The Witchmaker
The Witchmaker (1969) Rewatch: ❎
Grimy psychedelic era occult witchy murders, psychic researchers, sensitives and swamps. Lot of ingredients gone into this one alright.
Sat down to watch this a few times over the past year or so and somehow kept timing it with crap health days so it was nice to be able to stay awake long enough to watch it this time.
Was it worth the wait? Yeah, I’d say so. Wastes absolutely no time getting right down to the sleazy murderings, everyone involved plays it absolutely straight and that goes a long way to giving the film a kind of different vibe to a lot of exploitation stuff at the time.
The swamps make for a suitably grim setting, John Lodge’s (sadly not the one out of The Moody Blues) Luther The Berzerk is nicely creepy and straightforwardly brutal and the witches are great, especially Helene Winston’s older Jessie who gives it the full Macbeth spookies.
Bonus points for plenty of colourful candles and nightgowns to liven up the grey grimness.
Hail Satan!