The Hearse

Last updated
The Hearse
The Hearse.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by George Bowers
Written byWilliam Bleich
Produced byMark Tenser
Starring
CinematographyMori Kawa
Edited byGeorge Berndt
Music by Webster Lewis
Production
company
Marimark Productions
Distributed by Crown International Pictures
Release date
  • June 6, 1980 (1980-06-06)(New York) [1]
Running time
100 minutes [1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$2.8 million [2]

The Hearse is a 1980 American supernatural horror film directed by George Bowers and starring Trish Van Devere and Joseph Cotten. It follows a schoolteacher from San Francisco who relocates to a small town in northern California to spend the summer in a house she inherited from her deceased aunt, only to uncover her aunt's past as a devil worshipper, which seems to trigger a series of supernatural occurrences.

Contents

Plot

Jane Hardy, a schoolteacher in San Francisco, suffers a nervous breakdown following a divorce and the simultaneous death of her mother. To emotionally recover, she decides to spend the summer in the rural town of Blackford in a home left to her by her late aunt, Rebecca. Upon arriving, she is given keys to the house by Walter Pritchard, a local attorney who claims Jane's mother once promised to bestow him the property. Shortly after moving in, Jane begins experiencing supernatural occurrences, including witnessing apparitions of Rebecca, and a ghostly black hearse driven by a mysterious man that pulls into the driveway before vanishing. Furthermore, she is unsettled by the locals' passive-aggressive reactions to her presence in the town, including from Pritchard, who is deliberately unhurried to place the house in her name.

Jane hires Paul, the son of the local hardware store owner, to help her make repairs on the home. She finds a trunk in the attic full of her aunt's personal mementos, including a diary in which she wrote of her life as a minister's wife. Late one night, Jane crashes her car on the way home and is given a ride by Tom Sullivan, a mysterious but kind man passing by in a vintage black car. Tom pays for a tow truck for Jane and returns the following night with her car. Jane accepts his invitation to go boating on a nearby lake.

Later that night, Jane uncovers more details from Rebecca's diary that reveal she was indoctrinated by her boyfriend Robert, a devil worshipper, and convinced was to join him in a pact with Satan. Shortly after, she has a vivid nightmare in which she is taken away by the hearse as her aunt watches from the house, and Jane observes her own funeral. Jane's mental stability is further challenged by other odd goings-on in the home, including the sounds of what she believes are people breaking in at night. She later sees a woman from one of her nightmares at the local church, but her fears are assuaged by the Reverend Winston.

Once the house is finally probated to Jane, Pritchard confirms to her that Rebecca worshipped Satan, and that upon her death, the hearse carrying her body crashed on the nearby road; the driver of the hearse, along with Rebecca's body and her coffin, inexplicably disappeared. Since this event, locals have been haunted by the image of the hearse. Meanwhile, Jane continues her romance with Tom, and after a date, invites him into her home, where they have sex. Jane's romance with Tom upsets Paul, who expresses that he too is attracted to her.

One night, after Tom fails to arrive for a date, a drunken Pritchard begins vandalizing the home, causing Jane to flee in terror. Paul arrives shortly after to leave flowers for Jane, only to be attacked by an unseen assailant. Meanwhile, Jane arrives at Tom's house, but finds it inexplicably abandoned and dilapidated; she finds a framed antique photo of a young Rebecca with Tom. Behind the home, Jane finds a gravestone inscribed "Robert Thomas Sullivan". Terrified, Jane returns to her home to pack her belongings, intending to leave. In the bathroom, she finds Pritchard's corpse hanging in the shower, along with Paul's body.

Jane is confronted by Tom, who professes his love for her and explains that Rebecca was "too weak" and did not fulfill her pact with Satan. Promising Jane eternal life, he begins to cast a spell on her, but is interrupted by the Reverend Winston, who begins an exorcism to save Jane. She flees in her car, followed by Tom driving the hearse. The chase ends in a collision that causes the hearse to topple off a cliff and explode. Back at the home, an apparition of Rebecca appears in the window as the house goes dark.

Cast

Production

Principal photography took place in San Francisco and Bradbury, California, beginning October 29, 1979. [1] Filming was completed by January 1980. [1]

Two 1952 Packard Funeral Coaches, converted by Henney Motor Company, were used in the film. [3] One of them is prominently featured on the film's poster.

