Luis Buñuel made films for fifty years. His son Juan Luis made one, and then effectively stopped. That one film is this.

Au rendez-vous de la mort joyeuse (1973) - released in the US as EXPULSION OF THE DEVIL, which is a considerably less interesting title - was Juan Luis Buñuel's feature directorial debut, made when he was in his early thirties.

His father had by this point made Belle de Jour and The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie and was working on The Phantom of Liberty. The son made a low-budget French-Italian supernatural horror film in three weeks after submitting a three-page treatment to a producer.

A family moves into an abandoned country house. Strange things begin to happen, centered on the young daughter Sophie. A television crew arrives to document the disturbances.

The film was shot by Ghislain Cloquet, who had worked with Bresson, Tati, and the elder Buñuel. Françoise Fabian, who appeared in Belle de Jour, plays the mother. Gérard Depardieu appears in a small early role as one of the television technicians.

The daughter was played by Yasmine Dahm, a top model who had no acting experience; Juan Luis Buñuel rejected hundreds of candidates before selecting her, and shot informal 8mm tests at the location weeks before principal photography to confirm she could carry the film.

What distinguishes it from its contemporaries - and it was made in the shadow of The Exorcist, which had not yet been released when it was shot - is its atmosphere of domestic dread and its willingness to let the supernatural remain ambiguous.

A woman's reflection in a mirror does not match her movements. A man is found covered in mud with no explanation. The camera moves away from doors rather than through them.

There's a matter-of-factness to the supernatural goings-on here that's almost disorienting to the modern audience. No jump scares. No real attempt to fool the audience with clever effects. It's like a ghost film made by someone who's never seen a ghost film.

The film was nominated for the Gold Hugo at the 1973 Chicago International Film Festival.