Devil Times Five (1974)

This quirky psychological thriller involves a quintet of extremely disturbed, sociopathic kids who stumble into the luxurious winter retreat of a wealthy patriarch (Gene Evans) and his arrogant guests. Little do the vacationers realize that the children are escapees from an asylum for the criminally insane a fact they realize only after their doom has been sealed. Product Description

Who Let These Strange Brats Into My House?

"Devil Times Five" must have been one of those "rare gems" shown in grindhouse theatres in the early seventies. It is low budget, amoral cinema meant to shock and repulse, which it does in several creative death scenes. However, the acting is mediocre, and the plot is bogged down with unnecessary promiscuity. I especially detested the deplorable scene where a rich man's bored trophy wife attempts to sexually seduce a mentally challenged handyman. Perhaps all of the adults are somewhat mentally challenged. It's difficult to believe that they didn't realize the bizarre, perverted kids who are literally found on their living room floor are responsible for the strange events surrounding them. When you are snowbound in a secluded mansion, who else could it be but the strangers?

I am tempted to give this movie two stars but am giving it three because of the imaginative, gruesome death scenes, especially the one involving the Piranhas attacking someone in the bathtub.

If you enjoy watching movies about children killing adults, then buy or rent "Who Can Kill A Child?" Directed by Ibanez Narcisco Serrador, this movie involves a young British couple who find themselves on a Spanish island where the children have killed all of the adults. It predates "Children of the Corn" by several years and is much better.

I plan to trade "Devil Times Five" faster than you can say "Devil" five times.

August 11, 2008

5 star 70's horror

I feel compelled to write something positive about this DVD release and the company Code Red. Sorry, but the other two reviews on this page are very unkind to this stylish, well acted, accomplished cinematography and very creepy tale. Code Red deserve your support if you are a horror fan, and no I don't work for them, but they are a very small outfit struggling against the big companies. Devil Times Five along with Sole Survivor should be seen by anyone who calls themselves a horror film fan.
So I say 4 stars for the movie and 5 stars for the DVD which has surprising amount of extras, and the box art is great too.
Hope this readdresses the balance as this movie deserves more praise than the other reviews posted here. June 22, 2008

horrible Times Five

I was excited when I finally tracked down this film on DVD. It's from what I feel is horror's late age-- the mid seventies to early eighties-- and has the location shooting and low budget grittiness that I love. But that's where my praise stops. This flick is SLOW! Not much happens until the last 15 minutes or so-- and I had long since lost interest in the annoying characters. Awful acting, horrible dialogue. No suspense. Don't expect much, but somewhat fun because it's so bad.
May 24, 2008

Worst ever

This is by far the worst low budget horror movie I have ever seen. It could fall into the "So Bad It's Good" category. It appears to have been filmed over a weekend with all scenes shot in one take. If you like bad B-Movies you will love it.
The extras with cast members make it worth watching. At least rent it to see what Dawn Lyn (Voted the worst child star of all time) looks like today. One can clearly see why Dawn is still called "The Queen Of Grunge". The best part of this entire DVD are the comments made by Miss Lyn. When asked about the movie she replies " I've never actually seen the movie" Let me get this straight she agrees to be interviewed on camera and discuss a movie that she's never seen. What did she think they were going to talk about the weather? She does recall a few vague memories although her look of utter confusion after every question is asked is priceless. May 1, 2008

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