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Dominique (1979 film)

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Dominique
Original film poster
Directed byMichael Anderson
Written by
  • Edward Abraham
  • Valerie Abraham
Based on"What Beckoning Ghost"
(1948 short story)
by Harold Lawlor
Produced byAndrew Donally
Milton Subotsky
Starring
CinematographyTed Moore
Edited byRichard Best
Music byDavid Whitaker
Production
companies
Sword and Scorcery Productions
Grand Prize Productions
Distributed byScotia-Barber Distributors
Release date
  • March 1979 (1979-03)
Running time
100 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Budget$1.2 million[1][2]

Dominique (also released as Dominique Is Dead) is a 1979 British psychological horror film directed by Michael Anderson, and featuring Cliff Robertson, Jean Simmons, Simon Ward, Jenny Agutter and Ron Moody.[3][4] Author Ronald Chetwynd-Hayes wrote a novelization of the movie,[5] which is based on the 1948 short story "What Beckoning Ghost", written by American author Harold Lawlor.[6] The movie concerns a wealthy businessman (Robertson) who is seemingly haunted by the ghost of his wife (Simmons), whom he apparently caused to commit suicide.

This is the final movie of actors Jack Warner and Leslie Dwyer.

Plot

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David Ballard, a struggling American businessman in desperate need of money, devises a plan: using psychological manipulation, he can compel his rich English wife, Dominique, to commit suicide, thus enabling him to inherit her family's estate and assets. His plan seemingly works when Dominique's body is found hanging in her greenhouse, but David soon finds himself being haunted by what he believes is Dominique's vengeful ghost. His sanity weakens gradually as he finds himself unable to rid himself of his wife's spirit, until he finally falls to his death while trying to escape from her.

As a twist ending, the "ghost" is revealed to have been his half-sister, Ann, who had enlisted the help of the man she loves, Tony Calvert, who had come to work as the Ballards' chauffeur and ingratiated himself with Dominique before her death. Using her experience from a past career as an actress, Ann had employed elaborate special effects and makeup to fake Dominique's ghost, get rid of David and claim David's share of the family fortune for herself, while Tony, being the only person Dominique trusted, agreed to help her in return for his own sizable cut.

However, Tony then rejects Ann and plays her an audio recording that reveals that the real Dominique had actually been alive, and part of the plan, until they had killed her to avoid detection; the recording made it seem that Ann had concocted the entire plan without Tony's knowledge. Tony admits that he intends to keep the recording to enforce Ann's silence, and that he had always intended to take his share and leave her. Ann murders him with a revolver the couple had previously used as part of their deception, with the movie ending as Ann stands over Tony's corpse.

Cast

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Production

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Filming dates

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Filming started in England during September 1977 and lasted six weeks.

Filming locations

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The movie was initially meant to be filmed in Canada, but this was changed after an offer was made for filming in England with a greater budget.[1]

Release

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Dominique was released initially in March 1979. After a very brief theatrical playing, it was distributed more widely by cable broadcastings.

Home media

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Vinegar Syndrome released the movie on DVD and Blu-ray in 2019.[7]

Reception

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Martyn Auty criticized the movie in the Monthly Film Bulletin as "heavy handed".[8] Pop Matters reviewed the movie in 2019, writing that it "won’t raise the hackles of anyone looking for deep scares, but it is an absorbing suspense-drama that will at least keep you in your seat, if not the edge of it".[7]

References

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  1. ^ a b Ed. Allan Bryce, Amicus: The Studio That Dripped Blood, Stray Cat Publishing, 2000 p 159
  2. ^ Childs, Mike; Jones, Alan (Spring 1978). "Dominique". p. 52. {{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires |magazine= (help)
  3. ^ Smith, Gary A. (2000). Uneasy Dreams: The Golden Age of British Horror Films, 1956-1976. McFarland. p. 86. ISBN 978-0-7864-0604-3.
  4. ^ "Undercover Battles as seven". Evening Post (Newspapers.com). 9 June 1979.
  5. ^ Psycho-Mania!
  6. ^ ""What Beckoning Ghost?" by Harold Lawlor, Weird Tales, July 1948". {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  7. ^ a b "Gothic Mystery 'Dominique' Indulges in Mood, PopMatters". PopMatters. 1 October 2019. Retrieved 16 March 2022.
  8. ^ Auty, Martyn (1 January 1979). "DOMINIQUE (review)". Monthly Film Bulletin. 46 (540): 120. ProQuest 1305828100.
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