Recently released from a mental institution, Jessica(stunning performance from Zohra Lampert who shows the fragile slippery slope her character's mental state is operating on)is taken by her troubled and tired husband Duncan(Barton Heyman, who shows the weary state his wife's condition has caused him..we see that he is constantly frustrated or frightened when Jessica might shows signs of seeing people that aren't there or experiencing things that would point out her insanity again)and pal Woody(Kevin O'Conner)to live in a farm house near an apple orchard. Duncan was once on the Philharmonic and Woody decided to join them for the time being. Once they arrive to the house, however, there's an uninvited guest..the mysterious red-head Emily(Mariclare Costello, quite seductive and creepy)who just might be a vampire. All the locals in town act real strangely and wear bandages on their necks..this might explain the vampire theory. There's a wise tale speaking about an Abigail Bishop(in the family portrait, Abigail looks exactly like Emily)who drowned in the lake, near their farmhouse, before she could ever wear her wedding dress and marry. Swimming in the cove near their house, Jessica sees something or someone white under the water beckoning her to come while moving toward her. Telling Duncan, his reaction of horror(here she goes again seeing things)is one Jessica will have to deal with as Emily whispers to her which forms a mental anguish that remains tormenting her throughout. When awful occurrences continue to happen to Jessica(she discovers the body of an antique owner who moved from New York like they did bloodied in the cove thanks to a mute girl which isn't there when Jessica returns with Duncan;Jessica's pet mole was stabbed), her marriage to Duncan becomes strained and he is seduced by Emily. Jessica's life becomes a nightmare as everyone around her seem ghoulish with a strange gash down their face or neck. Emily, in my favorite sequence, rises from the cove in pursuit of Jessica after almost biting her.
I love this film because it's unsettling almost from the very beginning, with eerie music accompanying an uncanny creepiness in how the film is photographed(I use the term hypnotic, which is what it felt like to me)..but, I felt the film's greatest success is asking the question..is what Jessica seeing real or merely a delusion of a damaged mind unable to grasp reality? Or, are there vampires at this little town led by Emily, who once drowned but has returned to collect victims who dare enter in? The answer is up to you. This is one of those unsung gems from the early 70's that deserves attention. It's a testament to this particular decade that I can find gold nuggets I've never heard of such as this film when I watched it back early last year for the first time. The DVD boom sure has given rise to cult films that remain with you after the credits roll.
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