''The Astrologer'' (also known as ''Suicide Cult'') is a 1975 American

horror film Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit physical or psychological fear in its viewers. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with Transgressive art, transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements of the genre include Mo ...

directed by

James Glickenhaus James Glickenhaus (born July 24, 1950) is an American filmmaker, financier, and automotive entrepreneur. He directed, wrote, and produced a number of action films during the 1980s and 1990s, including ''The Exterminator'' (1980), ''The Soldier (19 ...

and starring Bob Byrd, Mark Buntzman, and

Premise

A scientist who is investigating reports of the

Second Coming The Second Coming (sometimes called the Second Advent or the Parousia) is the Christianity, Christian and Islam, Islamic belief that Jesus, Jesus Christ will return to Earth after his Ascension of Jesus, ascension to Heaven (Christianity), Heav ...

of Christ ends up in conflict with a Satan-worshipping suicide cult.

Cast

*Bob Byrd as Alexei * Mark Buntzman as Kajerste *

as Spy *Alison McCarthy as Rhav *Al Narcisse as Congressman Joe Harwell *

Monica Tidwell Monica Tidwell (born January 14, 1954) is an American model. She was born in Shreveport, Louisiana. A red-head, she was ''Playboy'' magazine's Playmate of the Month for the November 1973 issue; her centerfold was photographed by Dwight Hooker an ...

as Kate Abarnel *Ivy White as Indian Maiden

Production

The film was based on the book ''The Astrologer'' written by John Cameron,

's future father-in-law. Glickenhaus made a deal with Cameron for the book, wrote the screenplay. Glickenhaus says that he made the movie for about $20,000. "I'd inherited some money," Glickenhaus told ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', "and I took all of it and lost it making a movie called 'The Astrologer.' I'd been to film school, but film school was oriented more toward the avant-garde in those days, and I didn't really know what a master was or a cutaway or a closeup. And I had great trouble conveying ideas, except in dialogue. So 'The Astrologer,' which was about 79 minutes long, was probably 60 minutes of dialogue. I mean, it was interminable. I didn't think it was interminable then. I thought it was great and interesting and fascinating to listen to." The film took him two years to produce from start to finish. The film's soundtrack was composed by

Brad Fiedel Bradley Ira Fiedel (born March 10, 1951) is an American composer. He has written for film and television and has collaborated with James Cameron on ''The Terminator'' (1984), '' Terminator 2: Judgment Day'' (1991) and ''True Lies'' (1994). On th ...

, in his debut.

Release

With no independent distributors interested in acquiring the film, Glickenhaus convinced some drive-in theaters in the South to screen it. He later recalled, "Even though it was a terrible movie, people didn't absolutely hate it. But I realized by watching them that the only parts they liked were the parts with action." Glickenhaus deciding the overabundance of dialogue in ''The Astrologer'' compared to the level of action was the cause of its failure would inspire him to write ''

The Exterminator ''The Exterminator'' is a 1980 American vigilante action film written and directed by James Glickenhaus. It stars Robert Ginty as Vietnam War veteran John Eastland, also known as "The Exterminator". When a group of thugs paralyze his friend, Eas ...

21st Century Film Corporation 21st Century Film Corporation Inc. was a theatrical distribution company formed sometime in the 1970s as a production company and distributor. Menahem Golan was CEO of the company from 1989 to the company's bankruptcy. History The company was f ...

eventually bought the rights to ''The Astrologer'' believing they could make it work and re-titled it ''The Suicide Cult'' in an effort to capitalize on the

Jonestown massacre The Peoples Temple Agricultural Project, better known by its informal name "Jonestown", was a remote settlement in Guyana established by the Peoples Temple, an American religious movement under the leadership of Jim Jones. Jonestown became in ...

Reception

The film was called an ”ultra obscure and undeniably fascinating thriller". Another commentator found, ’’The irony, however, is that this debut effort by James Glickenhaus is neither a horror or science fiction film: its a pure Christploitation, aka Godploitation, romp...”

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Astrologer (film), The 1975 films 1970s supernatural horror films 1975 independent films American independent films American supernatural horror films 1970s English-language films Films about cults Films about Satanism Films based on American novels Films based on horror novels Films directed by James Glickenhaus Films scored by Brad Fiedel Films set in Bihar Films set in London Films set in Maryland Films set in New York City Films set in Virginia 1975 directorial debut films 1970s American films Video nasties American religious horror films English-language independent films