Cry of the Banshee 2001 Horror Movie Review

Cry of the Banshee is probably the least popular Vincent Price horror film but it’s one of my favorites. aside from Price’s usual great acting, what sells me on the movie is the mood and atmosphere of the film. i see nothing wrong with AIP capitalizing on the witchcraft genre with this, “The Oblong Box”, and “Conqueror Worm”. i liked all those movies, too. the trouble that most people have is that the stereotypical ‘Vincent Price’ isn’t to be seen in these witch hunter flicks and for some reason, people can’t learn to curl up on a cold day or a stormy night and plop in this rainy day movie and simply enjoy it for the entertainment. so what if the storyline sounds run of the mill or boring? on this film, Price plays Lord Edward Whitman whose family is cursed by Oona, a local witch. The Whitman boys and the only daughter look strinkingly similar to walk-ons and bit players on “The Oblong Box” and “Conqueror Worm”...well, the story tells about Oona sending a banshee to shack up with the Whitman’s. i love the scene in which Price whips the stranger/banshee after catching him messing around with the daughter! i loved the hilarious ending that shows Price hop into his horse and buggy without noticing the driver falling over dead! the ‘new’ driver is none other than the banshee and as the horse and carriage speed off into the country side, we hear Price yelling “Bully Boy? Bully Boy…” and we see a close-up on the Banshee grinning! in a nut shell, Vincent Price films are always filled with great ACTING…this always wins over a bad script in my opinion. i feel that Vincent was right on the mark as the leader of this sadistic family and his cruel performance doesn’t let you have any sympathy for him until the scene in which his entire family has been killed and you’re rooting him on to go and kill Oona! this doesn’t rank on the same level as the Roger Corman directed Poe films and it’s unfair to compare “Cry of the Banshee” to any of them. for one thing, Banshee and the other witch-hunter films are in another genre and deserve to be compared with other witch movies…i’m afraid that many people see blood and gore and assume ‘horror’ which isn’t the case on the witch-hunter movies. these are more like religious cult than true horror.