Review of The Mephisto Waltz (1971) by Stefan G — 25 Jun 2015
Although this film shows plenty of promise, it ultimately does little beyond the occult horror formula, which had become fairly standard by the time this film was made. The narrative is oddly paced, in that while the film itself lasts for only 94 minutes, the story moves along rather slowly, with the first half of the film going nowhere and the second half waddling in clichés.
The performances are competent, though not necessarily enthralling. In fact, I found at least one of the characters to be completely lacking in convincing personality. That being said, it's not a wholly bad film.
At the very least, it has a sense of style (which, to be fair, comes from the fact that the film is partly about the art of playing the piano), and the atmospheric elements are round about right. However, the film is rather weak in terms of actual horror, and probably inspired more laughs than scares.
I do admire the film's intent, and it's still something of a watchable film, but it's nothing too special.
This review of The Mephisto Waltz (1971) was written by Stefan G on 25 Jun 2015.
The Mephisto Waltz has generally received mixed reviews.
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