The Mephisto Waltz

A tale of diabolism with a plot familiar from Rosemary's Baby; but where Polanski's film developed into a complex investigation of doubt and fear as well as evil, this is anything but subtle. Alda plays an ex-musician turned writer of music ready to trade wife and child for a career, Bisset his down-to-earth, fearful wife who follows her man even into Satanism. The Devil-worshipping couple are a world famous concert pianist (Jürgens) dying of leukemia, and his daughter (Parkins), whose incestuous relationship is continued after her father's death through his usurping of the younger man's personality and hands. Wendkos seems prone to script troubles with his movies, and this is no exception; he goes all out to kill it, shooting with heavily greased lens from every conceivable angle, exiling normality to periphery. Bizarre and vulgar, certainly, but also very hard to follow.