I tend to review horror films. 1964’s “The Visit” is more of a drama, but sometimes dramas, which hew closer to reality, are the most horrifying stories of all, right? HAWHAWHAWHAW! (Evil laughter fades to silence.)
The plot is an extended Twilight Zone episode. Ingrid Bergman’s Karla inherits vast wealth when her husband dies (it’s claimed she owns five percent of the world) and returns to the small Eastern European hamlet where she grew up. The impoverished town folk welcome her with open arms, if only because they hope she will shower them with largess. In particular, her first boyfriend, Serge, played by Anthony Quinn, rolls out a charm offensive.
A few hours into Karla’s visit and things are going swimmingly for everyone. Then she announces she’ll give the town two million dollars (you can almost hear “Austin Powers’” Dr. Evil reciting the number), but only if the townspeople put Serge to death. Why? Because, back in the day, her former paramour knocked her up, then denied his paternity and slandered Karla as promiscuous in court. At seventeen, she had to flee her hometown, going to Italy’s Trieste, where she became “a whore.” (Everyone knows Trieste is a great town for whores.)
The townsfolk are insulted by Karla’s demands. To think that they could turn on one of their own merely for filthy lucre! But, as they start realizing what the money could bring, they put in place legal machinations that will bring back the previously banned death penalty.
The movie is rife with a certain kind of post-war nihilism. It seemed a little too convenient how corrupt everyone was. If anything, it reminded me of Jerzy Kosiński’s “The Painted Bird”, a book often derided for its over-the-top cynicism.
But “The Visit” works as a classic morality play. And Bergman has a certain magic as a villainess you can sympathize with, even while she uses her wealth to manipulate the suffering townsfolk like pawns on a chessboard. (The movie is a reminder that #metoo themes have been in the cultural ether for eons.)
The finger-wagging ending was a bit hokey, but that’s predictable for the era. Worth a watch.