The Night Evelyn Came Out of the Grave (1971) User Reviews

Nice mix of Giallo and Gothic horror

[bensonmum2 · 7/10 · 16 December 2005]

Lord Alan Cunningham has been a troubled man since the death of his wife. The only release he can find from his torment is by luring women that remind him of his dead wife to his castle and then brutally murdering them. That is until he meets Gladys. The two are quickly married and Lord Cunningham appears to be cured. But a series of strange events involving the possibility that his first wife has returned from the grave seems to send him over the edge.

The Night Evelyn Came Out of the Grave is one part Giallo and one part Gothic horror. It's not the greatest example of either sub-genre you'll run across, but I was reasonably entertained throughout. There are plenty of twists and turns in the plot to keep you guessing up to the very end. While I've seen enough of these Gialli that I'm rarely surprised anymore, there's no way I could have predicted all the twists in the last act. The acting is about average for this kind of film, but it was nice to see Marina Malfatti with a large role as Gladys. Most of the rest of the cast will be familiar to fans of 70s Italian films.

A word of warning about the DVD - there are a bunch of El Cheapo DVD companies out there that offer The Night Evelyn Came Out of the Grave. One appears to be about as good as the other. The best that can be said about these DVDs is that they are watchable (and I'm being generous). If this sounds like a movie that would be of interest, I've read that NoShame DVD has acquired the Region 1 rights. Based on their track record, it should be worth waiting for. I'll definitely upgrade once it's released.

Edit (5/7): NoShame's new DVD of The Night Evelyn Came Out of the Grave is, in a word, stunning - especially when compared with what's been available until now in Region 1. I have a new appreciation for the film and actually enjoyed it much more than I did just a couple of months ago. It's like watching a whole different movie.

She's Waiting.

[lost-in-limbo · 6/10 · 12 August 2007]

Emilio Miraglia's "The Night Evelyn came out of her Grave" is an entertaining slice of perversely manipulative and seedy Gothic Euro-horror. The way the format works out (Gothic crossed Giallo) is a delicious web of eerie uncertainty and devilish twists, where is it the cracking mind of the protagonist or maybe the supernatural has something to do with the mysterious occurrences and demented happenings. Where never quite sure how it will pan out, despite its strictly routine and what you think a simple set-up. It does create many effective and spontaneous passages, like a layer upon layer structure, which compellingly builds up to its show-stopping, and unforeseeable conclusion. Which eventually goes out of its way to shock. Miraglia sharply paints a sombre atmospheric setting that at times embraces a dreamy elegance and for the darker, glum moments it's covered with moody shades due to its shadowy lighting. There's plenty of rough, jolting blocks of viciously nasty violence, sensual nudity and sordid fetishes. Bruno Nicolai's peering camera-work is smoothly orchestrated and Gastone Di Giovanni's wicked, bustling music score fits every scene. The pacing can get rather stumpy and editing can lumber with little rhythm, but it has a certain glow and the strangeness of the idea seems to hold you. The performances fair up decently, with a voluptuous Erika Blanc looking rather stunning and nailing down her part. Antonio De Teffè's nervous wreck portrayal is finely tuned in a neurotic sense and Marina Malfatti is there to shower us with her gratuitous looks. Rod Murdock colourfully hams it up, with winning results and Giacomo Rossi-Stuart is suitably adequate as the stable-headed doctor. There are able performances from Joan C Davis and Roberto Maldera too. The story can get patchy with few plot-holes, but it has a sedately arresting, stylised appeal.

Clever mix of gothic horror elements and Giallo story

[rundbauchdodo · 6/10 · 13 July 2001]

This creepy Italian thriller tells the story about a widowed lord who still suffers from the memory of the death of his red-haired wife Evelyn who betrayed him. So the aristocrat lures red-haired prostitutes into his castle to take revenge on his dead wife again and again: He whips them before he kills them.

But he's obviously not the only whacko in this film, because after he has found a new wife - a blonde woman this time - he seems to be getting better, but strange things happen and there's even a gloved killer who murders a couple of people in quite nasty ways.

This film from the director of the fine Giallo "La Dama Rossa Uccide Sette Volte" (1972, see also my comment on that one) is a clever blending of gothic horror elements (a creepy castle, mysterious events taking place and an empty coffin that suggests that Evelyn indeed came out of her grave) and a typical Giallo story (gloved killer, nasty murders and some surprising twists during the climax). The only letdown is the slow paced start (after a great opening sequence, though), but the second half makes up for that in many ways. The film is not that gory, but there is one particularly gruesome scene when the killer batters a woman with a stone and then throws her into a fox cage - you actually see the foxes munch on her innards.

All in all an interesting and unusual film that is worth looking for (although it's not easy to get it on tape at the moment).

Albert wants his thirty pounds

[carlsevier · 7/10 · 18 November 2005]

OK, maybe I'm wrong, but I don't think so. If you want to watch great cinematography maybe you should watch this for a base to judge it on. I have the r rated version and I've seen more breasts in this than in a regular porn movie. This is a wonderful movie to have with a ton of friends over. If there were only more spaghetti horror movies like this.

