Truly Dreadful Film

Save your money for something good and enjoyable

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.

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

B cinema filmmaker Jim Wynorski gives his faithful audience all the sex and nudity they could want in this moderately amusing movie. The plot is pretty nonsensical, but since it's serving to set up a bunch of genuinely titillating sex scenes, it's doubtful that there are going to be many complaints on that front. Larry Poindexter plays a lawyer named Larry Barnes, whose wife Erica (Julie Strain) is a witch. She uses her powers to try to secure a critical promotion for her husband, but instead of killing his competitor, Howard (Edward Albert), she manages to cripple him. This sets off Howards' wife Amelia (Linda Blair), who is herself in tune with the occult. Predictably, she puts into motion a plan of revenge.Wynorski puts a great deal of his efforts into stressing the erotic elements rather than traditional horror elements. (A note to the unaware: this isn't really a horror film at all, but an erotic thriller.) Technically speaking, it has to be one of the most accomplished things that Wynorski ever did; the filmmaking is pretty slick. Photography and picture quality are sublime, helping to show off every asset in the bodies of our attractive female cast. To that end, Wynorski deserves some respect for just diving in head first, giving us an eyeful of Strains' anatomy in the very first scene.The acting is tolerable from most concerned. Michael Parks is a little under utilized as a gardener / murder suspect. Wynorski regular Lenny Juliano regularly walks away with his scenes as Larry's outgoing colleague. It's a treat to see William 'Blacula' Marshall as the senior partner at the firm. And Albert really is quite good. Fans of B movie babes will be pleased with the roster here: Strain, Rochelle Swanson, Toni Naples, Antonia Dorian, Kristi Ducati, Melissa Brasselle. Wynorskis' peer Fred Olen Ray produced, and plays the role of Bill Carson.The movie does accomplish what it sets out to do, but it's really hurt by an aggravating, incredibly clichéd ending.Seven out of 10.

Before the days when internet porn took over the business anyone looking to get a glimpse of female flesh was regulated to late nights on Cinemax. Their evening fare was such that over time the channel became known as "Skinimax" to viewers who craved an influx of topless women with overinflated chests. Plot lines meant nothing and to this day the channel still caters to this select audience. The soft core porn films that offer simulated sex without the details and extreme measures found in actual porn remain.This is not a judgement call on the channel or on those types of films. There have always been titillating films made that offered glimpses of the female form in various stages of undress. Depending on how you view these films will determine if you find them worth your while watching or if you consider them a gateway drug to the world of sex addiction. For most of us we see it as somewhere in between and consider the individual to either have or not have the problem. With that out of the way let's talk about SORCERESSS.You know immediately when you put this disc into your blu-ray player what to expect. The title screen pops up with actress Julie Strain nude except for a sheer black robe draped over her shoulders rubbing oils all over her body. Nothing subtle about the movie here. Your options are limited though with choices of "Setup", "Chapters" or "Play". My guess is there wasn't much behind the scenes footage to be used on this film let alone interviews with cast and crew. It would have been nice to see some current interviews here. But on with the movie.The story gets a bit confusing at times but begins with that opening shot of Erica (Strain) as she puts a curse on Howard Reynolds (Edward Albert) as he's driving home while talking to his wife Amelia (Linda Blair). Amelia senses something is wrong and tells him to pull over but before he can do so the car heads over an embankment as he throws himself from it. He's saved but injured. Walking in on Erica her friend Maria tells her she won't let her use her power like this and then leaves.In walks Erica's husband Larry (Larry Poindexter). The two quarrel with Larry pondering why he ever decided to marry her in the first place. Most of us have already figured out he was bewitched. As their argument escalates it moves to the balcony where Erica falls over the edge and dies on the ground below. As Larry takes her in his arms after rushing to her she tells him he will never be free of her.A short time later Howard decides not to take the partnership offered him at his law firm while he recuperates and Larry is tagged for the position instead. While Maria has warned him of dark days ahead things seem better than that. Not only does he move up in the law firm but fellow attorney and ex-lover Carol come back into his life. While all of this is going on Amelia is seen working her own bit of black magic involving Larry's life, all of which is explained in the final 10-15 minutes of the film.So there you have the plot of the movie in three paragraphs. The rest of the movie is filled with various pairings of the actors and actresses in bed with one another. Larry, Erica and Maria. Erica and Maria joined by Carol. Larry and Carol. Of the main actors involved only Blair and Albert never quite disrobe. And all of the actresses on display here have the main quality to be found in a B-movie sexploitation film: well-endowed and implanted breasts.So the question comes up is this a good or a bad movie? Well that again depends on what you expect out of it when you buy/rent/watch it. If what you're looking for is the type of movie that Cinemax (and yes other pay cable stations did it too) shows late night weekends then you'll love this movie. If you hate those films you'll hate this one. But the odds are pretty good then that you're not the one it's being marketed to.What is nice is that a piece of movie history, judged neither good nor bad, has made its way onto blu-ray again. I always find that a good thing to have happen. Films have fans of all sorts, those that love everything from Disney flicks to movies that ruled 42nd Street when it wasn't the family playground it is today. Those fans deserve to have the option of having access to their favorite films in the best format possible. Synapse has done that here with a clean print of the film that fans will love having on hand.Myself I was never a big fan. The mixture of Satanic images (pentagrams and the like) was something I considered unnecessary in movies like this. Perhaps they're a plot element others like to use but it became far too often seen for me. Director Jim Wynorski shows that he does indeed have talent and the ability to create a good looking film no matter what the subject matter. He's drifted back and forth between regular exploitation movies (CHOPPING MALL) and soft core flicks (BUSTY COPS) and it would be interesting to see what he could do with a major Hollywood film. For now fans will be content with adding this one to their collection. Chances are if successful more will be on the way.

