CASTING THE RUNES
$20.99
Price: $20.99
(as of Dec 22, 2024 12:36:48 UTC – Details)
A classic tale of mystery and the supernatural “No, no, Miss Dunning. You’ll have to be more clever than that.” With these words, Julian Karswell dismisses Prudence Dunning’s attempts to undo his satanic spell—a curse that terrorized and ultimately killed a writer a decade earlier.
Drawn from one of ghost-story master M.R. James’s most frightening tales, Casting the Runes pits an innocent television producer against a fiendish alchemist. While working on a piece exposing would-be mystics, Dunning brings unwanted attention to the reclusive occultist. In retaliation, he delivers a runic scroll that dooms her to a horrific fate, unless she can devise a way to turn the tables in her favor, at any price.
Iain Cuthbertson (Gorillas in the Mist, Children of the Stones) is thoroughly chilling as Karswell, and Jan Francis (Just Good Friends, Under the Hammer) plays the increasingly desperate Dunning to the hilt in this tense and atmospheric British thriller.
MPAA rating : PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Product Dimensions : 0.7 x 7.5 x 5.4 inches; 0.64 ounces
Director : Lawrence Gordon Clark
Media Format : NTSC, Multiple Formats, Color
Run time : 47 minutes
Release date : July 17, 2012
Actors : Iain Cutherbertson, Jan Francis, Bernard Gallagher, Joanna Dunham
Studio : ACORN MEDIA
ASIN : B007TSV4EW
Number of discs : 1
T. Casteleiro –
Not what I expected
I should have paid attention to the date this was made. It is quite old so the technology isn’t what I’ve become accustomed to. Also, the acting wasn’t really that great and the story was unbelievable (truly not believable.) Not sure what I expected, but this wasn’t it.
gail veale –
not as good as Night of The Demon.
good start to an old story but loses focus later on, Unsatisfactory ending
Jeri L. Stone –
Casting the Runes DVD
I was really disappointed in this DVD and returned it to Amazon. This is an old production which is evident in the transfer quality to DVD as well as the corny production which jumped around and used loud music to denote fear. I found it difficult to even sit through the piece, although I felt compelled to see if it got any better, which it did not. As far as I am concerned the production is not eerie, scary, or even interesting. Don’t waste your money on this one!
Lindaslash –
Too short
The movie was just 47 min. long! Too expensive for such a short show. Padded with long, boring interview. Acting not great. Would recommend to those interested in the author.
Catherine Geissler –
casting the runes
Disappointing story and acting. Dated. Badly written acted and directed. I would not recommend this dvd to anyone at any price.
Russ Lee –
M.R. Jamesian Supernatural Horror
The 1979 television airing of Casting the Runes was originally broadcast in the UK on ITV Playhouse, a comedy-drama series that ran from 1968 to 1983. Director Jacques Tourneur’s excellent 1957 film, Night of the Demon (shortened and rechristened Curse of the Demon for the stateside release), was also adapted from M.R. James’ short story. Although both films diverge from their literary sourceâeach with its own strengths and weaknessesâthey both manage to capture the creepy aura of James’ tale. Clive Exton’s TV script updates the setting of Casting the Runes from the Edwardian era to the late 70s, but overall hews closer to the story.The televised incarnation of Casting the Runes does a good job of building tension through a series of long Jamesian-styled dialogues between the characters, interspersed with spooky action sequences to liven things up. The spare creature effects are very low budget, but creatively staged for maximum creepiness. The acting, as with most British productions, is natural and wonderfully free of histrionics. Niall MacGinnis, the actor who played the alchemist Julian Karswell in Night of the Demon, was pitch perfect. Cuthbertson does not reach the heights of MacGinnis’ chilling performance, but his take on Karswell as a sort of aging nerd who has devoted himself to black magic and total evil is impressive. For the most part, it’s a successful interpretation of one of M.R. James’ best stories.Technically, the standard definition 1.33:1 full frame encode is fine for its age and TV source. Grain is moderate to heavy; color is decent, not vibrant,but not terribly washed out either; and speckling from dirt and debris is present throughout, but fairly light considering the age of the print. Light edge enhancement is noticeable, particularly around the