From the get go, there are red heads galore. And more S&M than you'd have thought could be filmed back in the 70s. I'm not saying this is the best movie of the age, but the costume designer should have won an Oscar. Can you say "Titty"? And the under lying theme of "Get rid of your old flame's s**t!" can't be denied.

Perhaps those who don't appreciate this film aren't the "artsy fartsy" types but this movie also can boasts non-stop high quality Sets. And any flick that involves Red head chicks naked, Rufees, and gore can't be bad. Oh!, and foxes eating intestines.

And let's not mention Aunt Agatha getting her head knocked in ala. Apollo Creed in Rocky IV.

Stylish Gothic Giallo

[Witchfinder-General-666 · 7/10 · 6 August 2008]

"La Notte Che Evelyn Uscì Dalla Tumba" aka "The Night Evelyn Came Out Of The Grave" of 1971 is an exquisitely strange mixture of Giallo and Gothic Horror. Before seeing this film, I was long looking forward to it, since Gialli and Gothic Tales are my two favorite sub-genres in Horror, and it did not disappoint. Among my fellow Italian Horror buffs, director Emilio Miraglia is most praised for his Gothic Giallo masterpiece "La Dama Rossa Uccide Sette Volte" (aka. "The Red Queen Kills Seven Times") of 1972, which is one of the most atmospheric and brilliant genre gems ever to be released. While this film is nowhere near as great, it is definitely a highly original little film that no Italian Horror lover should consider missing."The Night That Evelyn Came Out Of The Grave", may have some little flaws, but it is without doubt a highly original film with some downright ingenious aspects. The film delivers delightful weirdness and sleaze in an eerie castle setting.

Lord Cunningham (Anthony Steffen) has the unorthodox urge to lure prostitutes (redheads only) into his eerie castle. Followed by a crazy vision, which another red-haired girl (more precisely his deceased wife) runs around naked in the forest, the raged boot-fetishist Cunningham kills the prostitutes in the torture chamber of his castle. His psychiatrist (Giacomo Rossi-Stuart, who is best known for Mario Bava's masterpiece "Kill Baby... Kill!") advises the man to get married again, in order to overcome his strange visions. Cunningham then meets a sexy lady named Gladys (Marina Malfatti)... The storyline is sometimes a bit confused, but overall highly original. Apart from the great Gothic atmosphere and excellent photography, the film also entertains with delightful sleaze. The female characters all tend to get naked as frequently as possible, which is especially welcome with the stunningly beautiful Erica Blanc and Marina Malfatti. The amount of perversions and insanity is equally satisfactory. The killings are not very gory, but stylish and one of them is quite nasty. Anthony Steffen, who is mainly known for his Spaghetti Westerns (sometimes credited as Antonio De Teffe), makes a great psychotic rich guy. The score by Bruno Nicolai is great, and the photography and atmosphere are superb. There are some illogical aspects and plot-holes, though. Lord Cunningham and his cousin have an aunt, for example, who looks only half the age of her nephews. The film has some other flaws, but the great Gothic atmosphere, sleaze and delightful weirdness make up for that easily. Overall, "The Night Evelyn Came Out Of Her Tomb" is a sleazy, original and stylish Gothic Giallo that no Italian Horror lover should miss.

Evelyn Should Have Stayed Buried!

[BaronBl00d · 4/10 · 2 August 2005]

Italian horror/suspense film about a wealthy English lord who cruises pubs and taverns for girls with red hair just like his recently deceased wife Evelyn. You know he must have really loved his wife, because he brings them to his home - a huge, rotting castle - and makes them disrobe and then tortures them, whips them, and kills them. The most bizarre aspect of this film for me was that somehow by the film's end, we see this guy played by Antonio De Teffe as the HERO of the film. Anyway, soon, under the advice of his playboy uncle Roberto Maldera, De Teffe settles down with a girl he meets at his uncle's party. She moves in and strange things begin to happen to De Teffe's fragile state of mind. He begins to see and hear his dead wife and finally, well, just look at the title if you are still curious. Also, family members and friends begin to die in the most brutal fashions. Poor Aunt Agatha(she looks like she might even be younger than De Teffe and they have her in a wheelchair and trying to look old) meets her fate in a foxy fashion. Another man is injected and then buried alive. And of course, there is a whole explanation as to why/how Evelyn did what she did. Director Emilio Miraglia does do some things fairly well: the settings in the film are well-suited for this film though trying to make us believe it is England is ludicrous at best. None of the actors look English. Many having dark black hair and Mediterranean complexions and wearing clothes an Englishman wouldn't be caught dead in. The cars drive on their wrong side of the road. But all that notwithstanding, the crypt scene was effectively shot and I liked the cheesy resolution too. And of course any film with the sultry, red-headed Erika Blanc is always a plus. There is a streak of sexual perversion; however, which I found somewhat appalling with the idea that torturing women was quite alright and healthy in order to relieve one of his mental demons. C'mon.

Beware of greedy, imaginary unfaithful, worm-congested red-haired corpse brides...

