The story line doesn't quite come together and the acting is poor at times, but the atmosphere is intense and creepy, reminds me a bit of Argento's Suspiria which came out a few years latter. All in all, it is definitely worth watching if only for the mind trip.
Also, the film is now in the public domain and available for free from most film torrent sites on the internet.
What evidence do you have that it's PD?
Not saying you're wrong, but there have been many cases of in home video history of releases allegedly in the public domain that were, in fact, still copyright.
"Night of the Living Dead" (1968) and "McClintock", a John Wayne flick, are notable examples.
Even if Messiah is truly PD, that doesn't preclude a Special Edition video release. A studio can still copyright the newly-restored edition (as happened with "McClintock").
The moie is included on the Chilling Classics Mill Creek clooection which is from what i've heard is public domain.
shareThe overall pervasively bizarre and unsettling midnight-in-the-graveyard gloom-doom atmosphere really gave this picture an extra highly distinctive and hypnotic spooky and startling oddball edge. Creepy indeed, man!
"We're all part Shatner/And part James Dean/Part Warren Oates/And Steven McQueen"