heads of characters when they are against a bright background, such as the snowy Yorkshire scenes. The monophonic Dolby Digital sounds a bit odd at times, as though an electronic stereo separation was attempted; however, dialogue is generally distinct and the soundtrack free of any really bad distortion. The minimalist score, with its eerie, slightly dissonant flute and light use of electronic instruments, is just the right music for the film, not drawing great attention to itself, but sustaining a menacingly supernatural undercurrent.The DVD includes a first-rate pair of extras. One is a brief film based on a rather minor M.R. James’ ghost story, “Mr Humphreys and his Inheritance” (20 Minutes.) Despite the slight story, which James himself described as something written to “fill up the volume” of a collection, the film is an unsettling supernatural chiller with a fine performance from the small cast. A desolate, overgrown shrubbery maze and aging mansion makes for an authentic on-location backdrop with a uniquely English countryside appearance that would have cost a fortune to build as a set. The picture is very soft, probably a later generation video dupe, but we’re lucky it has survived at all (unlike a few M.R. James TV shows from the sixties whose tapes were wiped).The other extra is the 1995 British TV documentary hosted by James biographer Michael Cox, “A Pleasant Terror: The Life and Ghosts of M.R. James” (51 Minutes). It contains considerable information on “Monty” James, who was reticent about discussing himself in print. A couple of people who actually knew M.R. James are interviewed, and Christopher Lee has high praise for James’ stories, which he considers superior to Bram Stoker’s output. M.R. James was always ambivalent when pressed on the question of his belief or disbelief in the existence of ghosts, and there is an interesting discussion on whether James might have had a “ghostly encounter” of his own as a child. It’s fascinating stuff for anyone interested in the author.With no blood, guts, or gore, Casting the Runes will not slake the blood-thirst of a slasher fan, but should prove a genuine treat for followers of unsettling and atmospheric supernatural horror.
Michael Dobey –
a literate type of horror.
Many of the twits of today who don’t read and can ONLY enjoy the type of horror in which they must have instant gratification (I like that kind too butnot ONLY) will not like this one. It is a very literate take on the classic M.r. jame’s story “casting the runes’ shown back in 1978 this film has some minor specks and such on it, however many films from that era no longer exist so it’s a good thing they saved this. It uses the typical british style of the day. The inside shots are done on videotape and hold up much better , and the outside scenes were shot on film. the british did this technique right up to the mid-80’s on many programs. There is also a short film of 20 minutes that is another mr james story. both of these came from short stories. Perhaps the best part of this whole dvd is the biography about m.r. james. I was glad that they preserved this but I can’t stand people who say this is dated. This was not dated in 1978. It was fine and while it’s from it’s era , if you were to do this stories today they would just have better effects and there are only several effects in each story anyways. Instead we get character driven stories here and not a slasher movie. (which is fine but nto this type of thing at all) Itv produced this back then for their playhouse series. Every week a different story and type of show was on. A variety of themes and episodes which no longer exists. IN those days you were expected to watch a show and enjoy the characterizations and such. This isn’t for people who can only enjoy the most mindless of entertainment and need lots of things happening. that’s a very sad person. But if you want a literate little short story that influenced the classic movie ‘night of the demon’ then this may be for you. It’s of IT”S time though. Which is fine by me. As I don’t expect modern effects!
Mr J Johnson –
I love ghost stories, especially from the pen of M. R. James and I’m of age when I was around 10 years old when I saw the A Ghost Story for Christmas strand back in the 70s. Nostalgia is a wonderful thing. I love this version of Casting the Runes with the beautiful Jan Francis & a great antagonist played by Iain Cuthbertson. It’s a different take on the classic 1957 film Night of the Demon, (one of the finest films ever made) however it does have its own charm.