Cast a Deadly Spell

In an alternate version of Los Angeles in 1948, magic is an ordinary part of daily life, used for everything from small tasks to dark rituals. Private detective Harry Philip Lovecraft stands apart as the one investigator in the city who refuses to practise magic himself. His stance draws the attention of Amos Hackshaw, one of the wealthiest men in the city, who hires Lovecraft to recover a stolen volume: the Necronomicon, a book of enormous power that could allow its holder to command demons and threaten the world.

Martin Campbell directed the film, the third of the eighteen features he has made, following Defenseless and preceding No Escape. Joseph Dougherty wrote the screenplay, and Gale Anne Hurd produced for HBO. Fred Ward plays the detective, with David Warner as his wealthy client, Julianne Moore as Connie Stone, Clancy Brown as Harry Bordon, Alexandra Powers as Olivia Hackshaw and Charles Hallahan as Detective Morris Bradbury across a credited cast of twenty-eight. The production had a budget of six million dollars.

Released in September 1991 as a television film blending comedy, fantasy, horror and mystery, it runs ninety-six minutes. On IMDb it holds a rating of 6.3 from around 5,700 votes, while on TMDB it stands at 6.1 from roughly 130 votes. The two audience scores sit close together, suggesting a modest but fairly consistent response from viewers.