World famous stage magician Diijon (Erich Von Stroheim) has retired, having performed the greatest trick of his career: getting babe Victoria (Jeanne Bates) to marry him. Diijon now dedicates his time to studying the power of suggestion and hypnotism, but treats his wife like dirt, which leads to the poor woman leaving, becoming a singer and teaming up with dashing musician Tony Holiday (William Wright).
Consumed with jealousy, and having finally perfected his powers of mind control (testing his ability by disarming a stick-up artist and commanding a man to commit suicide), Diijon hypnotises Vickie into shooting Tony in front of an audience at the Romany Gardens restaurant.
A poverty-row B-movie from PRC, The Mask of Diijon is a rather routine potboiler lifted somewhat by a commanding performance by Von Stroheim, who lives up to his nickname 'The Man You Loved to Hate': Diijon is dour, cruel, menacing and thoroughly unlikeable, which makes the film's finalé, in which the miserable mesmerising magician meets a grisly fate, suitably satisfying.
5.5/10, rounded up to 6 for IMDb.
Consumed with jealousy, and having finally perfected his powers of mind control (testing his ability by disarming a stick-up artist and commanding a man to commit suicide), Diijon hypnotises Vickie into shooting Tony in front of an audience at the Romany Gardens restaurant.
A poverty-row B-movie from PRC, The Mask of Diijon is a rather routine potboiler lifted somewhat by a commanding performance by Von Stroheim, who lives up to his nickname 'The Man You Loved to Hate': Diijon is dour, cruel, menacing and thoroughly unlikeable, which makes the film's finalé, in which the miserable mesmerising magician meets a grisly fate, suitably satisfying.
5.5/10, rounded up to 6 for IMDb.