Wonderfully offbeat film!

A lot more amusing than I thought it would be.

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

"Black Devil Doll From Hell" is now easily available in a two-fer package of the films by Chester N. Turner. Once an urban legend seen by few but talked about by many, BDDFH has returned to horrify everyone with witless incompetence in absolutely every way possible. This is genius work, only realized once seen.Turner dared to go where no one had gone before, except that the "possessed doll" genre had been around a long time before he got his hands on somebody's camcorder and a Casio keyboard. One thinks of the "Talky Tina" sequence from an ancient Twilight Zone episode, or the truly unsettling "Devil Doll" starring Hugo the Dummy way back in 1964. BDDFH however, goes the extra mile throwing puppet-on-human sex into the mix. You don't need to see this, but actually, you do.Helen Black (a bravura performance by Shirley L. Jones) is a prim and proper church lady who is saving herself for marriage. Her home is chockablock with religious artifacts and numerous Bibles within easy reach. She encounters a sinister shopkeeper in a thrift store who sells her a black ventriloquist dummy complete with cornrows and 50 pounds of beads on the ends of the braids. This doll has the power to grant anyone their heart's desire and then go back to the store after wreaking havoc on the current buyer. Helen, entranced, buys the puppet and takes it home. Helen, for some bizarre reason, places the puppet on the toilet. The puppet immediately spies on Helen taking a shower. Bad things begin to happen. Evidently, Helen is a sex monster under all that church veneer. The doll gives her what she wants: a serious booty call. Unpleasant but hilarious sex ensues. Helen, now given her heart's desire, goes on the prowl for real meat. Unfortunately, she's been ruined by the sweet moves and dirty talk of the puppet so real penises don't hit the spot. Unfortunately for the new improved hot pants Helen, the puppet has returned to the store. So Helen returns to the store , buys the puppet back and begs it for some lovin'. It kills her instead. Ha! She knew what she was getting into, but too late for Helen to say "no". The bad puppet is then resold to another unsuspecting victim. You run away screaming that you lost seventy some minutes of your life watching this but still tell everyone at work the next day about it.Perhaps Chester N. Turner really was an unrecognized auteur, but alas, he has vanished. BDDFH is a masterpiece of annoyance and brilliance. I defy anyone to not laugh wildly while watching this, and then not feel badly for poor Helen. By the way, the box the dummy comes in must be possessed as well, since Helen brings it from the store twice and the last buyer has it as well. Duct tape and all.

Not only is the plot idiotic and the racial stereotyping painful to watch, but the acting is putrid, the direction inept and the special effects ... well: they're "special" all right. Avoid this one like plague unless you either want to learn how NOT to make a film, or you're really toasted. There are also a few notable continuity issues. The lighting is awful (the background changes colours several times during several scenes). In a number of shots that are supposed to be scary, the camera is badly out of focus ... when it is not jiggling. It is really hard to believe that this thing was actually shot on film, because the resolution seems so bad, but that is probably the result of the combination of bad camera-work, bad lighting and using a photo kiosk in a car park somewhere to process the film.

WARNING: The following comment doesn't not only contain a spoiler or two, but also content of a frank and explicit nature that shouldn't be read by easily offended folks with no sense of humor. There are bad movies, even worse movies, truly wretched movies -- and then there's this gloriously ghastly no-budget shot-on-crummy-video abomination. Don't get me wrong, I really love this lousy hunk of junk, but let's face it this one on every conceivable technical level is beyond shoddy. The terrible acting, dreadful sound, annoyingly redundant score, eye-wateringly ugly cinematography, ludicrously absurd plot, meandering pace, and especially that amazingly awful theme song ("Ohh ohh baby, you've been bad!") -- all are sublimely stinky. But what definitely makes this baby a genuinely unforgettable viewing experience is the infamously mind-numbing protracted and surrealistic rape scene. The devil doll not just has his wicked wanton way with our devoutly religious and sexually frustrated homely heroine; he also makes the dumpy lady beg for it prior to doing the evil deed. I can't precisely write what she says, but I can state with absolute certainty that one particular word that she doesn't hiss through clenched teeth sure ain't "fudge." I love this movie just for this sequence alone -- and so should all true fans of supremely sick mondo wacko dimestore deviant cinema. Fortunately, this wondrously woeful abortion has been issued on DVD for future generations to watch and relish in all its appalling ineptitude.

I have been waiting 10 years to see this movie. I first read about it in a Joe Bob Briggs article of the all-time worst B rated movies ever made. This one stuck out because of the nature of the film. The devil doll, the rape, etc. Maybe it was the 10 year wait that made this film seemingly better to me than to most.The other reviews are mostly correct though. The intro is terrible. The money Chester Turner invested in the opening song could have made the difference. The credits seem never ending, especially since there are only about 10 different people mentioned in a 6 minute period. Shirley Jones is not as dumpy as everyone else has said either. Average, maybe a little less, but thats all.The sound is really the worst thing about this movie. The Casio keyboard comments are not bullshit either, that's really what it is. Some scenes you can barely here the characters lines beneath the sound of the Casio keyboard playing 4 keys over and over again. The acting was only as good as the dialogue provided. Hard to make good out of a shitty script. The movie would have been so much better with some proper sound editing.The video is not too choppy for being made with a camcorder. Parts of the rape scene are hard to follow because they cut the video into still shots that slowly progress leading the viewer to believe the VCR is eating your cassette tape. Hang in there, it only last a minute or two.The plot was good enough though, and it had much potential. The doll, the rape, etc. The puppeteer was phenomenal, and the special effects are way ahead of their time. If this movie was available with closed captions, I would recommend this to anyone. Turn the volume off, and you can't lose.Unfortunately, this is one of those films that could have been huge just based on the controversy surrounding it, but alas, it is no longer made. It would be a good one for someone to purchase the rights to and re-release it after some heavy media hype.