Release

The Hearse premiered in New York City on June 6, 1980, and had its Los Angeles premiere on September 12 of that year. [1]

Critical response

Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times wrote, "The Hearse qualifies as this summer's garage sale of horror movies. It contains all the best clichés from recent, more successful horror movies (especially [The] Amityville [Horror] and even The Changeling , which came out last April and starred Van Devere, her husband George C. Scott and, of course, the obligatory self-banging doors and self-playing musical instruments)." [4]

Janet Maslin of The New York Times said, "The Hearse was directed by George Bowers, and shot either in a very stylized fashion or without benefit of a light meter – many of the film's outdoor scenes feature brilliant blue skies and actors with dim, shadowy faces. As far as the horror goes, Mr. Bowers makes his film moderately scary and pretty unpleasant, too. No one gets a hatchet in the forehead, though, the way one of the actors does in Friday the 13th . Isn't that nice to know?" [5]

Home media

Rhino Entertainment released The Hearse on DVD on February 12, 2002. [6] In May 2017, Vinegar Syndrome released the film in a Blu-ray/DVD combination pack, featuring a newly restored 2K scan of the original film elements. [7]

Related Research Articles

<i>Lemora</i> 1975 film by Richard Blackburn

Lemora is a 1973 American horror film written and directed by Richard Blackburn, and starring Cheryl Smith, Hy Pyke, and Lesley Gilb. It follows a young girl in Prohibition-era America who travels to a mysterious town to visit her father, and uncovers a coterie of vampires. It was also released under the alternate titles Lemora: A Child's Tale of the Supernatural, The Legendary Curse of Lemora, and Lemora, Lady Dracula.

<i>Gaslight</i> (1944 film) Film by George Cukor

Gaslight is a 1944 American psychological thriller film directed by George Cukor, and starring Charles Boyer, Ingrid Bergman, Joseph Cotten and Angela Lansbury in her film debut. Adapted by John Van Druten, Walter Reisch, and John L. Balderston from Patrick Hamilton's play Gas Light (1938), it follows a young woman whose husband slowly manipulates her into believing that she is descending into insanity.

<i>The Fog</i> (2005 film) 2005 film by Rupert Wainwright

The Fog is a 2005 supernatural horror film directed by Rupert Wainwright and starring Tom Welling, Selma Blair, and Maggie Grace. It is a remake of John Carpenter's 1980 film of the same name and was produced by Carpenter and Debra Hill who co-wrote the original film.

<i>Lady Frankenstein</i> 1971 film

Lady Frankenstein is a 1971 Italian horror film directed by Mel Welles and written by Edward di Lorenzo. It stars Rosalba Neri, Joseph Cotten, Mickey Hargitay and Paul Müller.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trish Van Devere</span> American actress

Trish Van Devere is a retired American actress. She was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for the film One Is a Lonely Number (1972), and won a Genie Award for the film The Changeling (1980). She is the widow of actor George C. Scott, with whom she appeared in multiple films.

<i>Burnt Offerings</i> (film) 1976 film by Dan Curtis

Burnt Offerings is a 1976 American supernatural horror film co-written and directed by Dan Curtis and starring Karen Black, Oliver Reed, Bette Davis, and Lee H. Montgomery, with Eileen Heckart, Burgess Meredith and Anthony James in supporting roles. It is based on the 1973 novel of the same name by Robert Marasco. The plot follows a family who begins to interpersonally dissolve under supernatural forces in a large estate they have rented for the summer.

<i>The Blood on Satans Claw</i> 1971 film

The Blood on Satan's Claw is a 1971 British supernatural horror film directed by Piers Haggard and starring Patrick Wymark, Linda Hayden, and Barry Andrews. Set in early 18th-century England, it follows the residents of a rural village whose youth fall under the influence of a demonic presence after a local farmer unearths a mysterious deformed skull buried in a field.

<i>Amityville Dollhouse</i> 1996 American film

Amityville Dollhouse is a 1996 American supernatural horror film directed by Steve White and starring Robin Thomas, Allen Cutler, Lenore Kasdorf, and Lisa Robin Kelly. The film follows a family who find themselves haunted after discovering a dollhouse replica of 112 Ocean Avenue—the site of the Amityville hauntings—on their property, which is possessed by a powerful demon. It is the eighth film in the Amityville Horror film series and was released directly to video. This was the last film in the series released before it was rebooted nine years later.

<i>Ill Be Seeing You</i> (1944 film) 1944 drama film directed by William Dieterle

I'll Be Seeing You is a 1944 American drama film made by Selznick International Pictures, Dore Schary Productions, and Vanguard Pictures, and distributed by United Artists. It stars Joseph Cotten, Ginger Rogers, and Shirley Temple, with Spring Byington, Tom Tully, and John Derek. It was produced by Dore Schary, with David O. Selznick as executive producer. The screenplay was by Marion Parsonnet, based on a radio play by Charles Martin (1910-1983).