[Coventry · 6/10 · 21 July 2006]

Completely UNlike expected, I didn't like this creatively titled movie as much as I thought I would. "The Night Evelyn Came out of the Gave" features all the basic ingredients that make Italian horror fanatics' mouths water, and it is in fact pretty good, yet it doesn't leave you with that fantastic feeling of total amazement like so many other gialli/Gothic films do. What went wrong mainly? Well, one too many tedious sequences, for starters, but primarily it's the fact that justice apparently must NOT be done! There's more than one murderer in this story and they honestly don't all get the punishment they deserve. The rest of the film is varying from good to great! Director Emilio Miraglia offers a largely compelling giallo-plot, but with the atmosphere & set pieces of a typical Gothic horror production! This means we're following a convoluted and demented crime conspiracy but set in an ancient ominous castle and featuring eerie family vaults, whips and gigantic cobwebs. Two years later, in 1973, the great Antonio Margheriti also proved with "Seven Deaths in a Cat's Eye" that these two fabulous horror sub genre's can be blend perfectly. And he did it even slightly better, as that particular film didn't suffer from so many holes in the plot. The wealthy Lord Cunningham has the strange habit of luring red-headed beauties to his castle, suffering from a vision of another redhead running naked through a meadow, and subsequently killing the gals barbarically with a whip. This ritual describes his therapy for getting over his wife's death, since she passed away shortly after him (falsy?) accusing her of adultery. When the Lord finally takes everyone's advise and re-marries with a stunning beauty, all kinds of mysterious events occur, indicating that the first wife returned from the dead with a vengeance. Hence the not-so-subtle title! The story is always interesting but the pacing is a little slow and not one character is likable. However, that makes the murders all the more enjoyable! They're not particularly gory, but certainly ingenious! The killing of the wheel-chaired lady is notably brutal! The music and quantity of nudity & euro-sleaze are also tip top, so there are more than enough elements left to reward this film with a positive rating.

I preferred Emilio Miraglia's other giallo, 'The Red Queen Kills 7 Times'.

[BA_Harrison · 4/10 · 15 February 2008]

Alan (Anthony Steffen), an English multi-millionaire with a few screws loose (thanks to his first wife's infidelity and untimely death during childbirth), entices sexy, red-headed women to his castle, offering them bundles of cash to stay the weekend. Once back at his ancestral pile, he gets them nekkid, proceeds to flog them with a bull-whip, and then kills them.

But when he meets blonde hottie Gladys (Marina Malfatti) and falls for her ample charms, he decides to give up his murderous ways and get married. Their wedded bliss is short-lived, however, thanks to Alan's iffy mental state, which becomes increasingly fragile when his dead wife Evelyn starts to appear outside his window and a spate of gruesome murders occur within the castle grounds.

So let's recap: a groovy 70s Euro-horror with loads of tasty women in various states of undress; spooky Gothic retreats and misty graveyards; a sadistic rich psycho with a penchant for drop-dead gorgeous babes with cracking bods; several vicious murders (including a great bit where one victim has her head bashed in with a rock and her entrails eaten by foxes). Normally, a checklist like that would guarantee me a good time—so why did I find 'The Night Evelyn Came Out Of Her Grave' so dull? Well, for starters, the plot is way too convoluted: there are red herrings, crazy plot developments, and suspects galore, and it all becomes a bit too much. By the ridiculous ending—in which we discover that, all along, several people have been plotting to get their greedy paws on Alan's wealth, and that our red-head killing nut-job is actually supposed to be the hero of the movie—my head was hurting too much to care! Secondly, Emilio Maraglia's direction is pretty torpid. Stylish, yes; but as slow as molasses at times.

And then there's the bits that are just too damn silly, possibly even for a giallo: the death by poisonous snake bite (surely one of the most bizarre choices of weapon ever); Alan's Aunt Agatha, an old crippled relative who is played by a pretty young woman; the hiring of a group of identical curly headed blondes as maids; the poor attempt at convincing the audience that the film is set in England (mentioning 'pounds' and hiring a crap police uniform for one of the extras is not enough); and then, of course, there is the unlikelihood of finding a bag of sulphuric acid laying next to a swimming pool...

'The Night Evelyn Came Out Of Her Grave' isn't a total waste of time (how could it be, with so much female flesh on show?), but there are much better giallo's out there. Watch this one if you're a fan of the genre and you've already seen the best—but don't expect too much.

Foxy babes and babe dinner for foxes.

[lastliberal · 6/10 · 31 August 2009]

Nice mix of giallo an Gothic horror, brought to you by Emilio Miraglia, writer/director of Red Queen Kills 7 Times. Maybe Miraglia likes red, as this is a tale of a dead red-headed wife, and a series of red-headed prostitutes brought home by the rich widower, Lord Alan Cunningham (Anthony Steffen).

Not only does Alan bring a lot of redheads home to his castle, which means a lot of flesh for your enjoyment, but he has a propensity to engage in a little sadism while he is at it, as Susan (Erika Blanc) finds out.

