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Diary of a Madman (film)
Encyclopedia
Diary of a Madman is a 1963 horror film
directed by Reginald Le Borg
and starring Vincent Price
, Nancy Kovack
, and Chris Warfield.
The screenplay, written by producer Robert Kent
, is an adaptation of Guy de Maupassant
's short story "Le Horla" ("The Horla
"), written in 1887. Kent's rendition is notably divergent from the source material, especially in relation to the religious and moral themes of the film, which contradict not only those of the short story, but Maupassant's as well. Additionally, Kent borrowed the title of the film from a different story authored by Nikolai Gogol
entitled "Diary of a Madman"
.
), a French
magistrate and amateur sculptor who comes into contact with a malevolent entity
. The invisible - yet corporeal - being, called a "horla" is capable of limited psychokinesis
and complete mind control. Cordier first interacts with the horla when he meets a prisoner whom the horla drove to commit murder. The horla possesses the inmate and attempts to kill Cordier, who in self-defense accidentally kills the man. The magistrate inherits the prisoner's troubles as the horla turns its hauntings toward him. As the horla begins to destroy Cordier's life, he fears he is going mad and seeks help from a psychologist, who effectively suggests a hobby. Cordier chooses to pick up his old interest in art, meeting a model along the way. The horla insists the model is not the charming jewel that Cordier sees, but instead a conniving gold digger, and compels Cordier to treat her as such. This sets up a conflict in Cordier, that he might not be the astute judge of character that his title indicates. As his and others' lives are put in jeopardy, he becomes convinced of the horla's existence and decides drastic measures are needed to end the horla's evil.
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
directed by Reginald Le Borg
Reginald Le Borg
Reginald Le Borg was an Austrian film director. He directed 68 films between 1936 and 1974. He was born in Vienna, Austria as Reginald Grobel and died in Los Angeles, California from a heart attack....
and starring Vincent Price
Vincent Price
Vincent Leonard Price, Jr. was an American actor, well known for his distinctive voice and serio-comic attitude in a series of horror films made in the latter part of his career.-Early life and career:Price was born in St...
, Nancy Kovack
Nancy Kovack
__forcetoc__Nancy Kovack is a former American actress.-Biography:She attended the University of Michigan at age 15 and graduated by 19. At the age of 20 she had won eight beauty titles....
, and Chris Warfield.
The screenplay, written by producer Robert Kent
Robert E. Kent
Robert E. Kent is an American film writer and film producer.He began as a rapid screenwriter for Sam Katzman at Columbia. He later formed his own production company, and Admiral Productions together with Audie Murphy....
, is an adaptation of Guy de Maupassant
Guy de Maupassant
Henri René Albert Guy de Maupassant was a popular 19th-century French writer, considered one of the fathers of the modern short story and one of the form's finest exponents....
's short story "Le Horla" ("The Horla
The Horla
"The Horla" is an 1887 short horror story written in the style of a journal by French writer Guy de Maupassant.American horror writer H. P...
"), written in 1887. Kent's rendition is notably divergent from the source material, especially in relation to the religious and moral themes of the film, which contradict not only those of the short story, but Maupassant's as well. Additionally, Kent borrowed the title of the film from a different story authored by Nikolai Gogol
Nikolai Gogol
Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol was a Ukrainian-born Russian dramatist and novelist.Considered by his contemporaries one of the preeminent figures of the natural school of Russian literary realism, later critics have found in Gogol's work a fundamentally romantic sensibility, with strains of Surrealism...
entitled "Diary of a Madman"
Diary of a Madman (story)
Diary of a Madman is a farcical short story by Nikolai Gogol. Along with The Overcoat and The Nose, Diary of a Madman is considered to be one of Gogol's greatest short stories. The tale centers on the life of a minor civil servant during the repressive era of Nicholas I...
.
Plot
The film centers on Simon Cordier (Vincent PriceVincent Price
Vincent Leonard Price, Jr. was an American actor, well known for his distinctive voice and serio-comic attitude in a series of horror films made in the latter part of his career.-Early life and career:Price was born in St...
), a French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
magistrate and amateur sculptor who comes into contact with a malevolent entity
Entity
An entity is something that has a distinct, separate existence, although it need not be a material existence. In particular, abstractions and legal fictions are usually regarded as entities. In general, there is also no presumption that an entity is animate.An entity could be viewed as a set...
. The invisible - yet corporeal - being, called a "horla" is capable of limited psychokinesis
Psychokinesis
The term psychokinesis , also referred to as telekinesis with respect to strictly describing movement of matter, sometimes abbreviated PK and TK respectively, is a term...
and complete mind control. Cordier first interacts with the horla when he meets a prisoner whom the horla drove to commit murder. The horla possesses the inmate and attempts to kill Cordier, who in self-defense accidentally kills the man. The magistrate inherits the prisoner's troubles as the horla turns its hauntings toward him. As the horla begins to destroy Cordier's life, he fears he is going mad and seeks help from a psychologist, who effectively suggests a hobby. Cordier chooses to pick up his old interest in art, meeting a model along the way. The horla insists the model is not the charming jewel that Cordier sees, but instead a conniving gold digger, and compels Cordier to treat her as such. This sets up a conflict in Cordier, that he might not be the astute judge of character that his title indicates. As his and others' lives are put in jeopardy, he becomes convinced of the horla's existence and decides drastic measures are needed to end the horla's evil.
Cast
- Vincent PriceVincent PriceVincent Leonard Price, Jr. was an American actor, well known for his distinctive voice and serio-comic attitude in a series of horror films made in the latter part of his career.-Early life and career:Price was born in St...
as Simon Cordier - Nancy KovackNancy Kovack__forcetoc__Nancy Kovack is a former American actress.-Biography:She attended the University of Michigan at age 15 and graduated by 19. At the age of 20 she had won eight beauty titles....
as Odette Mallotte DuClasse - Chris Warfield as Paul DuClasse
- Elaine DevryElaine DevryElaine Devry is an American actress. She appeared in a number of films including A Guide for the Married Man and was formerly married to actor Mickey Rooney.-Filmography:* The Atomic Kid * China Doll...
as Jeanne D'Arville - Ian WolfeIan WolfeIan Wolfe was an American actor whose films date from 1934 to 1990. Until 1934, he worked as a theatre actor. Wolfe mostly found work as a character actor, appearing in over 270 films...
as Pierre, Cordier's Butler - Stephen RobertsStephen RobertsStephen Roberts is a former football player who most recently played for Walsall. He has also represented Wales at under-21 level....
as Captain Robert Rennedon - Lewis Martin as Fr. Raymonde
- Mary Adams as Louise, Cordier's Cook
- Joseph RuskinJoseph RuskinJoseph Ruskin is an American character actor.Ruskin is one of only 4 actors or actresses to have starred in both the original Star Trek and then in one of the spin offs...
as The Horla (voice)
External links
- The Horla - Complete text of the short story.
- Full English text of "The Horla" (University of Virginia Electronic Text Center)