Viy

Set in 19th-century Russia and based on a story by Nikolai Gogol, Viy is often called the first Russian horror film. Though far less intense than Western films of the same period, it contains moments of haunting spookiness. Three seminary students set off together on their spring leave, traipsing across the countryside in hopes of finding someone who will take them in for the night. As it grows darker, their prospects are reduced to one isolated farm, and together they talk their way into the good graces of the crone who owns the place. She separates the young men and directs Khoma Brutus (Leonid Kuravlyov) to sleep in the barn. After she kidnaps him and takes...