Retro Movie: Occult Terror in "Equinox"

Edward Connell and Barbara Hewitt in Equinox

There are films that leave a lasting impression on you, especially if you first saw them as a young monster movie fan. Even if the film isn't considered a classic, like King Kong or The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms, there are movies that remain in your memory, because there's something about them that captures your imagination. For me, one such movie is Equinox (1970), a frightening tale of the supernatural that began life as a short film directed by Dennis Muren, who later worked on the special effects for films like Star Wars, The Abyss and Jurassic Park. Along with his friends Jim Danforth and Dave Allen (both of whom also went on to produce effects work for a number of films and TV series), Muren created a film titled The Equinox: A Journey Into The Supernatural (1967), which featured some excellent stop-motion animation, inspired by the celebrated work of Ray Harryhausen. The script for the film was penned by another member of Muren's circle, Mark Thomas McGee.

After an independent film company showed interest in distributing the movie, producer Jack H. Harris (The Blob, The 4D Man) hired director Jack Woods to shoot additional footage to expand the short film to feature length. The cast includes Edward Connell, Barbara Hewitt, Robin Christopher, and Frank Boers, aka Frank Bonner, who later co-starred on WKRP in Cincinnati. Fantasy author Fritz Lieber and director Woods also appear in supporting roles. Released in 1970, and retitled simply Equinox, the film concerns two couples who have a frightening encounter with the supernatural. As the film opens, a reporter visits David Fielding, a patient at a psychiatric facility. The reporter wants to interview him about a series of events that took place a year earlier, which led to the deaths of David's three friends, and left him in a catatonic state.

David's doctor plays the reporter a tape of an interview he conducted with the young man. David, his friend Jim Hudson, and their girlfriends Susan and Vicki, ventured into the woods to see Dr. Waterman, David's college professor. Waterman had asked David to visit, so he could share a discovery with him. The quartet don't find Dr. Waterman at first, but they do discover that his cabin is in ruins, and they find a mysterious book which seems to be able to conjure up dark, supernatural forces. There's a creepy park ranger named Asmodeus, who keeps following them around, and several monstrous creatures appear to terrorize our heroes. As a result of these chilling encounters, only David survives, and Asmodeus promises that, in a year and a day, David will also succumb to the forces of evil. It just so happens that the reporter is visiting David to talk about these experiences exactly one year and a day later!

Equinox displays its low-budget origins, and the cast sometimes shows its inexperience, but the film is eerie and atmospheric, and the effects sequences by Muren, Danforth and Allen are excellent. I first saw the movie in my younger days when it was shown on a late-night horror film showcase in the New York area. The movie has gained a solid cult following in the ensuing years, and both George Lucas and the late Ray Harryhausen, among others, have declared themselves fans of the film. In 2006, the movie was released on a two-disc special edition DVD as part of the prestigious Criterion Collection. In addition to showcasing the early work of a group of modern masters of special effects, Equinox definitely feels like a precursor and spiritual forefather to the original The Evil Dead (1981), directed by Sam Raimi. Here's a look at a vintage trailer for the film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tctHCMAi8jw.