MONSTER MOVIE OF THE WEEK: DEVIL DOG: THE HOUND OF HELL (1978)

DEVIL DOG: THE HOUND OF HELL (1978)
Director: Curtis Harrington
Genre: Occult

THE MOVIE

The 1978 TV movie Devil Dog fits firmly into the paranoid occult thriller genre, popularized by movies like Rosemary’s Baby and The Omen, that was so popular in the 1970’s. I guess by the time 1978 rolled around, satanic cultists had exhausted all of the good schemes to bring about Armageddon and had now become with content with bringing forth Satan’s puppy. ‘Cause when the Antichrist comes around, he’s going to need a pet.

In the movie’s creepy opening, some cultists purchase a dog from a local breeder and use her in a rite to summon an evil spirit. There's lots of chanting and candles and creepy artwork. An evil wind blows in and we are left to wonder at the poor dog's fate. It is never sufficiently explained what the purpose is of this ritual or what the overarching plan is of breeding a litter of devil dogs.

Why you shouldn't decorate your kitchen while on LSD.

After a suburban family’s dog is killed under suspicious circumstances, a man shows up with a litter of puppies. This man is folksy and friendly in the way of all movie Satanists and he kindly gives the family’s jarringly perky and independent children one of his devil-puppies. Soon, the cute German Shepard puppy uses its glowing eyes to turn the kids into secretive, short-tempered, a-holes…or contemporary teenagers.

The dog also causes several strange accidents and deaths of people who threaten to expose the dog’s influence on the kids, such as the family’s flamboyantly Catholic maid, Maria, who gets a “cheel” upon first seeing the dog. After a year, only the father remains free of the devil dog’s grasp, and he soon becomes paranoid and isolated.

It's Rosemary's Puppy.

Before long, the father consults a psychic, who advises him in her occult library full of old leatherbound books. In hushed, dramatic, tones she tells him of the demon that has taken over his family. For reasons that are not entirely clear, the man travels to a very unconvincing Ecuador, where he is advised by a Southwestern shaman who shows him how to battle the beast.

Devil Dog is a great piece of vintage 1970’s cheese. This is another movie that was on heavy rotation on my household in the 1980’s, no doubt taped off TV onto a Betamax cassette. I like to think of it as a period at the end 1970's occult thriller sentence.


THE MONSTER/EFFECTS

The Devil Dog usually looks like a normal German Shepard, whose eyes occasionally glow to indicate use of evil powers. However, Devil Dog sometimes reveals his true form, which is something like a giant rotweiller with horns and seemingly wearing a feather boa. This dog is usually smoky and badly composited into the shot. He is much less scary than I remember.

Devil Dog, you better work!

DVD AVAILABILITY

A bare bones DVD is available. Its on Netflix.

SEQUELS

None.

Richard Crenna, doing his best Iron Man.

SEE ALSO

Rosemary’s Baby 1968, The Omen 1976

THE TRAILER