Lew Lander's Mask of Dijon is a a fun, albeit unexceptional horror film that features a fantastic turn by Erich Von Stroheim, who played the titled character Mr. Dijon. Intentional or not, much of the film's strength lies in Von Stroheim's ability to chew up up the scenery with his patented cold stone gaze, as a Magician, who is out for revenge after a performance ends in humiliation. The character of Diijon isn't the most likely of characters, being a very selfish and conceited individual who basically looks at the world around him and sees people drowning in their own stupidity, viewing most as inconsequential in the grand scheme of things. Dijon's revenge involves hypnotizing people to commit acts of murder, or suicide, and the whole film is a lot of fun, mainly due to the combination of Stroheim's off-kilter performance which almost comes off as comedic, in a good way, and Lander's assured direction that elevates the creepy, borderline comedic effectiveness of Von Stroheim's performance. There is one scene in particularly where I swear Von Strohim uncontrollably laughs, breaking characer for a moment, though if one was to blink, they'd be sure to miss it. Outside of Stroheim's entertaining performance, the ending of Mask of Dijon is definitely the best part of this film, featuring a pretty fun coincidence which quite frankly confirms that Lew Landers was never taking this odd story too seriously, "winking and nodding" at the audience most of the way.
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AuthorLove of all things cinema brought me here. Archives
June 2023
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