Cast a Deadly Spell
Cast a Deadly Spell (1991) is a horror-fantasy detective television film with Fred Ward, Julianne Moore, David Warner, and Clancy Brown. It was directed by Martin Campbell, produced by Gale Anne Hurd, and written by Joseph Dougherty. The original music score was composed by Curt Sobel.
| Cast a Deadly Spell | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Urban fantasy Comedy thriller |
| Written by | Joseph Dougherty |
| Directed by | Martin Campbell |
| Starring | Fred Ward Julianne Moore Clancy Brown David Warner Charles Hallahan Alexandra Powers |
| Music by | Curt Sobel |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| Production | |
| Producers | Gale Anne Hurd Ginny Nugent (line producer) |
| Cinematography | Alexander Gruszynski |
| Editor | Dan Rae |
| Running time | 96 minutes |
| Production companies | HBO Pictures Pacific Western |
| Budget | $6 million |
| Original release | |
| Network | HBO |
| Release | September 7, 1991 |
Cast a Deadly Spell combines two disparate genres – film noir detective stories, and eldritch tales of the Cthulhu Mythos. It is set in 1948 Los Angeles, in a world where magic is common. A detective is hired to locate a stolen grimoire, the Necronomicon. Several of the people searching for the book intend to use it to summon one of the Old Ones.
A sequel entitled Witch Hunt was released in 1994, with Dennis Hopper playing Ward's role of Harry Philips Lovecraft. (The character's name, as well as a number of plot elements, make reference to the work of weird fiction writer Howard Philips Lovecraft.)