After Susan, he meets Gladys (Marina Malfatti) at a party. He is instantly attracted (and who wouldn't be?) even though she is a blond, not a redhead. So much so, that he asks her to marry before he even gets her in bed. She is much more practical, and goes to bed without marrying, though I suspect she feels it will lead there eventually.

When they are married, the title comes alive as does Evelyn, his first wife. Naturally, I suspected Albert (Roberto Maldera) and Aunt Agatha (Joan C. Davis) in this ruse, but that is quickly dispelled. Needless to say, the foxes didn't have any appetite for breakfast after a late night snack.

Things move forward with a double double cross and a surprise ending. Interesting giallo with boobilicious treats.

The Night Evelyn..

[Scarecrow-88 · 4/10 · 25 September 2006]

Lord Alan Cunningham(Antonio De Teffè)is a nutjob{seen early on trying to escape an insane asylum}, with this castle slowly succumbing to ruin, likes to kill various hookers who resemble his deceased wife Evelyn, a woman who betrayed him for another man, with those red locks. This nutcase is quite wealthy and his bachelor status can be quite alluring. He, however, is overrun by his obsession with his late wife's memory(specifically her adultery..he saw her naked with the lover). While the memory of Evelyn is almost devouring his whole existence, Alan tries his best to find true love and believes he has with Gladys(Marina Malfatti, who spends most of the film naked..that's probably her lone attribute since she isn't a very good actress), who agrees to marry him after a very short courtship which should probably throw up flags right away{there's a key moment of dialogue where she knows exactly to the very amount what he is worth}.

The only real person Alan can confide in is his doctor from the hospital, Dr. Richard Timberlane(Giacomo Rossi-Stuart). There are other key characters in this film that revolve around Alan. Alan's cousin, George(Rod Murdock), seems to be quite a good friend who often supplies him victims..I mean dates, while holding onto hope of getting his lord's estate some day. Albert(Roberto Maldera), Evelyn's brother, is a witness to Alan's slaughter and, instead of turning him into the police, squeezes him for cash. Aunt Agatha(Joan C Davis), wheelchair bound, lives at the castle estate and is often seen snooping around behind cracked doors. We later find that she is having a love affair with Albert.

All that is described above services the rest of the story which shows what appears to be the ghost of Evelyn haunting Alan, someone is killing off members of the cast family that revolve around Alan, and the body of Evelyn is indeed missing.

The ultimate question is who is committing the crimes after Alan and Gladys are married, where is Evelyn's body, and will Alan go over the edge? I have to be honest and say I just didn't really care much for this film. It's badly uneven and the pacing is all over the place. It looks great on the new DVD and the "rising from the grave sequence" is cool, but what really hurts the film in my mind is that the entire cast is unlikable. You really have a hard time caring for Alan because he is a psychotic who is skating on thin ice in regards to holding his sanity. He can be quite volatile. Who commits the crime really isn't that great a surprise for after several key characters are murdered off, there aren't but a choice few who could be doing it. What happens to Alan doesn't really make your throat gulp because you can make the argument he's just getting what he deserves. Those behind the whole scheme of the film in regards to Alan, as I pointed out before, aren't that shocking because if you are just slightly aware of certain circumstances(..or advantages they'd have)that would benefit them with the collapse of Alan's sanity, then everything just comes off less than stellar. I thought the editing was choppy and unexciting, but the acting from the entire cast is really below par. Some stylistics help and there is a sniff of Gothic atmosphere in the graveyard sequences to help it some.

A fabulous slice of Euro Gothic!

[The_Void · 9/10 · 8 June 2006]

Emilio Miraglia's crossover between Gothic horror and Italy's finest cinematic export, the Giallo, really is a delightful film for the fan of cult horror. While the movie is certainly no masterpiece, the story moves well and the imagery on display and imagination on the part of the director that is shown throughout elevates a rather simple tale of insanity and murder into an amazing slice of cult cinema. The title alone is graphic and lurid enough on its own, and I'm pleased to say that the film itself carries on this style throughout, with some well worked and ingenious death scenes, as well as plenty of nudity and some truly beautiful cinematography. The story takes place in a castle just outside London, England. We are introduced to Lord Alan Cunningham and a hooker that he is taking home. After brutally torturing and eventually killing her, we discover that his mental trauma is due to the loss of his wife, Evelyn. His friend and doctor talks him into remarrying to ease his mental anguish, and that's a piece of advice that he takes upon meeting the ravishing Gladys...

Despite the fact that this film is very much a piece of schlock cinema, the director appears to have taken it very seriously, and the result is a film that puts a lot of emphasis on the plot and characters, and ultimately this means a stronger show as Miraglia takes time to draw his audience in, rather than just showing blood and nudity and leaving it at that. The acting performances aren't bad, and even though Spaghetti Western star Antonio De Teffè is a little hammy, he convinces in his role; while Marina Malfatti provides eye-catching eye candy. The murder sequences on display are typically gruesome and beyond the immediately obvious, as we watch a woman being ripped apart by foxes and a scene that sees a man burn in a pool containing sulphuric acid. Bruno Nicolai's rock score works very well and brilliantly accents every scene. The film all boils down to a satisfying ending, which despite seemingly coming out nowhere; works well and adequately describes many of the loose ends up until the conclusion. Overall, while this film isn't the best of its kind; it's certainly a very good one and I'm sure that fans of cult cinema won't be disappointed!

