IMDb rating almost kept me away from this jewel. That would be a big mistake. The first hour is a mystery drama with SF premise, and then in the last twenty minutes it grows into good horror. In my opinion, few scenes with lousy effects should have been skipped and without them movie would be more convincing, but even this way this is the best Lovecraft adaptation I saw so far and one of the best movies in its class, primarily because of excellent atmosphere it builds and succeeds to maintain on the level till the very end. This one definitely goes to my collection.

7/10 (8,5/10 within the genre)

A number of things attracted me to this film. Firstly, the pretty artwork on the cover, showing a huge hand coming out of the ground clutching a house. Secondly, the fact that it was an Italian/American production, making the status a little bit more intriguing than the typical all-American crew. Thirdly, the fact that it is based on H.P. Lovecraft's classic horror tale, THE COLOUR OUT OF SPACE. As Lovecraft is one of my all-time favourite authors I couldn't really miss this opportunity; I mean even if the film was really bad it would still have a good premise.

While much of the film's direction is bland and strictly pedestrianised, there are some things in its favour. But firstly, the down side. The film was made in the mid '80s, and the influence is clear. I somehow thought that with the Italian involvement in the production, there might be some difference, but no, the television atmosphere is certainly there with an obvious low budget and rubbery effects. Also, the acting is uniformly bad in this film, with Wil Wheaton (young star of STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION) not being a strong enough actor to carry the film, in fact he is strictly mundane. His real-life sister is given little to do and lacks any of the personality of Heather O'Rourke, child actress of the POLTERGEIST series.

The actors playing the rest of the family overindulge themselves by overacting horribly, the worst offender being the boy playing the brother, who incredibly tries to play the disgusting premise of this film for laughs! Claude Akins is the only realistically effective character, his religious, stereotyped redneck a lot like the redneck in DEMENTED DEATH FARM MASSACRE: THE MOVIE(but which came first?). The rest of the cast are faceless and bland, including one blonde woman whose sole purpose is to walk around in lacy underwear in one scene.

Another bad factor is the score, which is constructed of loud, intrusive rock music, totally at odds with what little atmosphere that there is. However, if you stick with the film, you might find yourself enjoying it despite the many faults. For one, the story retains the essential ingredients of Lovecraft's tale, so for those of us who haven't read the story, the film will be freshly original. The special effects are mainly on the good side, apart from the absurd glowing meteorite which looks like a huge beach ball.

There is an effective montage showing the varied use of water on the farm, such as watering plants, drinking, feeding cattle, and of course we all know that there is something bad in the water and that there will be disastrous consequences. The images of rotted vegetation - especially the tomatoes, packed with maggots, are excellent, and other scenes like when a chicken dies and slime comes out of its eye are also effective, and highly reminiscent of the alien plants from CONTAMINATION.

Unfortunately in the last reel the film falls apart, quickly decimating the cast in a variety of non-violent ways, and it becomes just like any other middling '80s film. However, the makeup effects of the pulsating boils and the disintegration of the mother into a slimy, rotted thing are truly, wonderfully disgusting and well worth waiting for. The Italian influence on the film is clear, with roughly 40% of scenes having that Italian 'feel' to them, and interesting the associate producer is credited as Louis (Lucio?) Fulci, who knows if this is the maverick gore master or not? THE CURSE is an interesting but badly flawed adaptation of a Lovecraft story, worth seeing for fans who want something more than another generic slasher movie. For an earlier version of the same story, check out DIE, MONSTER, DIE!

A meteor falls in the farm of the religious man Nathan Hayes (Claude Akins). The local Dr. Alan Forbes (Cooper Huckabee) decides to call the appropriate authorities to investigate it. However, he is convinced by a speculator, who wishes to buy the lands, and by his sexy wife Esther Forbes (Hope North),who wants to move from that place, to analyze the meteor by himself. A dam will be built In this place and the value of the lands will increase, and Esther will receive an extra bonus from the speculator, if the Hayes sell their lands. Meanwhile, the meteor releases a strange substance in the water table, contaminating the water of Hayes` farm. The young Zachary Hayes (Wil Wheaton) notes that something weird is happening with his mother, but Nathan disregard his observation. Zachary`s family is affected by the water. This movie is a trash C-movie. I bought the VHS just because of Wil Wheaton, from Star Trek, but it is only indicated to fans of trash-movies. The special effects are very poor. My vote is four.

Title (Brazil): `A Maldição , Raízes do Terror' (`The Curse, Roots of Terror')