Devil Dog: The Hound of Hell

I might be losing my marbles but I thoroughly enjoyed "Devil Dog: The Hound of Hell".

It's a silly story, not very suspenseful and it stays away from gore completely. Of course this is a TV movie so maybe I should have anticipated that. But you've gotta love the 70's. It was a time when talented people behind and in front of the camera accepted absurd projects and executed them with seriousness and passion.

Aside from some very bad special effects everything in "Devil Dog" is handled splendidly. Veteran actor Richard Crenna gives a very good central performance as the father who loses his family members to demonic possession thanks to Lucky, the new dog, who's an offspring of Satan.

Director Harrington does his job well, even conjuring up some eerie mood and atmosphere on occasion. Scriptwise this is decently written although I found the finale to be quite lacking.

If you're a fan of 1970's American horror film-making and keep in mind you're watching a relatively low-budget TV movie chances are you might be in for a surprise.