Dementia 13 – Galxy Movie Spotlight
Today’s Galxy movie spotlight is Dementia 13, a classic horror thriller from 1963. This film marked the feature directorial debut of Francis Ford Coppola, the legendary filmmaker who would go on to direct The Godfather trilogy, Apocalypse Now, and American Graffiti. When widow Louise Haloran (Luana Anders) fears her late husband John (Peter Read) may not leave her a fortune in the will, she begins plotting on his own plot of land. However, Louise is far from alone, as an axe murderer soon makes themself known on the premises.
It’s fascinating to watch a film like this produced so early on in such a visionary filmmaker’s career. When going back to a director’s earliest works, you can find inklings of what they’d later become and their own developed style even from the beginning. Coppola makes a meal out of the low budget he’s given for this first of his projects; the visual pop against the grain of the black and white film.
Luana Anders was the perfect actress for this role. The emotions on display throughout the film are complex, balancing the grief of a lost loved one and the sudden terror of an axe murderer run wild on the premises. It’s a tense, disturbing, and most of all thrilling movie that marked the start of a generational director.
Dementia 13 is now available to stream on Galxy.