Dementia 13 - Response

Response

The film was released in the fall of 1963 as the supporting feature of a double bill with Corman's X: The Man with the X-Ray Eyes. Because of its rushed production and a somewhat incomprehensible screenplay, reviews of Dementia 13 have been mixed. The New York Times dismissed the film: "Under the stolid direction of Francis Coppola, who also wrote the script, the picture stresses gore rather than atmosphere, and all but buries a fairly workable plot." Michael Weldon, in The Psychotronic Encyclopedia of Film, noted it had " great trick ending, some truly shocking gory axe murders, and lots of inventive photography." Tom Raynes, in the Time Out Film Guide, said "The location (an Irish castle) is used imaginatively, the Gothic atmosphere is suitably potent, and there's a wonderfully sharp cameo from Patrick Magee..." Danny Peary, in his Guide for the Film Fanatic, stated that despite the "hopelessly confusing" storyline, "...the horror sequences are very exciting."

Phil Hardy's The Aurum Film Encyclopedia: Horror opined, "ne senses the presence of a director right from the moody opening sequence...a piece of high gothic melodrama...The weakness of the film is in the script, which gives every indication of having been bundled together at the last minute..." John Charles, in Video Watchdog, wrote that the film was "a remarkably confident and proficient thriller. Several of its components hint at the creativity that was still to come from Coppola, and the finished product is a testament to his ingenuity..." Kim Newman has opined "Coppola...works fast and creative in Dementia 13, making memorable, shocking little sequences out of the killings and the implied haunting, using his locations well and highlighting unexpected eeriness like a transistor radio burbling distorted pop music as it sinks into a lake along with a just-murdered corpse." Dementia 13 has a 65% favorable rating on Rotten Tomatoes, out of 20 reviewers surveyed.

When the Roan Group released a laserdisc and DVD of the film, it included an audio commentary by Campbell. The DVD also featured the written version of the "D-13 Test" in digital form as an extra. However, the filmed five-minute prologue featuring the test has not been included on any of the numerous available home video versions of the title.