The Witches (1966 film)
| The Witches | |
|---|---|
Theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | Cyril Frankel |
| Produced by | Anthony Nelson Keys |
| Written by | Peter Curtis aka Norah Lofts |
| Based on | The Devil's Own (novel) |
| Starring |
Joan Fontaine Kay Walsh Alec McCowen Ann Bell Ingrid Boulting (billed as Ingrid Brett) |
| Music by | Richard Rodney Bennett |
| Cinematography | Arthur Grant |
| Edited by | Chris Barnes James Needs |
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Production
company |
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| Distributed by |
Associated British-Pathé (United Kingdom) 20th Century Fox (United States) |
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Release date
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21 November 1966 (London) February 1967 (United States) |
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Running time
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90 min. |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
The Witches (US: The Devil's Own) is a 1966 British horror film made by Hammer Films. It was adapted by Nigel Kneale from the novel The Devil's Own by Norah Lofts, published under the pseudonym Peter Curtis. It was directed by Cyril Frankel and starred Joan Fontaine (in her final feature-film performance), Alec McCowen, Kay Walsh, Ann Bell, Ingrid Boulting (billed as Ingrid Brett) and Gwen Ffrangcon Davies. This was the final big-screen film role for Fontaine.
The film opens with an English schoolteacher, Gwen Mayfield (Joan Fontaine), packing up her belongings at a mission school in colonial Africa. The local witch doctors have led a rebellion, and they reach the school before she is able to escape - the shaman wearing a body mask. Gwen screams, and the scene dissolves to the opening credits.
The next scene is back home in England, where Gwen meets with the apparently Reverend Alan Bax (Alec McCowen) for a job interview. We discover that Gwen suffered a nervous breakdown from whatever she experienced at the hand of the rebels when the school was attacked. Alan is impressed by Gwen and hires her to be the new head teacher at the small private school he and his sister, well-known journalist Stephanie Bax (Kay Walsh) run for the local children in the village of Heddaby.
Upon moving into the teacher's cottage, Gwen asks her maid, Valerie (Michele Dotrice) where she might find the rectory. Valerie is confused - she knows there is no rectory - until Gwen explains she would like to thank Mr Bax. "Oh, you mean the Baxes' house!" she says, and shows her the way after tea.
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