10 October: The Viy

Today for the Cinematic Void’s 31 Days of Voidoween, make sure your papers are in order, because we are crossing the border and venturing into the realm of “Foreign Language Horror.” We will be traveling by plane, train, and mule cart to old Mother Russia to talk about the first Soviet-era horror film to be officially released in the USSR, Mosfilm’s 1967 adaptation of a Nicolai Gogol novella, The Viy.

While on his way home from the seminary, Khoma Brutus and two friends spend the night at an out of the way farmhouse. During the evening, an old woman puts Khoma under a spell and rides him through the air. After landing, Khoma beats the old woman with a stick. During the beating, the old crone becomes a young woman.

So far, it sounds like a usual night in Kiev.

Upon returning to his monastery, Khoma is told that his presence has been requested by a rich Cossack. The man’s daughter is dying, and she personally asked for Khoma Brutus to come and pray for her soul. At the Cossack’s estate, Khoma is locked in the chapel with the girl’s body. She is the same young woman who was the witch who rode Khoma’s back.

Again, nothing out of the ordinary so far as I can tell.

For three nights, Khoma is locked in with the corpse, and for three nights the corpse comes to life to torture the young priest. Each night is worse than the one before until, on the final night, the young woman calls on skeletons, demons, and imps to attack Khoma. Finally, after all else fails, the corpse calls on Viy - a horrific monster that even scares the other demons - to come for the priest.

I love the special effects in this picture. They have a simple, rough-and-ready feel that is incredibly inventive and imaginative as well as transparent in how they pulled it off. You have a lot of rear projection, moveable stage backgrounds to mimic travel through the countryside, forced perspective, stop-motion -- you name it, the filmmakers tossed it on the screen. The final demonic attack is especially effective. The make-up on the actors is very creepy and weird. All in all, The Viy is terrific tale of terror that transcends its budgetary limitations.