Splendid giallo, they don't make them like this anymore!

[DVD_Connoisseur · 7/10 · 29 October 2006]

"La notte che Evelyn uscì dalla tomba" is a splendidly wicked tale, ably directed by Emilio Miraglia. Possibly the most politically incorrect giallo I've seen, the film is a real treat for fans of spaghetti horror.

The film is a visual feast and has a great score by Bruno Nicolai. It is rich in atmosphere and '70s spirit.

The cast are excellent - Antonio De Teffè is outstanding as the "nuttier than a bottle of chips" Lord Alan Cunningham. There is a bevy of beauties in this movie (which always helps the proceedings), notably Marina Malfatti as Gladys Cunningham.

There are some genuine surprises in this film, I thoroughly enjoyed it. A solid 7 stars.

The castle in which anything can happen

[Camera-Obscura · 13 January 2007]

THE NIGHT EVELYN CAME OUT OF THE GRAVE (Emilio Miraglia - Italy 1971).

I only watched this delirious piece of Euro-tosh in the way of Alpha Video's dreadful DVD-release (looks like an extremely bad video-transfer), but from what I saw, not nearly interesting enough to purchase No Shame's recent DVD-release. Considering their excellent track record, it will undoubtedly be a major improvement over all previous releases. And don't pay attention to the ridiculous cover shown here, it's not taken from this film (some girl holding the head of a Jim Carrey look-a-like).

Spaghetti Western star Anthony Steffen sports a hip hairdo and assumes the role of Lord Alan Cunningham, a man haunted by the memory of his dead wife Evelyn. This leads to a nervous breakdown which has him being retained in a psychiatric clinic. Once released, Cunningham channels this trauma by taking redheaded prostitutes to his countryside castle, subjecting them to vicious acts of torture. His doctor and friend, Richard Timberlane (what do you mean, Italian horror names sound "made up?"), advises him to forget the past and remarry but Cunningham is obsessed with Evelyn and even organizes a séance at the castle. Eventually, after killing some more girls, he meets Gladys, another redhead, and marries her almost immediately, but the arrival of his new wife spawns a series of sinister events. Bloodthirsty creatures strike at Sir Alan's family, killing them off one by one. Becoming more distraught, Cunningham visits Evelyn's tomb and discovers it to be empty. Soon, a number of "outsiders" begin to suspect something fishy is going on in the castle and Lord Cunningham's treatment might not have been that successful after all.

Director Emilio Miraglia tries to blend Gothic horror with Giallo conventions with limited success. As usual, not the slightest effort was made to convince audiences the film is set in England. The cars drive on the right side of the road, everyone looks very Mediterranean and the castle (and the rest of the architecture) is patently Italian. This is common practice in Italian horror, but sometimes they just take this a little too far. The bad print made this even slightly bearable, since it's so dark, you couldn't see much of the surroundings anyway. But, then again, this is the kind of film where anything can happen in the name of exploitation and depicting reality isn't really the issue. A large part consists of sado-masochistic torture scenes in the castle torture chamber, but most of the time, Anthony Steffen hams his way through this and shows some horrible over-acting. I guess it all depends on your state of mind and this can be a fun piece of nonsense if you're in the right mood. I just couldn't take it, at least not with the print I watched. A pleasant score though by Bruno Nicolai which combines easy-listening tunes with some psychedelic rock numbers.

Camera Obscura --- 4/10

The Night Evelyn Never Came Out of the Grave and I Slipped into a Coma...

[codfish · 1/10 · 5 August 2001]

Exceptionally horrible tale that I can barely put into words. The best part of the movie was when one of the murder victims turns up at the end, alive and well, only to be massacred again. There is the chance that I missed some crucial plot elements since I may have been in a slight coma during the time this baby was on. The box that the movie comes in shows scenes that are never even in the film. I was lured in by the crude images of bondage torture and promises of a 'Euro-trash, sexy horror flick.' I get the feeling this was the budget version and about one quarter of the film was left out. All the good stuff more than likely. I got the PG-13 addition that made about as much sense as the end to the new 'Planet of the Apes' movie. Watch this one with a friend and a bottle of the hard stuff. You'll need it.

The worms are waiting.

[Hey_Sweden · 7/10 · 21 October 2019]

"The Night Evelyn Came Out of the Grave" is a twisty (naturally), engaging example of the Giallo genre that benefits strongly from its environs, atmosphere, and visual poetry (not to mention nudity). Anthony Steffen ("Evil Eye") stars as Lord Alan Cunningham, an aristocrat who can't get over the death of his first wife Evelyn. Now, his personality has taken on a sadistic, fetishistic bent as he takes his one night stands back to his remote castle and tortures them. Then, he decides he can best move on by impulsively marrying new acquaintance Gladys (Marina Malfatti, "All the Colors of the Dark"). But when some of those close to Alan meet horrible deaths, it seems as if Evelyn might be seeking revenge from beyond the grave.

