The 7th Victim

1943

USA

Directed by: Mark Robson
Written by: Charles O'Neal, DeWitt Bodeen
Produced by: Val Lewton
Studio: RKO
Cast: Tom Conway, Kim Hunter, Jean Brooks, Isabel Jewell, Hugh Beaumont

Synopsis:

A woman in search of her missing older sister uncovers a Satanic cult in New York's Greenwich Village, and finds that they may have something to do with her sibling's random disappearance.

My Thoughts:

The terms "Satanic cult" and "devil worshippers" always make me expect comedy. But in this one, the devil is real -- or at least believed to be real by said cultists. They worship "evil for evil's sake." Never really understood that. What exactly is "evil's sake" and what do they get for their worship? Actually, this whole movie was a little hard to follow, possibly because several key scenes were deleted when the film was downgraded from "A" to "B" level.

But the film is certainly fun to watch, visually pleasing, and has a fine cast -- I generally enjoy Tom Conway in just about anything. This was Kim Hunter's first film, and she handled a major role very capably -- although she seemed a little old for the part of the innocent schoolgirl.

My Rating at the IMDb: 5 stars out of a possible 10