Saturday, October 31, 2020

Musty TV's Maniacal Movie Countdown - Day 31: Diabolique (1955)

I started this countdown with a French horror film, so I figured why not end it with one too, although I am not sure I'd call Diabolique (AKA Les Diaboliques) strictly horror. While it does have some creepy moments, and is definitely set up as a horror story, I think it fits much better into another genre, although to say which genre that is would likely give up some of the film's surprises.

One of the best things about this countdown was being able to see how so many of these films ultimately influenced movies that came later, and how those movies in turn inspired other films, and so on, and so on. The more movies you watch, the more you realize how almost every director borrows or steals from what has come before, and believe me, plenty have borrowed from Diabolique. (Looking at you, Hitchcock. Paging you, Kubrick. I see you there, Mr Castle!)

And with that, we've come to the end of the Maniacal Movie Countdown to Halloween! Thanks so much for stopping by, be sure to visit the other blogs in the Countdown, and stay tuned for a final round-up post later today!

 Diabolique is currently streaming on the Criterion Channel and Amazon Prime.

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