This is a pretty good mystery that keeps its viewers engrossed, just like any good film of its type. Even if they think they have it figured out early on, it's still worth sticking with for its melding of sex, violence, and style. The actors are all excellent, with Enzo Tarascio ("Sword of the Empire"), Giacomo Rossi Stuart ("The Last Man on Earth"), Umberto Raho ("Seven Seas to Calais"), Roberto Maldera ("Assassination"), Joan C. Davis (in her only film role), and the luscious Erika Blanc ("Kill, Baby... Kill!") offering great support. The lounge score by composer Bruno Nicolai is the ideal accompaniment, especially for those flashback scenes in the garden. The film is violent, but the gore comes in spurts, such as a sequence involving pet foxes, and a series of stabbings near the end.

Alan is an interesting sort of protagonist: far from innocent, since he's spilling his share of blood, but not entirely unsympathetic due to his deteriorating mental state. This plays into a delicious final turn of events, when miscreants get revealed, but characters still have surprises for each other. Those are often the best kinds of endings in murder-mystery fare.

Recommended as a companion piece to filmmaker Emilio P. Miraglias' follow-up Giallo, "The Red Queen Kills Seven Times".

Seven out of 10.

One of the more original entries in the Giallo genre

[acidburn-10 · 7/10 · 4 March 2017]

'The Night Evelyn Came out Of the Grave' is a fantastically atmospheric Giallo film directed by Emilio Miraglia and is drenched in perversion and sadistic to boot and focuses on the arc types of the genre such as sex, murder and mystery. The film follows the sordid life of Lord Alan Cunningham whose not only rich and handsome but also a raving lunatic whose just been released from the psychiatric hospital seemingly cured after the death of his wife Evelyn who was also having many affairs and driven to madness of her betrayal he murders young women. But eventually he meets a captivating young woman named Gladys who serves to temper his wild sickness but for how long.

Suspicion, greed and a hefty inheritance all comes into play once he marries Gladys or is there something more to what's actually going on and that is the beauty of the whole thing is that you think you know what's going on, only to have the rug pulled out from underneath you again and be completely surprised whist jarring at the same time. You have absolutely no idea of what's gonna happen next either which was an aspect that I truly enjoyed. Okay for much of the runtime it is pretty sluggish, but when it gets to the last act, then it becomes manic and you question everything you've seen so far.

Not only a Giallo but it also mixes in a supernatural thriller into the narrative which really fits in well with its Gothic setting and along with a score by Bruno Nicolai which is just majestic as well as captivating and sets the tone to the movie perfectly, as well as the beautiful scenery and art direction and set pieces which makes this a well and truly beautiful movie to look at.

Anthony Steffen takes on the tortured role of Lord Cunningham the well to do psycho who only wants to find love, romantically demented Anthony Steffen makes the role his very own as he puts an equal amount of effort into being sympathetic as well as sadistic and therefore bringing a hefty duality to the character and pulling it off beautifully making you feel disgusted as well as understanding him battling his madness, as well as carrying the entire film on his shoulders with such ease. Then there's Marina Malfatti as the newlywed Mrs Cunningham, extremely beautiful and sympathetic, she brings a lot to this role and often almost steals the show from the male lead and completely breath taking with her intense screen presence as you find yourself rooting for her as she delves deeper into the mystery of the estate and Alan and you are left fearing for her life.

All in all 'The Night Evelyn Came Out Of The Grave' may not be one of the most graphic entries in the Giallo genre, but it does have an intriguing plot and enough mystery and suspense to keep horror fans happy and plus it is one of the stronger and original entries you will find in this genre.

Mediocre Euro-trash fare

[aschepler2 · 29 April 2004]

NIGHT EVELYN CAME OUT OF THE GRAVE, THE (1971) *½ Antonio De Teffé (as `Anthony Steffen'), Marina Malfatti, Erika Blanc, Giacomo Rossi-Stuart, Roberto Maldera. More giallo than horror movie, Evelyn is the story of a wealthy, slightly insane London playboy who is haunted by images of dead wife. Seeking to inherit the family fortune, his conniving cousin -- teamed with a pair of London strippers -- plots to drive him over the edge for good. If you can suffer through the often tedious first hour and a half, the outrageous ending is good for a laugh or two, but otherwise there's little to recommend here.

One and a half stars out of five.

Weak mystery at times makes very little sense.

