Yeah, that also would have been a great title! Slightly too long, perhaps...
As customary for Italian horror movies from the era late-60s and early 70s, this one struggles with an identity crisis. There simply were too many profitable concepts back then, and writer/director Mario Colucci either can't decide what he wants OR hopes to cash in on all of them at once. As a result, his film is partially Gothic horror, but simultaneously has Giallo aspirations, and blends in occult & supernatural elements. Usually, these horror sub-genre stews end up being a complete mess, but in case of "Something is Creeping in the Dark" it all works out surprisingly well!
I loved this movie straight from the cool opening sequences, with various cars on a forsaken road that pass or cross each other and the screen that atmospherically freezes to display the names of cast and crew. Eventually there are eight eccentric characters who find themselves isolated in a storm and cut off from civilization because either the bridge collapsed, or the roads are flooded. It's rather weird, though, because there isn't a drop of rain or a whistle of wind noticeable. They seek refuge in a spooky old house with an even spookier caretaker, and only there they realize what an odd bunch of characters they are. There's a married couple that hate each other, a duo of policemen that just captured a fugitive murderer, a mysterious professor, and a surgeon with his geeky assistant. Oh yeah, the caretaker also hides a naked girl in his bedroom. The wife of the unhappy couple suggests an orgy - that's what you do when you're stranded with strangers, right - but they prefer to hold a séance to call out to the spirit of the deceased female house owner instead.
You won't ever hear me say the script of "Something is Creeping in the Dark" makes much sense, or that it's a compellingly realistic fright tale, but Mario Colluci does manage to keep it interesting, entertaining, and occasionally even suspenseful. The séance, for instance, is effectively sinister and our director also makes excellent use of the creepy mansion and its scenery. The walls of the room where most of the action takes place are full of clocks. When they are all ticking together, and the crowd is silent, it has a rather scary effect. When all the clocks collectively stop ticking for no apparent reason, it has an even scarier effect. The build-up towards the finale is also very well-handled, and even though the ending itself is ridiculously basic, it worked for me! Not a great or highly recommendable piece of Italian horror, but fun to watch.
