Black Magic

Novelist Alexander Dumas tells his writer-son of Joseph Balsamo, a gypsy boy in southern France who was embittered because his parents were wrongfully hanged and he himself was tortured by the order of Viscount de Montagne. Years later, the man, a carnival charlatan, attracts the attention of Dr. Mesmer, a pioneer in the study of hypnotism. Balsamo rejects Mesmer s plea that he use his power for healing and, instead, decides to use it to k wealth and fame. He changes his name to Count Cagliostro, and achieves fame throughout Europe by mixing hypnotism with mysticism and showmanship. He is called to cure a girl, Lorenza, held by De Montagne, because she resembles Marie Antoinette, wife of the heir to the throne of France. Cagliostro decides to join De Montagne and Madame du Barry in a plot to seize the power by discrediting the future Queen. Cagliostro achieves his revenge on De Montagne by persuading him to hang himself. He makes Lorenza marry him but can never make her love him. Her love is for Gilbert de Rezel, the captain of Marie Antoinette s guard. In a dramatic court scene, Cagliostro s power of hypnotism is turned against him by Dr. Mesmer and he is n as a madman. His faithful gypsy friends, Gitano and Zoraida, try to help him escape but he is killed by de Rezel in a roof-top duel. Written by Les Adams Black Magic is a 1949 English-language Drama Mystery film featuring Orson Welles, Nancy Guild, Akim Tamiroff, Frank Latimore, Valentina Cortese, Margot Grahame and Baroness Vredeun. The movie is inspired from M moires d un m decin: Joseph Balsamo 1846-8 novel by Alexandre Dumas. Edward Small Productions was the production house involved in the project along with executive producer(s) Gregory Ratoff, Dario Sabatello and Edward Small. The movie is directed by Gregory Ratoff and Orson Welles. United Artists acquired the distribution rights for the motion picture. Black Magic was released on 19th August 1949 and takes a screen time of 105 minutes. Black Magic was made on a budget of $250 million. The screenplay for the movie was written by Charles Bennett and Richard Schayer. Cinematography was done by Ubaldo Arata and Anchise Brizzi and editing by Fred R. Feitshans Jr. and James C. McKay. The music was composed by Paul Sawtell.
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