_**The Satanic Rites of Ernest Borgnine**_ A collection of ridiculous characters have established themselves in a lonely, deserted town out West, and their leader—played by Borgnine—is determined to obtain a set of blood contracts from the Preston family, who live close by. William Shatner and Tom Skerritt portray the Preston brothers, while Eddie Albert appears as a psychic investigator. "The Devil’s Rain" (1975) follows in the footsteps of earlier movies centered on satanic themes from the 1960s and early 1970s, like “The Devil Rides Out” (1968), “The Brotherhood of Satan” (1971), and “Race with the Devil” (1975). The popularity of "Rosemary’s Baby" (1968) and "The Exorcist" (1973) understandably drew filmmakers toward this subject matter. Rob Zombie's "The Lords of Salem" (2012) stands as a good contemporary example of the genre. However, “The Devil’s Rain” demonstrates what can happen when a topic is approached without careful moderation. The cast members, locations, vibrant sets and props, and special effects are all acceptable—even impressive—but the exaggerated satanism becomes more comical than frightening. This isn't helped by a slow-moving story, poor storytelling, unengaging central characters, and an abundance of unnecessary scenes (such as the extended sequence of melting faces at the end). The background information about this movie is actually more compelling than the film itself. For example: Borgnine claimed that the movie was financed by the Mafia and he didn't even receive payment; a mask worn by Shatner bears a resemblance to the one used in “Halloween” (1978); Travolta had his first acting role in a minor part; John received a copy of Dianetics on set from Joan Prather, which reportedly led to Travolta’s conversion to Sciencefictionology; and LaVey & his wife have brief appearances. If you aren't familiar with the details, LaVey took advantage of the growing interest in satanism at the start of the 1960s and established his ‘church’ of Satan in 1966. Production began on “The Devil Rides Out” and "Rosemary's Baby" the following year. The film has a running time of 1 hour, 26 minutes, and was filmed in Durango, Mexico. GRADE: C-/D+ (3.5/10)

Source on TMDB