Seven Footprints to Satan
| Seven Footprints to Satan | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Benjamin Christensen |
| Produced by | Richard A. Rowland |
| Written by | Benjamin Christensen |
| Starring |
Thelma Todd Creighton Hale William V. Mong Sheldon Lewis |
| Cinematography | Sol Polito |
| Edited by | Frank Ware |
Production company |
First National Pictures |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. Pictures |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 60 minutes; 6 reels(5,405 feet) |
| Country | United States |
| Budget | $129,950[1] |
Seven Footprints to Satan is a 1929 American horror film directed by Danish filmmaker Benjamin Christensen. Based on the book of the same name by Abraham Merritt, it stars Thelma Todd, Creighton Hale, William V. Mong and Sheldon Lewis, and contains appearances by Sojin and Angelo Rossitto among others. It was produced as both a silent film and as a part-talkie, making it one of the last (if not the last) silent horror films.[2]
Plot summary
Jim and Eve, a young society couple, are kidnapped on the eve of Jim's departure for Africa and brought to a mansion that is home to a strange and glamorous Satanic cult.
Cast
- Thelma Todd - Eve
- Creighton Hale - Jim
- Sheldon Lewis - 'The Spider'
- William V. Mong - The Professor
- Sojin -
- Laska Winters - Satan's Mistress
- Ivan Christy - Jim's Valet
- DeWitt Jennings - Uncle Joe
- Nora Cecil - The Old Witch
- Kalla Pasha - Professor Von Viede
- Harry Tenbrook - Eve's Chaueffeur
- Cissy Fitzgerald - The Old Lady
- Angelo Rossitto - The Dwarf
- Thelma McNeil - The Tall Girl
uncredited players
- Charles Gemora - Gorilla
- Louis Mercier - Satanist
- Julian Rivero - Satanist
- Dick Sutherland - Bit
- Loretta Young - One of Satan's Victims
Production
Seven Footprints to Satan is the fifth of seven films made by Christensen during his tenure in Hollywood, and is one of only four that survive in a relatively complete state (Eagle's Nest and Haunted House are believed to be lost; House of Horror exists only in sound elements). Seven Footprints to Satan is also notable one of the first films of Loretta Young, who appears uncredited as an extra.[3]
Release and Availability
Seven Footprints to Satan was released as both a silent film and as a sound film with Vitaphone musical score (after first talking picture The Terror (1928), sound effects and some dialogue sequences. Despite some negative reviews from such publications as the New York Times, the film performed well at the box office. A companion Photoplay edition of the Merritt novel (published by Grosset & Dunlap and featuring several stills from the film) also sold extremely well. Ayn Rand was one commentator who endorsed the film.[4]
According to Internet reviews, only a silent version of the film, with Italian intertitles, is currently available for viewing.[5]
References
- ↑ Donati, William. The Life and Death of Thelma Todd. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company, Inc. p. 35 Accessed 29 April 2013
- ↑ Clarens, Carlos. An Illustrated History of Horror and Science-fiction Films. New York, NY: Putnam. p. 57. Accessed 58
- ↑ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0020004/trivia
- ↑ Nicoletta, Henry and John T. Soister. American Silent Horror, Science Fiction and Fantasy Feature Films, 1913-1929. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company, Inc. p. 508. Accessed 29 April 2013
- ↑ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0020004/usercomments
External links
- Seven Footprints to Satan at the Internet Movie Database
- Grosset & Dunlap's Photoplay Edition (Link defunct.)
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