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THE DARK SECRET OF HARVEST HOME (1978, starring Bette Davis)
Eerie. Not every film can be summed up in one word, but eerie is precisely
the word to describe and encapsulate this fine thriller based on the novel
HARVEST HOME by former actor turned novelist, Thomas Tryon.
Tryon wrote a number of spooky best-sellers. One wonders if he was motivated
to write horror stories by his equally horrific experiences as an actor working
for Otto Preminger, who apparently verbally and psychologically abused him to no
end while directing him in THE CARDINAL and IN HARM’S WAY.
Whatever the impulse, Tryon created superb source material for one of Bette
Davis’ last performances.
A commercial artist and his wife and daughter move to small-town America and
encounter an old-world populace who seem to shun everything progressive and
modern. Of course they’re hiding a terrible secret that involves murder, ritual
and ghastly goings-on that I’ll let you discover for yourself.
This two hour video version of a 3 and one half hour TV mini series leaves
you wondering what the full-length version must be like. While the story is 
deliberately and leisurely paced, it is always involving. One can only hope that
MCA/UA well get their act together and release the complete film.
Being a late seventies TV film, there are certain restrictions on what can be
shown, but by and large, this works in the film’s favour, demanding more
creativity on the part of the filmmakers. I strongly concur that less is more
(most of the time) especially in suspense/thriller/horror films. There is
nothing scarier or more potent than one’s own imagination.
If I have any reservation about this film it is the fact that it seems choppy
in spots, no doubt because of its edited down length. In one particularly 
chilling moment, Bette Davis wields a sinister-looking pair of long scissors. It
seems utterly credible that those same scissors were used to expunge much of the
story down to a presumably more commercial length. Pity.
THE DARK SECRET OF HARVEST HOME is available on video, but is very expensive
to purchase. And while difficult to find on the shelf at the local video store,
it is another gem available through the rental service The Video Library in
Philadelphia.
If you’ve never seen this chiller, I highly recommend it. Contact The Video
Library and they’ll deliver it right to your door.
And as always, turn the lights down first. That’s the best way to watch a
scary movie. It encourages one’s imagination
Jon Ted Wynne
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