen to be the queen of a satanic cult, and her descent into madness when her normal life is hindered by a series of evocative dreams. Originally written as a hardcore film, Damiano ultimately decided to rewrite it as a psychological horror film.

<i>Jaws of Satan</i> 1982 film by Bob Claver

Jaws of Satan, also called by its working title King Cobra, is a 1982 American horror film directed by Bob Claver, and starring Fritz Weaver, Gretchen Corbett, Jon Korkes, and Christina Applegate, in her feature film debut. Its plot follows a preacher from a cursed family who is forced to battle Satan, who has taken the form of a huge King cobra and is also influencing other regular snakes in the area.

<i>1BR</i> 2019 film by David Marmor

1BR is a 2019 American horror thriller film written and directed by David Marmor, in his directorial debut. The title is an abbreviation of "one bedroom", commonly seen in real estate listings. The film premiered at Fantasia International Film Festival in July 2019, and was released in the United States in 2020. The film follows the story of Sarah, an aspiring costume designer who moves into a one-bedroom apartment in Los Angeles, unaware that the complex is owned by a cult who use torture to force new residents to join their community.

<i>Watcher</i> (film) 2022 film by Chloe Okuno

Watcher is a 2022 psychological thriller film written and directed by Chloe Okuno in her feature directorial debut, based on an original screenplay by Zack Ford. The film stars Maika Monroe, Karl Glusman, and Burn Gorman.

References

  1. Maine, David (14 March 2013). "'Cult of the Cobra' (1955)". PopMatters . popmatters.com. Archived from the original on 2 September 2017. Retrieved 2 September 2017.
  2. Erickson, Glenn (September 13, 2007). "The Classic Sci-Fi Ultimate Collection Vol. 2". DVD Talk . dvdtalk.com. Archived from the original on 16 October 2016. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
  3. Hendershot, Cynthia (2001). I was a Cold War Monster: Horror Films, Eroticism, and the Cold War Imagination. Popular Press. p. 58. ISBN   9780879728496.
  4. Parla, Paul; Mitchell, Charles P. (2000). Screen Sirens Scream!: Interviews with 20 Actresses from Science Fiction, Horror, Film Noir, and Mystery Movies, 1930s to 1960s. MaFarland. p. 71. ISBN   9780786407019.
  5. "The Classic Sci-Fi Ultimate Collection 1 & 2". DVD Beaver. dvdbeaver.com. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
  6. Martin, Mildred. "Stanton Offers 'Cult of Cobra'". The Philadelphia Inquirer, 9 April 1955.

Bibliography