<i>The Brotherhood of Satan</i> 1971 film by Bernard McEveety

The Brotherhood of Satan is a 1971 American supernatural horror film directed by Bernard McEveety, written by L. Q. Jones, and starring Jones, Alvy Moore, Strother Martin, and Ahna Capri. It follows a man who, while traveling through the American Southwest with his young daughter and girlfriend, encounter a small town where a coven of Satanists are kidnapping the local children to transfer their own souls into their bodies.

<i>Cannibal Apocalypse</i> 1980 film

Cannibal Apocalypse is a 1980 action horror film directed by Antonio Margheriti and starring John Saxon, Elizabeth Turner, Giovanni Lombardo Radice, Cinzia De Carolis, Tony King and Ramiro Oliveros. The film combines the cannibal film genre with a forerunner of Margheriti's Vietnam War films.

<i>Shock</i> (1977 film) 1977 Italian supernatural horror film directed by Mario Bava

Shock is a 1977 Italian supernatural horror film directed by Mario Bava and starring Daria Nicolodi, John Steiner, and David Colin, Jr. Its plot focuses on a woman who moves into the home she shared with her deceased former husband, where she finds herself tormented by supernatural occurrences. It was Bava's last theatrical feature before he died of a heart attack in 1980.

<i>Satans School for Girls</i> (1973 film) 1973 American TV series or program

Satan's School for Girls is a 1973 American made-for-television horror film directed by David Lowell Rich, and produced by Aaron Spelling. The film has been named as one of the most memorable television movies of the 1970s.

<i>The Awakening</i> (2011 film) 2011 British film

The Awakening is a 2011 British supernatural drama film directed by Nick Murphy and written by Stephen Volk and Murphy. The film stars Rebecca Hall as a writer and ghost hunter who investigates the haunting of a boys' boarding school in post-World War I England. The ensemble cast includes Dominic West, Isaac Hempstead-Wright and Imelda Staunton.

<i>Terror</i> (1978 film) Supernatural horror film by Norman J. Warren

Terror is a 1978 British supernatural horror slasher film written by David McGillivray and directed by Norman J. Warren. It stars John Nolan and Carolyn Courage as two cousins who fall victim to a curse that a witch placed on their ancestors.

<i>The House That Would Not Die</i> American TV series or program

The House That Would Not Die is a 1970 American made-for-television supernatural horror film starring Barbara Stanwyck, Richard Egan, Michael Anderson Jr. and Kitty Winn. It premiered as the ABC Movie of the Week on October 27, 1970.

<i>The House That Vanished</i> 1973 British film

The House That Vanished is a 1973 British-Spanish exploitation horror film directed by José Ramón Larraz, written by Derek Ford, and starring Andrea Allan, Karl Lanchbury, and Judy Matheson. Its plot follows a young fashion model who witnesses a murder in an abandoned house in the woods, but is unable to relocate it after reporting the crime to police.

<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>The Night House</i> 2020 film directed by David Bruckner

The Night House is a 2020 supernatural psychological horror film directed by David Bruckner and written by Ben Collins and Luke Piotrowski. It stars Rebecca Hall as a widow who discovers a dark secret about the house her recently deceased architect husband built. Other cast members are Sarah Goldberg, Evan Jonigkeit, Stacy Martin, and Vondie Curtis-Hall.

<i>Rest in Pieces</i> (film) 1987 Spanish/U.S.-made slasher film

Rest in Pieces is a 1987 horror film directed by José Ramón Larraz and starring Scott Thompson Baker, Lorin Jean Vail, and Dorothy Malone. Its plot follows a young wife and her husband who inherit her wealthy aunt's mansion, only to find the home harbors dark secrets.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "The Hearse". AFI Catalog of Feature Films . American Film Institute. Archived from the original on June 14, 2020.
  2. ↑ Donahue, Suzanne Mary (1987). American film distribution : the changing marketplace. UMI Research Press. p. 294. ISBN   9780835717762. Please note figures are for rentals in US and Canada
  3. ↑ "Packard Funeral Coach in "The Hearse"".
  4. ↑ Ebert, Roger (June 7, 1980). "The Hearse". Chicago Sun-Times . Retrieved 2011-05-04.
  5. ↑ Maslin, Janet (June 7, 1980). "The Hearse is Ghoulish Concoction". Movies. The New York Times . Retrieved 2011-05-04.
  6. ↑ "The Hearse [DVD]". Amazon. 12 February 2002. Archived from the original on June 14, 2020.
  7. ↑ Alexander, Chris (May 15, 2017). "The Hearse Blu-ray Review". ComingSoon.net . Archived from the original on June 14, 2020.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.