The devil wears pigtails in Giulio Paradisi’s somewhat familiar and yet utterly bizarre ode to 1970s American horror cinema, The Visitor. Universally panned upon its release in 1979, this Italian cult classic and ultimate midnight movie has now been unleashed unto unsuspecting audiences on DVD and Blu-ray.
Katy Collins (Paige Conner) is no ordinary schoolgirl, in fact, she’s not a schoolgirl at all; she’s the reincarnation of Sateen, an ancient evil with telekinetic powers. But Katy’s abilities are coveted by the evil Raymond (Lance Henriksen) and feared by the godly Jerzy (John Huston), and so begins a battle between both sides for Katy’s life and her powers.
Originally conceived as an Italian rip-off of The Exorcist (Italy’s film industry was notorious for ‘remaking’ hit films in the ’70s) The Visitor is, in reality, The Exorcist meets The Omen, meets The Omen Part II, meets Close Encounters of the Third Kind – if the latter had a heavy dose of horror thrown in for good measure.
The Visitor has it all: a classic battle between God and the Devil, an ancient evil, and the all-important war to save the universe from a bedevilled child with bunches. And this is the main problem with the movie: too many subplots, film tropes, and a style of Italian filmmaking that did not translate well to American audiences. Yet, despite its flaws, the film has become something of a cult hit in recent years thanks to its somewhat ropey special effects, confusing story and surprising all-star cast – incuding Shelley Winters, Sam Peckinpah and an uncredited Franco Nero as an intergalactic, all-knowing, cosmic Messiah – keeping audiences entertained, if not bemused, for nearly two hours.
Slipping between sci-fi, horror and detective story, The Visitor is that rarest of beasts: a wonderfully unique movie, but probably one that needs to be viewed with friends at midnight to be truly appreciated.