To the Devil… A Daughter is a 1976 horror film made by Hammer Film Productions, directed by Peter Sykes. It stars Richard Widmark, Christopher Lee, Honor Blackman, Nastassja Kinski and Denholm Elliott. The original music score was composed by Paul Glass.
The film was adapted from the 1953 novel of the same name by Dennis Wheatley. It was the second of Wheatley’s “black magic” novels to be filmed by Hammer, following The Devil Rides Out, released in 1968. It was marketed with the tagline “…and suddenly the screams of a baby born in Hell!”
Trivia:
Michael Goodliffe and Anthony Valentine were cast at short notice
The last film Of Michael Goodliffe.
Olivia Newton-John was a candidate for Catherine.
Cliff Robertson was seriously favored for Verney (Richard Widmark).
Ken Russell and Mike Hodges were approached to direct the film.
The “Hill near Warburton” Mausoleum is actually the Dashwood Mausoleum in West Wycombe. Currently National Trust Property, it used to belong to the notorious Hellfire Club.
The preproduction was troubled by Hammer and EMI problems in finding a suitable name actor for Verney and a director too.
Two high-priced British actors were cast as David and George De Grass but because Richard Widmark fee was higher than expected. The roles of David and George De Grass were recast at the 11th hour.
Day of the Woman, better known by its re-release title, I Spit On Your Grave, is a controversial rape and revenge movie. Prominent movie critics lashed out at this movie for its graphic violence and lengthy depictions of gang rape, and the picture remains controversial to this day. This movie earned an R rating upon its original American release in 1978. Also, Camille Keaton (the grand-niece of Buster Keaton) won a Best Actress award for her role in this movie at the 1978 Catalonian International Film Festival in Spain.
Trivia:
The scar displayed on the left side of Jennifer (Camille Keaton)’s face in the post-trauma scenes is real, the result of an automobile accident in the actress’s youth. In these scenes, it was exaggerated by the make-up artist, and in the opening and closing scenes, it was hidden under a thin layer of foundation.
Often named by film critic Roger Ebert as the worst movie ever made.
The film was passed uncut in Australia until December 1997. It was banned from December 1997 until June 2004.
Meir Zarchi prefers the title “Day of the Woman”.
Meir Zarchi said that he was inspired to do the film after helping a
Camille Keaton
young woman who had been raped in New York. He tells of how a friend of his and his daughter were driving by a park when they witnessed a young woman crawling out of the bushes bloodied and naked (he later found out the girl was taking a common shortcut to meet with her boyfriend when she was attacked). They took the girl with them, took his daughter back home, and talked with the friend on whether they should take her to the hospital or to the police. They decided to take her to the police first, which they soon afterwards discovered was a mistake – the officer, whom Zarchi described as “not fit to wear the uniform”, delayed taking her to the hospital and instead insisted she answer questions about her assailants, even though her jaw had been broken and she could hardly talk. Finally, Zarchi insisted to the officer that they take her to the hospital right away. Zarchi said that soon afterwards the girl’s father wrote him a letter of thanks for helping his daughter, and wanted to give him a reward, which he turned down.
There is a hidden easter egg on the Special Edition version [UK.] On page three of the special features, go to ‘main menu’ then hit left, and you can highlight the knife that Jennifer holds. The easter egg reveals a selection of stills from the movie.
When this film was first released in 1978, the original title was “Day of the Woman” and was poorly received at the box office. In 1981 distributor Jerry Gross renamed it “I Spit on Your Grave” – after a 1959 French drama – for re-release. Under the new title the film received greater publicity and became a key target of Roger Ebert and Gene Siskel’s campaign against films featuring women in danger.
The film has no music score. Director Meir Zarchi intended to add some library music to his film, but found none that was suitable, so the only music we hear in the film comes from the church organ, a snatch of Giacomo Puccini on record, background music in the store and a few stray riffs from Johnny’s harmonica.
