Movie of the Week: Crowhaven Farm

Maggie (Hope Lange) inherits an old New England house and property called Crowhaven Farm, but just as soon as she arrives with her husband Ben (Paul Burke), Maggie begins to see disturbing images of what she believes to have been a past life of one of her distant relatives. Ben convinces Maggie to stay, and the couple begin to settle into their new country life.  Ben is extremely jealous of any other man that shows an interest in Maggie, and the couple had desperately been trying to have a child of their own but have been unsuccessful both of these issues had put a strain on their marriage.  The opportunity arises to adopt a 10-year-old orphan named Jennifer (Cindy Eilbacher), but she is not as innocent as she seems. Maggie’s visions get more intense, which leads her to investigate her family’s past, leading her down a path that puts her and her family in danger.  Can Maggie and Ben survive what awaits them at Crowhaven Farm, or will they succumb to the sins of their ancestors long since dead?  Watch and find out!

Crowhaven Farm premiered on November 24, 1970 on the ABC Movie of the Week, directed by Walter Grauman and produced by Aaron Spelling.  While watching this film to write this article, I realized that this was a film I had seen when I was 5 or 6 years old and the image of Maggie being “pressed” (an old punishment when a person is put under a board and stones are placed on top until the person either confesses or they are crushed under the weight) had stuck with me throughout my entire life.  Although I could not remember the details of the film, I vividly remember those scenes, which made watching this movie strangely nostalgic.  And overall, this is a well-done supernatural thriller that involves witchcraft, devil-worship, vengeance, and reincarnation.

The production value is unremarkable with little that stands out as either good or bad.  The plot and storyline are interesting with a couple of nice twists and turns including a particular twist at the end.  The pacing of the film was a little slow, but that is commonplace for films of this era and overall moved along at a reasonable pace.  The performances are what keep the audience interested.  Paul Burke is good as the overbearing jealous husband and Cindy Eilbacher comes across as both innocent and creepy in her portrayal of 10-year-old Jennifer.  The audience is fully aware from the beginning that there is something not quite right with her character. Hope Lange (The Ghost And Mrs Muir) is really the star of the movie, having to portray a certain amount of uneasiness from the second she steps onto the Crowhaven property.  Maggie has to exhibit a wide range of emotions, from joy to gut wrenching fear, which Hope handles easily giving the audience both subtle and extreme performances.  In the end, this is a fun movie to watch with an interesting story.