Film Road to Halloween: The City of the Dead (1960)

The road to Halloween is paved with good films. Wherein we countdown to the spirited season with a hundred doses of horror. 97 days to go.

To put it simply, The City of the Dead is one of my favorite horror films of all time. The first time I had viewed the film was under the name Horror Hotel. I had no idea that this was not the original name of the film or the country of origin. To me, it was just a hidden gem in a bargain bin DVD set that I bought for seven bucks at Kmart.

Watching it eight years after the fact is interesting. Now that I know what the original name is, I’m not sure if I like the name Horror Hotel or The City of the Dead better. I usually just use both names when introducing the film to people. As I am doing now as I introduce it to you, the reader. I have confidence that this film will find an audience today. Watching it in 2019 it felt like the type of slow-burn horror film that A24 fans would gush over and I hope they do.

Plot Summary

The opening scene of the film takes place hundreds of years ago at the burning of a witch in the town of Whitewood, Massachusetts. It turns out the whole scene is a story being told by a college professor played by Christopher Lee. One of his students is a young girl named Nan Barlow. She seems to be much more interested in her professor’s story than her fellow classmates are.

After the class ends Nan stays behind to continue to talk to her professor about witchcraft. She quickly decides to journey out to Whitewood in order to do more research on the witches that supposedly lived there. Her boyfriend and brother are none too happy about it, but she ventures off anyway. Even before she arrives in the town, things seem to be a little odder than she had expected in this neck of the woods.

Mood

To simply call this movie “moody” and be done with it would be such a disservice to this beautifully crafted film. The town of Whitewood is dripping with fog. You could look at this movie and say “that doesn’t look natural. There is way too much fog”. But I utterly adore the look of Whitewood. Amongst the fog are the townspeople who do nothing but stand around and stare down any newcomer to their town. The fog, combined with the townspeople staredown, and the musical score make for a very bone-chilling viewing experience.

Nan does get to interact with a few residents of Whitewood. A mute chambermaid, the eerie owner of the inn, and a hitchhiker that always seems to disappear and reappear as he pleases. All of these characters add to the mood of the town and the film as a whole.

There is one scene in particular that I find eerie every time I see it. A party is being held at the Inn where Nan Barlow is staying. Several couples dance in the lobby just outside of her room. She declines to go out to the party at first in order to complete her studies, but she peeks out into the lobby a couple of times curiously. Every time the party is shown the couples are all dancing completely emotionless and in perfect sequence. It all seems very robotic and inhuman.

At one point Nan can’t resist going out to the party. She can hear the music blaring from her room. Yet the moment she opens the door the music ceases and all the guests are suddenly gone. They weren’t seen before the party and are never seen after. As if they were simply an illusion dreamt up by the young Nan Barlow.

Release

The film was originally released under the name The City of the Dead in the UK in September of 1960. It was released and retitled as Horror Hotel in the US in 1961. I assume they thought that name would appeal to American audiences better. The title caught my eye right away, but the film didn’t appeal to either audience at the time. It was said to have made a very small profit but it was considered a box office flop.

This film seemed to be cursed to live out the rest of its days in bargain bin DVD boxsets. It wasn’t until recently that it got a wonderful look Blu-ray release. At the time of this article, the same version can be viewed on streaming service Tubi TV. I have adored this film since my first viewing and it will be a Halloween staple in my home thanks to this gorgeous print that’s now available. And I hope after reading this article more people will seek this film out. I wouldn’t want anyone to miss out on the climax of this film. It truly is to die for.