[Aaron1375 · 3/10 · 14 May 2009]

This Italian semi-horror movie starts out very much like a soft core porn movie and turns into a mystery that has a few to many loose ends to be good, that and the fact it is rather dull just makes this film rather unwatchable for my tastes. The only thing really worth watching are the many boobs spread throughout the film. The story has a guy who at the beginning of the movie luring girls to his castle where he proceeds to take them to his dungeon, go berserk and seemingly kill them. They show the nudity, but they never really show the murders at this point in the film. Then the guy finds a nice red head at a party and proceeds to make out with her and marry her. He has a thing for red heads you see as his beloved former wife Evelyn was also one, she also died under circumstances that must have not been the viewing audience's business. After a lot of talky scenes murders start to take place involving snakes, foxes and such. At this point it is easy enough to figure out who is responsible for the murders and what the motive is then you have a nonsensical ending where everything wraps up not so nicely. This movie just did not work for me, it left me with to many questions and the last third of the film just did not have the boobs of the first two thirds of the film. Explaining Evelyn's death would have helped the film as would have some sort of ending where Evelyn did rise from the grave. Granted the title is not totally misleading as she did sort of leave the grave, just not under her own power. The gore is very light for the most part as there is a scene with the foxes and a scene at the end with quite a bit of blood too. I just thought for the most part this movie was a tad dull.

A Classic, Now in the Proper Release

[gavin6942 · 7/10 · 12 May 2016]

A wealthy English lord is suffering a mental breakdown following the death of his red-headed wife, Evelyn, whom he feared was cheating on him. He tours local bars and dives, scouring for lovely red-heads willing to come back to his decaying castle in the country, where he seduces them, then tortures and kills them.

This is the first of two giallo films directed by Emilio Miraglia, and both revolve around a woman named "Evelyn" who has died. Is there something behind this? Probably, but who knows. Miraglia had a bit of a history in Italian film at this point, working his way up to director after assisting others, including Lucio Fulci. Miraglia only directed a total of six films of any genre, so no surprise if you are less than familiar with him.

Troy Howarth actually says the film is not strict giallo, but calls this a hybrid of giallo and modern Gothic, which is a fair claim. It stars Anthony Steffen, the royal-blooded Italian Clint Eastwood, best known for "Django the Bastard" (if he is remembered at all). But the biggest name in this film is Erika Blanc (known for Bava's "Kill Baby Kill" among others). She may in many ways be here more for her looks than her acting, but her acting is nothing to sneeze at.

Bruno Nicolai, second only to Ennio Morricone (and maybe Caludio Simonetti) supplies the soundtrack, though not all of it is fresh. We have, for example, a re-use of Nicolai's "Criminal Sex" for the early, memorable naked whipping scene. But when you already have a good tune, why use something else?

On VHS and DVD, the film has been released by various labels over the years with questionable legitimacy to the rights and subpar, truncated presentations. Finally, thanks to Arrow Video, we get the ultimate release -- uncut, in both English and Italian, and loaded with extras. Of particular interest is the audio commentary from author Troy Howarth, an expert on this sort of film. Erika Blanc also has an interview.

Way overlong

[gridoon2024 · 4/10 · 11 June 2016]

"The Night Evelyn Came Out Of The Grave" is, in some ways, a quintessential giallo - it has nearly everything the genre is known for: a colorful title, poor English dubbing, lots of nudity, a decidedly chauvinistic / anti-feminist bent, a ludicrously convoluted plot, a series of murders, and a pervading sense of trashiness (a corpse is fed to a cage full of foxes in this one!). However, "Evelyn" lacks the artiness with which the better films of the genre bring together all those elements; there is a reason why you are familiar with the names of Dario Argento or Lucio Fulci, but not with that of Emilio Miraglia. For the first hour or so, nothing really happens in the plot of this movie except two murders; the twist at the end almost redeems the film, but then there is another, and another: you begin to get the impression that Miraglia threw in everything but the kitchen sink, without really knowing what he's doing. *1/2 out of 4.

The Night Boobs Came out the ETC

[Bezenby · 7/10 · 27 September 2017]

I've read there's at least nine different edits of this film floating around so I've put off watching it for years, and have now watched it in all it's demented glory! It's good! Long too! And booby!

We first meet rich millionaire Antony Steffen while he's running through the garden of a loonybin, screaming at the top of his voice. Seems our Antony has gone quite mental following the death of his wife Evelyn. He's released from the crazy house, but I don't think luring red-headed prostitutes to his house and murdering them in his torture room is a long term therapy.

Antony lives in his huge house with the following potential victims: wheelchair bound Aunt Agatha, who likes to spy on people from cupboards and is having it off with Albert, Evelyn's brother who's constantly blackmailing Antony for money. There's also his lawyer (Umberto Raho) who seems to have specialized in looking shifty, his doctor (Giacomo Rossi-Stuart) who constantly looks suspicious, and of course his hippy cousin who's always having orgies and what not.

Antony's doctor recommends that he should get married again and forget about the dead ginger wife, which Antony does after we see him trying to kill Erika Blanc. Things start getting more mysterious around this time as it would appear that Evelyn may well have returned from the grave, seeing her grave's open and she's appearing every all the time. Then again, if this film is a Gothic horror as the haunting suggests, why is there's also a gloved killer going around murdering the cast?

This a lengthy, gorgeous looking, trashy giallo with many a braless lady on display to keep you awake while the film develops a plot. There's also a lot of strange sights on view, from Erika Blanc emerging from a coffin to do a striptease, to the five identical maids with their blonde Afros or when one of the victims is dumped in a cage full of foxes, who then proceed to eat the corpse's guts. It's also daft as hell mind you – check out the ending – who leaves sulphuric acid next to a swimming pool?

