Classic Horrors Club

Based on what I’d heard about Gold Told Me To (1976), I’ve never had much desire to watch it. Then again, I hadn’t heard much. Nevertheless, I expected a typical Larry Cohen movie that might have some interesting ideas, but presented unevenly, sometimes annoyingly. Surprise! I love Cohen’s It’s Alive (1974), but I now have a new favorite: God Told Me To. 

It’s a tight thriller that keeps its flaws contained so they don’t spread to infect the entire movie. No offense to Michael Moriarty, Cohen’s usual leading man, but his style is an acquired taste. In God Told Me To, his replacement, Tony Lo Bianco, is more quietly intense. The story requires his character to be introspective, with something burning inside. Moriarty rarely demonstrates that ability.

Lo Bianco plays detective Peter Nicholas, a devout Catholic with unwavering faith. Atrocious crimes are committed every day in the name of one’s deity, but when a sniper tells Peter he shot people randomly from a water tower because God told him to do it, Peter takes an almost personal offense to the implication. As similar crimes continue to happen, he perseveres in solving the mystery, not even thinking his faith could be shattered.

That’s the first thing that intrigues me about God Told Me To. What happens when something you’ve believed in your entire life could potentially be proven to be a lie? Faith is something personal, so we need to see the situation processed by a fully developed character. Cohen never spells it out for us in his films, but this is the most invested I’ve been in one of his characters.

For example, key events in Peter’s life are revealed in intimate conversations instead of showy exposition. They’ve happened, they’re in the past. If they’re going to continue to haunt him (or his relationships), they’ll be spoken in the quiet moments or in whispers. Cohen’s films always have a feeling of gritty reality with which we might not be familiar, but God Told Me To seems the most plausible.

Technically, it’s an impressive achievement, even if you consider only one scene. Cohen is known for his guerrilla filmmaking style, shooting on the streets of the city without permits. He does that here during an actual St. Patrick’s Day parade. It’s a long, pivotal scene that wouldn’t have allowed for second chances. He gets it right the first time, the camera weaving in and out of the actual parade and through the crowd.

The plot is compelling. Not only do we have the “hook” of the titular saying, but it leads us to a twisted tale of religious horror with cults and conspiracies. I don’t want to reveal much more about it, but if you read that Cohen was “inspired” by the Bible and  “influenced” by the 1968 book, Chariots of the Gods, you can imagine what’s up his sleeve. Just remember, he keeps it grounded through Peter.

I should issue a warning about the crime scenes in God Told Me To. They hit close to home, as if you’ve turned on the television news instead of a fictional movie. I’m not just talking about the shootings. There are other types of killings that, in 1976, may have seemed unbelievable, but over 40 years later, have actually happened. It’s disturbing, and if you have personal experience, I imagine could be triggering.