Movie Info
Movie Name: Equinox
Studio: Tonylyn Productions Inc.
Genre(s): Horror/B-Movie
Release Date(s): May 6, 1970 (Premiere)/October 1970 (US)
MPAA Rating: Not Rated
It’s a protected species of demon
A reporter investigates the story of a man who appeared out of the woods with a horrific story a year before and hears his tale at the asylum where he is being held. The man is David Fielding (Edward Connell) and he tells the story of a picnic with his friends Susan (Barbara Hewitt), Jim (Frank Bonner), and Vicki (Robin Christopher) with plans to visit Dr. Arthur Waterman (Fritz Leiber) at his remote mountain cabin. When they discover the cabin destroyed and a park ranger named Asmodeus (Jack Woods) reporting that the doctor hasn’t been seen, strange events begin to occur and a book found in a cave could hold the secret to the mystery.
The Jolly Green Giant is pissed!
Written by Jack Wood and Mark Thomas McGee and directed by Wood and Dennis Muren, Equinox is a fantasy horror film. The movie is the finalized film version of a small production originally entitled Equinox…A Journey into the Supernatural which was made for $6,500 by Dennis Muren. The movie became a cult midnight movie and though generally panned, it was praised for its unique shooting style and stop-motion animation. Equinox has also sometimes been known as The Beast and was released as part of the Criterion Collection (Criterion #338).
I saw Equinox not long after Criterion released it. Though it is a dumb and directionless movie, there is something charming in its simplicity and the knowledge that the makers were able to pull off a film that has had staying power for such a low production value. Rewatching Equinox, I still have the same feelings, but I am also still impressed by some of the visuals.
Asmodeus…giving Torgo a run for his money!
The movie’s plot is half-baked. The story barely has any cohesion. The characters just walk around, are frequently menaced by creatures, and behave in stereotypical dumb horror movie fashion by not getting out of the area and splitting up constantly. The movie is often credited as giving the basis for Raimi’s The Evil Dead which also featured teens in the woods with a cursed book.
The movie’s cast cannot act (and also suffer from bad dubbing). Besides Frank Bonner who went on to play Herb Tarlek on WKRP in Cincinnati, few of the people in the film have any other acting credits. Fantasy author Fritz Lieber plays the doomed doctor and sci-fi collector Forrest J. Ackerman also has a small role.
The actors really get over this creature pretty quick
Visually, the movie is much better than one would expect. It might not be the most stunning special effects you’ve ever seen, but for the amount of money spent to make the film in the entirety, they are quite good. There are tons of trick shots, but it is the stop motion animation on various beasts of the film which really are memorable.
Equinox fortunately is a very short movie (under 90 minutes). I don’t know if you could really justify spending much more time on the movie than this, and as a result, the movie is worth seeking out for fans of sci-fi, horror, and B-Movies. It has a rather Manos: The Hands of Fate type feel to it that could make it a great party type movie if a circle of friends likes to watch bad horror for laughs. Equinox often will leave you questioning what exactly is going on, but it is a fun ride.
