A very satisfying film, with incredibly good acting, especially for such a low budget movie. John Saxon.(From Dusk Till Dawn, Dario Agento's Tenebrea, to name but a few of his many starring roles) and his wife Linda Day George (who starred in such different works as Pieces and the TV series Roots) go to an island for a building project the husband works on, and while there, are offered a wonderful mansion to live in. As it is on islands in horrormovies, the locals have some superstitions about the house, which are not far from the horrible truth. I won't tell too much, because it would spoil the fun of watching this well crafted film.

OK, the special effects are very seventies, and in those days probably could even have been slightly better - but if the filmmakers decided to spend whatever budget they had rather on great actors than on the effects, I would say this was money well spent. This is a good story that borrows a little here and there, but never crosses any line of plagiarism as so many recent Hollywood productions get away with shamelessly. Adding a lot of itself and a rather disturbing atmosphere (which is enhanced by Saxon's brilliant acting) this results in a very enjoyable and sometimes frightening horror movie.

Genre favorites John Saxon and Lynda Day George star as a couple who move to the Philippines where they purchase a grand colonial mansion. Life seems great, but it turns out the house was built by a husband and wife who killed one another. The wife was an occultist, and she still happens to be looking for a living vessel to inhabit.

This kitschy supernatural horror movie takes cues from "The Exorcist" and a spat of other similar films, and predates "Mausoleum," which has a similar tone and premise. The good is that it has some nice cinematography, and there are a few moments throughout that evoke a sense of creepiness; Saxon and George are awoken in the middle of the night to odd voices; he finds her idly meditating over a fire in the fireplace; she sees the ghost of the deceased female occultist trying to possess her. The cinematography is also top-notch, especially for a low-budget feature.

The bad? The screenplay is rote in its procession. Saxon's character goes back and forth from his architect job, while George's character experiences increasingly odd supernatural experiences. A subplot involving a medicine man who lives next-door is woven in, and he is a source of all the knowledge regarding possession and the evil spirit in the couple's mansion. These events play out in a manner that is rather dull and predictable, and there isn't enough connective tissue to bind them together. The performances from Saxon and George do help amplify the proceedings, and both give admirable efforts in a screenplay that gives them limited options.

In the end, "Beyond Evil" is a slightly amusing genre picture (several reviewers have commented on the dated special effects, which are actually not all that terrible in comparison to other films of this ilk),but it does feel largely underwhelming. The horror scenes, when present, are well-executed, but the rote unspooling of the story leaves the film feeling by-the-numbers. There are no real surprises to be had here, but if you are willing to accept that, it is a notch above the standard television horror flick of its era. 5/10.

Welcome to a remote pad of the Philippines where everybody speaks perfect English, nobody with an accent. Even the Portuguese heiress sent to marry a Filipino rancher who turns out to be a witch speaks beautiful English. She's played by soap opera veteran Janice Lynde, obviously cast because of her resemblance to Leading heroin Lynda Day George who has move there with her husband John Saxon and bought the haunted modern-looking old castle on a hill where Lynde indulgedvin witchcraft and was murdered by her husband, only to return from the dead to snap his neck. She's still a spirit in the large house and takes over the body of George, sending a lecherous doctor to his death over a cliff and determined to kill anyone who even steps near the property.

Silly stuff with cheesy effects and a ridiculous looking Satan, looking on as George fights with a knife intended to make the mark of Lynde's character on her hand. Saxon and George go gamely through her part, and Lynde is fun in the type of role that Barbara Steele played a dozen times in the 1960's. There's a reason why low budget horror movies get put on cheap VHS and DVD labels and forgotten almost immediately after they are released. It's predictable and stereotypical, featuring the same type of plot devices that we've seen over and over. Harmless overall yet lacking in any kind of imagination, it is beyond cliched.