Paul Wendkos Double Feature: THE MEPHISTO WALTZ & THE BURGLAR August 18, 2010

Before his death in November 2009, director Paul Wendkos put his name on over 180 projects, from the teen surf classic GIDGET to a spate of acclaimed made-for-television movies. His stylish and groundbreaking television movie work from 1967-1977 gave birth to nightmares and a whole generation of young directors. From the off-kilter, Dutch-angled and fish-eyed world he created for THE INVADERS to his DGA-nominated masterpiece THE BROTHERHOOD OF THE BELL, Wendkos is a true craftsman deserving of rediscovery and reevaluation.

Double Feature: THE MEPHISTO WALTZ, 1971, 20th Century Fox, 109 min.
Dir. Paul Wendkos. One of the most stylish horror films ever made. Music journalist Alan Alda finds himself in the clutches of a satanic cult after interviewing an unnaturally gifted concert pianist (Curt Jurgens). Jacqueline Bisset, Barbara Parkins and Bradford Dillman co-star in this truly chilling drug-induced nightmare of a movie featuring composer Jerry Goldsmith's frightening adaptation of Liszt’s “Mephisto Waltz.”

Trailer

THE BURGLAR, 1957, Sony Repertory, 90 min. Dir. Paul Wendkos. Writer David Goodis' guilt-laden caper yarn is given a fully-stylized visual workout by whiz-kid director Wendkos in one of the last films of the 1950s to capture the fatalistic feel of classic noir. With Dan Duryea, Jayne Mansfield, Martha Vickers. Introduction by Paul Wendkos’ son, Jordan Wendkos, plus a short film celebrating the late Paul Wendkos' 50 years in film and television.