Starring Peter Wyngarde, Janet Blair and Margaret Johnston Night of the Eagle gets a restoration courtesy of StudioCanal as part of the cult classics collection.
The film is available on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital, with the striking original UK poster artwork featuring on the sleeve.
Based on the novel Conjure Wife by Fritz Leiber – a story so good it’s been filmed three times – Night of the Eagle (also known as Burn, Witch, Burn) is a taut and terrifying film that provides genuine chills, as well as a horrifying twist, and remains a much-loved cult classic to this day.
Directed by Sidney Hayers (Circus of Horrors), with a screenplay by three masters of the macabre, Richard Matheson (I Am Legend), Charles Beaumont (The Premature Burial) and George Baxt (Vampire Circus), it also features a marvellously eerie score by William Alwyn (A Night To Remember)
I love how the set comes with some cool art cards as part of the restoration bundle and the price point is reasonable with the Blu-Ray priced at £15 and the DVD is priced at £10.
Professor Norman Taylor (Peter Wyngarde) seemingly has it all: a great job, the envy of his colleagues, a happy marriage, and a healthy scepticism when it comes to the supernatural.
However, things begin to unravel when Taylor discovers that his wife Tansy (Janet Blair) has been practising witchcraft apparently in an effort to progress his career and to protect him from jealous colleagues.
Despite Tansy’s warnings, Taylor insists on destroying all of her magic paraphernalia and tries to carry on as normal, refusing to believe that his wife’s witchcraft could have been behind his success.
That is, until the very next day when things in his life start going badly wrong…
The film is set in a university town as our story revolves around Normal Taylor (Wyngarde) a sceptic who discovers his wife Tansy (Janet Blair) has been practising witchcraft to protect him from what she believes to be malevolent forces surrounding the university.
Packed full of suspense Night of the Eagle is certainly a slow burn but the eerie atmosphere keeps you going as well as competent cinematography and a lovely haunting score that will send chills down your spine.
The film explores themes of paranoia, belief, and the power of the mind. It serves as a cautionary tale about the dangers of dismissing the unknown and underestimating the potency of ancient beliefs in a modern world.
It’s a British classic horror and to this day continues to unsettle audiences. A wonderful choice for a horror movie night in and a solid choice to restore from StudioCanal
Get your copy today on Amazon HERE