As sad excuse of a movie that has a hard time deciding what leg to stand on and instead just flip-flops back and forth from being a bad horror-thriller and a wannabe playboy-flick. Every single time the story makes some sort of progression it's instantly halted by weird softcore sex-scenes. No matter what the situation might be they somehow find some excuse to throw ugly silicone tits in your face. I am in no way against exaggerated nudity in films but it has to be done with either humor or class and this film lacks both of those elements. I somehow get the feeling that it was two directors instead of one that filmed two completely different films and then just mashed them together, where Linda Blair stars in some bad occult thriller that at least has some "TV-movie" qualities and then a softcore Playboy flick starring Julie Strain and some other bimbos. The end result is just weird and since I love most stuff starring Linda Blair I felt sad seeing what became of her career after the 70's and 80's.It's far from erotic unless you enjoy watching desperate silicone bimbo's rubbing their nether parts against equally desperate and washed up "Days of our life's" actors. If you ignore the bad sex-scenes then you're left with a bad thriller involving witches. It's not smart, it's not scary (unless you count Julie Strains plastic tits) and the only thing it has going for itself is two decent actors (Michael Parks and Linda Blair) that do their best to save it from a complete disaster, without success.

Produced by Fred Olen Ray and directed by Jim Wynorski. The involvement of these two names is already a proper indication that "Sorceress" isn't exactly going to be a high work of cinematic art, but merely a sleazy and flat out insignificant piece of 90's trash. Olen Ray and Wynorski clearly weren't interested in a movie about witchery spells and supernatural revenge, they just wanted to exploit the voluptuous chests of their female cast members as much as humanly possible. And who can seriously blame them, if that cast includes names like Rochelle Swanson, Kristi Ducati, Toni Naples and Julie Strain? Actually, the biggest starlet of "Sorceress" is Linda Blair, but unfortunately she doesn't get topless. She just accidentally ended up in a hopelessly inept B-movie production … again. "Sorceress" has the most ludicrous and imbecilic plot imaginable but, as said already, you're not supposed to pay attention to little details like that. As a matter of fact, the film is really a predecessor to the successful TV-series "Desperate Housewives". This is about a bunch of spoiled and snobbish rich women, the wives and mistresses of lawyers of an acclaimed agency, who got so bored that they became experts in the field of witchcraft and demonology. They use their powers to get their husbands promoted or to make each others' lives miserable. When one of Erica's spells narrowly goes wrong, costing almost the life of Amelia's beloved husband Howard, her man Larry leaves her. Erica falls off a balcony during the struggle, but she has enough black magic wisdom to haunt Larry's sexual fantasies from beyond the grave. Meanwhile, Amelia is out for revenge as well and she's even supremely witch enough to have Erica reincarnate as Larry's new love- interest Carol. Admittedly this all sounds a lot more complex than it actually is. "Sorceress" is a fairly straightforward B-movie with an enormous amount of plot holes and silly conclusion. This film is about Julie Strain's kinky outfits, the lesbian threesome halfway through the film, the shower interlude of Kristi Ducati and – to a slightly lesser extent – the sexy charisma of a mature Linda Blair.