Antony Steffen gets a lot of stick for not being the greatest actor but he does fine here. He would also go on to play a blind composer in Seven Crimes of the Black Cat!

Lifestyles of the Rich and Terminally Boring

[Jonny_Numb · 1/10 · 14 January 2004]

Oh, those Italians! Assuming that movies about aristocrats with weird fetishes, castles drowned in gothic atmosphere, and back-stabbing relatives trying to get their hands on an inheritance are inherently interesting to all! If you've seen one film of this type, you've basically seen them all (the MST3K favorite "Screaming Skull" fits the mold, too)...and "The Night Evelyn Came Out of the Grave" is formulaic, by-the-numbers, and dull as hell. Even the luscious Erika Blanc is put to waste here.

zero/10

Sexy,stylish and compelling Italian giallo.

[HumanoidOfFlesh · 9/10 · 30 June 2006]

Alan is a rich playboy haunted by the memory of red-headed Evelyn, his dead and unfaithful wife.He brings red haired prostitutes to his gloomy castle where they are whipped and killed.But when he marries Gladys,the terrible things begins to happen:his brother-in-law Albert is buried alive,aunt Agatha is fed to the foxes and Evelyn herself seems to pop out of her crypt with a sexy body and grinning skull face.1971's "The Night Evelyn Came Out of the Grave" is an enjoyable and stylish giallo with lovingly-photographed murders and plenty of sleaze.Every killing is associated with nudity and there is a lot of Gothic mood throughout.The location sets including a decrepit castle,a shadowy mausoleum and a sinister torture dungeon are truly creepy.The film is worth seeing for Erika Blanc's sensuous coffin striptease alone.9 out of 10.Fans of Italian gialli should give it a look!

An enjoyably entertaining if slightly disappointing giallo

[kannibalcorpsegrinder · 6/10 · 26 November 2022]

While trying to keep his sanity in check, a wealthy entrepreneur tries to move on with a new wife which is supposed to help him cure a debilitating psychological condition, but the more they stay together the more convinced he becomes that his former wife is still haunting him and affecting his relationship.

This was a generally solid second-tier genre effort. One of the better features here is the strong setup involving the main characters' clear psychological issues. Introduced very early on with the clear obsession he has with the old wife when he has a mental breakdown and snaps while meeting the prostitute, that there's plenty of work here with the doctor treating him for his condition while their friends are more concerned with trying to contact her spirit offers the kind of grand work the genre needs to work. This is carried throughout the majority of the first half where his mental sanity is continually questioned with the interactions involving the dancer playing this off quite nicely. This setup offers a fine inclusion for the film's psychological undertones to mesh well with the Gothic sensibilities involving the belief of whether or not his dead wife is still alive. Since his psyche is already shown to be fractured, the constant notions of seeing her figure around the castle grounds despite all the reassurances to the contrary create an intriguing sense of suspense over the whole situation as the shifty staff and constant misdirections about the incidents. It all comes to a head with a fantastic finale that has some impressive twists and turns that are incredibly fun to see play out which are all factored together to be the positive features of this one. There are some big issues to be had here. The main factor is the completely uninteresting main group of people we're supposed to root for as everything here is just bland and dull. Rather than imparting any kind of sympathy here, the constant blackouts, putting down his wife's queries that something's wrong, and the claims of the staff that something's wrong are nowhere close to making us side with him. For a film like this to be built on siding quite heavily with the protagonist during the whole situation, for the film to be so underwhelming with the lead in this manner and making him this dull and unlikeable is a massive hole to have to overcome that the film struggles as a whole to do so. That ties largely into the other issue prominent with the film where it's quite full and bland for the majority of the first half here. As this section never really does much with the idea of his maddening obsession and eventual psychosis beyond going through an endless stream of women to placate his deviances, there are some rather dull and underwhelming moments to be found here. It has the unfortunate addition of also enhancing the unappealing characters are we're forced to spend time with these types of characters so it can be all the more frustrating to see play out here, which all combine to lower this one slightly from what it could've been.

Rated Unrated/R: Violence, Language, Full Nudity, and sex scenes.

The Red Head Is Dead

[wes-connors · 2/10 · 11 August 2008]

Wealthy widower Anthony Steffen (as Alan Cunningham) is a sadomasochistic lover, and British Lord. He brings sexy red-haired women to his castle, where he whips and murders them. Black-booted stripper Erika Blanc (as Susie) gets away, temporarily. Mr. Steffen is haunted by wife "Evelyn", who died in childbirth. As therapy, he decides to marry again, after meeting pretty blonde Marina Malfatti (as Gladys). By the end of the movie, they will have had to dig a few more graves. "The Night Evelyn Came Out of the Grave" is great title, at least.

** La notte che Evelyn uscì dalla tomba (8/18/71) Emilio Miraglia ~ Anthony Steffen, Marina Malfatti, Erika Blanc