"The Pyx" is a sad, scary tale of prostitution and Satan worship, but you'll be disappointed if you're expecting something bordering on the pornographic. This is a subtle, unique horror movie, one of a handful of the genre's serious films. Karen Black was always good, but "The Pyx" is her tour de force--she is simultaneously brittle and sympathetic as the junky prostitute whose suicide (or murder?) Christopher Plummer is investigating. (Plummer is also impressive, but everyone takes a back seat to Black here.) Black contributes a couple of songs to the soundtrack, acoustic dirges with lyrics borrowed from the Song of Solomon, that are beautiful in an ethereal, spooky fashion and which match the tone of the film perfectly. There's some great camera-work, too, and I loved the way the story unfolded largely through flashbacks. I've watched "The Pyx" three or four times over the last ten years, and each time it has remained with me long after the closing credits rolled. This is one of the very few films that conjure a genuine and profound sense of disquiet for the viewer, frightening him and causing him to despair over the evil in the world and within himself.
