She Devil (1957 Film)
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''She Devil'' is a 1957 American widescreen
science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...
horror Horror may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Genres *Horror fiction, a genre of fiction **Psychological horror, a subgenre of horror fiction **Christmas horror, a subgenre of horror fiction **Analog horror, a subgenre of horror fiction * ...
film, shot in RegalScope, from
Regal Films Regal Entertainment Inc. (formerly and more commonly known as Regal Films) is a Philippine film, television production and distribution headquartered in New Manila, Quezon City. It was founded by Lily Monteverde on August 19, 1962. Regal Enter ...
, that was produced, written, and directed by Kurt Neumann. The film stars
Mari Blanchard Mari Blanchard (born Mary E. Blanchard, April 13, 1923 – May 10, 1970) was an American film and television actress, known foremost for her roles as a B movie'' femme fatale'' in American productions of the 1950s and early 1960s. Early life a ...
, Jack Kelly, and
Albert Dekker Thomas Albert Ecke Van Dekker (December 20, 1905 – May 5, 1968) was an American actor and politician known for his roles in '' Dr. Cyclops'', ''The Killers'' (1946), '' Kiss Me Deadly'', and '' The Wild Bunch''. Early life and career Dekker w ...
and was theatrically released by
20th Century-Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc., formerly 20th Century Fox, is an American film production and distribution company owned by the Walt Disney Studios, the film studios division of the Disney Entertainment business segment of the Walt Disney Com ...
on a
double bill The double feature is a motion picture industry phenomenon in which theaters would exhibit two films for the price of one, supplanting an earlier format in which the presentation of one feature film would be followed by various short subject reel ...
with Regal's '' Kronos''. ''She Devil'' is based on the science fiction short story " The Adaptive Ultimate" by Stanley G. Weinbaum.


Plot

Dr. Dan Scott has developed a serum that cures the ills of animals on the theory that all living organisms can adapt to their environment when it comes to harmful situations, with a serum based on the most adaptive qualities in the fruit fly. He has tried it on cats, chimpanzees, and leopards, and the formula seems to work, curing
pneumonia Pneumonia is an Inflammation, inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as Pulmonary alveolus, alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of Cough#Classification, productive or dry cough, ches ...
in a hamster, mending a broken spine of a cat and healing lacerations from a panther. One odd quality comes through in it changing the color of a leopard in one instance. Eager to try it on a human being, despite his mentor Dr. Richard Bach's many concerns, Scott finds a consenting patient in Kyra Zelas, a woman with a meek personality who is dying of tuberculosis. The serum seems to cure her instantly. It also dramatically affects her personality. Kyra shows a flash of temper when it comes to the idea of living at Dan's house by asserting herself. She then runs into a shop and sees a man supplying a girl with plenty of money. She sees the man and knocks him out to steal his money before stealing a dress and then disguising her identity by willing her hair color to change from brunette to blonde. Bach immediately surmises that something is wrong with Kyra, particularly since her dress is seen in a newspaper about the robbery. They try to confront her about the serums effect on her, but she labels herself as afraid of nothing or anyone. Scott falls in love with her for the way she is. At a party, however, Kyra seduces a guest, Barton Kendall. When his wife Evelyn objects, Kyra disguises her hair again and murders her. Bach theorizes that a fix to her
pineal gland The pineal gland (also known as the pineal body or epiphysis cerebri) is a small endocrine gland in the brain of most vertebrates. It produces melatonin, a serotonin-derived hormone, which modulates sleep, sleep patterns following the diurnal c ...
, which may have turned her into a "devil" due to the over-stimulation of the drug, could help her. They try to drug her in her sleep, but she wakes up before they can carry out their plan and escapes them. Despite the attempts of Scott to tell Kendall about her personality, Kendall marries her, but she soon behaves monstrously toward him. She goads him to shoot her, but he tries to drive her to the hospital despite her showing that the wound to the shoulder healed up. When driving in high ground, she takes the wheel and causes Kendall to crash and die. Feigning sympathy for the woman they know killed her husband, the doctors enact a different plan. They wait for her to sleep and pump carbon dioxide in her room that leaves Kyra in an unconscious state, then perform surgery to reverse the serum's effect on her pineal gland, which also restores Kyra's terminal disease.


Cast


Reception


Critical response

Film critic
Glenn Erickson Glenn Erickson is an American film editor and film critic. A graduate of the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television, he started in the film industry in 1975 as an editor of low-budget films and later worked in minor technical crew capacitie ...
discussed the production in his review of the film, "The B&W 'Regalscope' format gives this modest production a handsome look, along with Kurt Neumann's competent if not stylish direction. Cameraman Karl Struss (of Murnau's ''
Sunrise Sunrise (or sunup) is the moment when the upper rim of the Sun appears on the horizon in the morning, at the start of the Sun path. The term can also refer to the entire process of the solar disk crossing the horizon. Terminology Although the S ...
'') slightly over-lights Kyra in the party scene to make her hair seem to glow, a subtle effect for sure. The hair-color changing is a filter trick, an invention Struss first used back in the silent era. A spectacular car crash murder scene is an
RKO RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, is an American film production and distribution company, historically one of the "Big Five" film studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Kei ...
stock shot lifted from the 1952
Otto Preminger Otto Ludwig Preminger ( ; ; 5 December 1905 – 23 April 1986) was an Austrian Americans, Austrian-American film and theatre director, film producer, and actor. He directed more than 35 feature films in a five-decade career after leaving the the ...
noir '' Angel Face'' and cropped for the 'scope format. It still looks frightening. Suggesting an undeveloped noir angle, a 'haunting' portrait of Kyra becomes the focus of Dan's obsession. It's supposed to be the work of an Italian master, but looks more like a Paint By Numbers atrocity."Erickson, Glenn
''DVD Savant'', film/DVD review, March 1, 2013. Accessed: July 22, 2013.


References


Bibliography

* Warren, Bill. ''Keep Watching the Skies: American Science Fiction Films of the Fifties'', 21st Century Edition. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, 2009, (First edition 1982). .


External links

* * *
''She Devil''
information site and DVD/Blu-ray review at DVD Beaver (includes images) *
''She Devil''
at the
British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves filmmaking and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:She Devil 1957 films 1957 horror films 1950s science fiction horror films Films based on science fiction short stories American science fiction horror films American black-and-white films Films directed by Kurt Neumann 20th Century Fox films Films scored by Paul Sawtell Films scored by Bert Shefter 1950s English-language films 1950s American films English-language science fiction horror films