CROWHAVEN FARM (1970, starring Hope Lange)

Movies made for television are nothing new. The ‘Movie Of the Week’ (MOW) hit its zenith in the 1970s. Though a lot of these films were forgettable, some were extremely good.

Within the confines of low budgets and short production schedules, a surprising amount of creativity was exercised. These films could be compared to the B movies (second features) of the 1940s and ‘50s.

One fine little thriller from this prolific period is CROWHAVEN FARM. It’s a taut, well-made film that tells a supernatural tale with many familiar elements (satanic ritual, sacrifice, pacts with the Devil, a woman desperate to have a baby-- you know).

Despite its familiarity, this film really works. I saw it as a teenager and the image of Hope Lange been ‘pressed’ struck me as terrifying. It’s still rather unsettling, especially as the ‘pressers’ go about their slow torture in absolute, determined silence. (Pressing was a means of torture and even execution whereby the victim was covered from the neck down with a platform resembling a sturdy old-style door. The ‘pressing’ occurred when large, heavy stones were placed on the platform, slowly and methodically, one after the other, literally pressing the life out of the victim).

I was recently able to acquire a so-so quality video of this film from a mail order company called The Video Junkie. They have a number of very obscure titles that will appeal to serious collectors.

The quality of the video is mediocre. A studio release would be much preferred, but if you like this film or if you think you’d like to discover it, obtaining it through The Video Junkie is your only current course of action.

Hope Lange and Paul Burke (whatever became of them?) star as a couple of New Yorkers who move to the country when she inherits an old farm. An assortment of townspeople leave you wondering who’s a bad guy and who’s not. The plot also involves reincarnation, something I personally disbelieve, but which was fairly hip in the ‘70s. (If nothing else, it’s a good plot element for this type of film).

CROWHAVEN FARM has no major shocks, rather it affects with an atmospheric dread. For fans of the supernatural thriller genre, I recommend this eerie little film. It stays with you long after you’ve seen it.

Jon Ted Wynne