The Norliss Tapes (1973)

Truly Dreadful Film

Strong and Moving!

Really Surprised!

Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

In THE NORLISS TAPES, David Norliss (Roy Thinnes) was supposed to write a book, debunking the supernatural. Instead, after a year, he hasn't written a word, and has dropped from sight. When his friend and publisher, Sanford Evans (Don Porter) goes to his home, he finds the titular tapes. These recordings chronicle the dark adventure that Norliss found himself caught up in. When a woman named Ellen Cort (Angie Dickinson) comes to him w/ a bizarre tale of undead horror, Norliss is skeptical but intrigued. It seems that Mrs. Cort had a visitation from her husband (Nick Dimitri), who was supposed to be entombed in the family crypt at the time! Meanwhile, a series of deaths take place, with the victims completely drained of blood. The local sheriff (Claude Akins) will entertain no such foolishness. As he digs into the case, Norliss becomes convinced that something supernatural could be going on, concerning a mystic (Vonetta McGee), a ring, and a very hellish statue. Can Norliss find a way to stop the late Mr. Cort, before he ushers in something truly terrible? Riding high following the success of THE NIGHT STALKER / STRANGLER, this made-for-TV movie is producer / director, Dan Curtis proving once again why he ruled 70's tele-horror!...

Throughout the 70's, there were some awesome and terrifying movies made specifically for television. The success of Dan Curtis may be largely responsible for this. Some people will find this shocking, but I've never been a big fan of Dan Curtis. I never got into Kojak, I thought Dark Shadows was a bit laughable, and both Trilogy of Terror and Burnt Offerings are overrated in my opinion. But something about The Norliss Tapes intrigued me. After seeing it, I think that this is Curtis' masterpiece and it's a shame a series never developed (this was obviously a television pilot). The story follows David Norliss, an investigative journalist and supernatural debunker. Norliss has disappeared and his publisher has only his tapes to go on. By playing his tapes, the story unfolds. I don't want to spoil too much because the mystery of the piece is enjoyable. Two of the factors that make this project so cool are the music and the setting. The movie takes place in the rainy California Bay area and the music is that familiar, creepy piano that seems to show up in all of Curtis' productions. The actors are all top-notch as well. Roy Thinnes is playing the lead, with Angie Dickinson as the damsel and Claude Akins as the sheriff. The movie gets a little cheesy towards the end, put that's also part of its charm. The Norliss Tapes is a fun and forgotten horror movie.

The only reason "The Norliss Tapes" deserves ANY stars is the presence of Angie Dickinson in the cast. Other than getting to see Angie Baby in a pre-"Police Woman" performance, there's nothing else worth seeing here.THE SYNOPSIS: *** MINOR SPOILERS *** David Norliss is tapped to write a book on the supernatural. One day he mysteriously disappears after phoning his publisher and suggesting he has stumbled across something that has placed him in mortal danger. The entire series for which this miserable pilot was written was apparently intended to be a series of flashbacks via the "Norliss tapes" -- a set of audio tapes the writer recorded while investigating cases of the supernatural. In the pilot episode, a wealthy sculptor dies -- but not before purchasing an ancient Egyptian scarab ring from a local occultist who assures him the bauble will give him immortality after death. We soon discover the ring itself doesn't grant immortality. Instead, it only reanimates the sculptor's corpse, allowing him to escape his crypt so he can run around town draining pretty girls of all their blood. Blue-faced, yellow-eyed and growling out ARRRGHHHHHHs you haven't heard since you last watched "Scooby Doo" cartoons, the sculptor attacks his wife (Dickinson) one dark night. She escapes and, via a mutual acquaintance, contacts Norliss to get his assistance in solving the mystery behind her late husband's uncanny reappearance on her estate. So is this guy a vampire? No. There's no vampire in this story despite what you may have read or heard. The sculptor doesn't drink his victims' blood -- he collects it. How? Don't know. We only see him attacking, never collecting. Why? To fulfill the second part of his bid for immortality. It turns out the reanimated sculptor will only be allowed to live forever if he builds a life-size statue of a demon named Sargoth out of a mixture of clay and human blood. Once it's finished, Sargoth plans to inhabit the statue, using it as his gateway into our world.THE FINAL ANALYSIS: "The Norliss Tapes" wasn't picked up as a series for a very good reason... it was garbage. As you can see from my synopsis, the story is a paltry, ill-conceived mess. The acting and dialogue offer no better. This isn't even a contender for a "So Bad It's Good" Award. Sometimes bad is just bad. After years of hearing underground rumblings about the great merits of "The Norliss Tapes," I was very excited to find it airing on Fox Movie Channel on 10/15/03. I wish I hadn't set myself up for the fall. Having screened this groaner for the first time two days ago, I can only assume any applause you've heard so far from other IMDB reviewers is coming from those who are reviewing the show based on dim memories and the nostalgia of youth. Or perhaps they are simply loyal fans of Dan Curtis. Either way, they've offered you misleading reviews of "The Norliss Tapes." Pauly Orchid -- October 17, 2003

I first saw this movie back when i was 15 years old about 1975,it scared the heck out of me then, i did not sleep that night very well and for many nights after.I saw this movie again in the late 70s, and it was still mighty scary.I saw it again for the third time this past year in October 2002, and it scared me just as much if not more so then back when i saw it as a kid,I wonder how this tv movie can still be so scary to a very large and strong grown man.