Greek Gods, Gothic Decay, and Madness Collide

Read Time:5 Minute, 22 Second

MOVIE REVIEW
Malpertuis (The Legend of Doom House)
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Genre: Horror, Fantasy, Mystery
Year Released: 1971, Radiance Films Blu-ray Limited Edition 2025
Runtime: 2h 5m
Director(s): Harry Kümel
Writer(s): Jean Ferry, Jean Ray
Cast: Orson Welles, Susan Hampshire, Michel Bouquet, Mathieu Carrière, Jean-Pierre Cassel, Daniel Pilon, Walter Rilla, Dora van der Groen, Charles Janssens, Sylvie Vartan
Where to Watch: shown at the 2025 FrightFest Film Festival, available October 13, 2025. Pre-order your copy here: www.radiancefilms.co.uk

RAVING REVIEW: Where DAUGHTERS OF DARKNESS lured audiences with sleek elegance and erotic menace, Harry Kümel’s companion piece from 1971, MALPERTUIS, plunges headfirst into a labyrinth of myth, madness, and surrealism. Adapted from Jean Ray’s novel, it is a film that wears its strangeness proudly, offering an experience that feels more like wandering through a fever dream than following a conventional narrative. With its star power, elaborate production design, and ambitions, MALPERTUIS is both a fascinating artifact of European genre filmmaking and a divisive entry that continues to split audiences to this day.

At its heart lies Jan, a young sailor played by Mathieu Carrière, who returns home and finds himself pulled into his family’s decaying mansion, Malpertuis. What begins as a gothic tale of inheritance quickly becomes something far stranger. Presiding over the family is Cassavius, the patriarch portrayed by Orson Welles, who brings his signature gravitas even when his off-screen reputation threatened to overshadow productions. In MALPERTUIS, his looming presence feels right at home—he is both anchor and enigma, the kind of character who seems to control not just the people in the story but the shape of the story itself.

The premise hinges on Cassavius’s will: his heirs may only claim his fortune if they remain in the mansion forever. On paper, it sounds like a familiar gothic setup, but Kümel bends it into something deeply unconventional. The relatives inhabiting the house are more than eccentric—they seem caught between roles, their identities tied to ancient mythologies. Slowly, it is revealed that they may be manifestations of Greek gods trapped in mortal form, condemned to wither away inside this decaying structure.

MALPERTUIS is a triumph of atmosphere. Gerry Fisher’s cinematography renders the house as both physical and dreamlike, with its twisting staircases and shadowy corners capturing a sense of inevitability. The compositions often feel artistic, recalling Belgian surrealism in the way everyday objects become uncanny under the camera’s gaze. Georges Delerue’s score emphasizes this, alternating between mournful and grandiose, giving the impression of a tragedy that was written long before the film began.

Where the film stumbles is in its execution of clarity. The editing—complicated by the existence of multiple cuts—often leaves viewers feeling lost. One version ran just over 99 minutes, while the longer Flemish version stretches well past two hours. Each cut tells a slightly different story, with some versions losing Orson Welles’s original dialogue. That history of revisions leaves MALPERTUIS as something unstable, a film whose definitive version remains a matter of debate. This patchwork quality can be frustrating, but it also contributes to the sense that the film itself is a puzzle box—always incomplete, always elusive.

Performances are equally uneven but fascinating. Welles, even rumored to be drinking during the shoot, commands every scene with his booming delivery and presence. Susan Hampshire takes on multiple roles, each variation highlighting different facets of identity and fate, while Michel Bouquet lends a quiet menace to his supporting turn. Carrière, as Jan, becomes the bewildered center of it all—our surrogate navigating a world where the rules keep shifting.

As with DAUGHTERS OF DARKNESS, Kümel proves more interested in tone and allegory than in straightforward scares. This is not a film filled with shocks, but rather one of oppressive atmosphere and creeping disorientation. Themes of imprisonment, inevitability, and the futility of escape run through every scene. The house itself feels alive, not simply a setting but a force determined to consume those inside it. By the end, the line between dream and reality has dissolved completely, leaving the viewer with more questions than answers.

The new Radiance Films restoration gives this strange experiment the treatment it deserves. Overseen by Kümel himself, the Blu-ray not only restores its visuals but also contextualizes them with an abundance of supplements, including archival documentaries, featurettes on Welles, and even the rarely seen Cannes cut. For scholars of European cinema, this release is invaluable—not just for the film but for the story of its turbulent production and reception.

MALPERTUIS may not have the sleek precision of DAUGHTERS OF DARKNESS. Yet, it offers something different: a plunge into the irrational, where gothic architecture, ancient myths, and human frailty blend into a feverish whole. It is not an easy film, and its flaws are inextricably linked to its ambitions. It is an experience like no other. In its fractured way, it stands as proof of Kümel’s daring—an auteur willing to risk confusion and frustration in pursuit of imagery that haunts long after the final frame.

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[photo courtesy of RADIANCE FILMS]

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