The Witchmaker

Not that this isn't a very respectable effort overall, and an atmospheric midnight movie. It manages to be both somewhat old fashioned and somewhat modern. The filmmakers aren't afraid to jazz up their production a bit with some violence and nudity, but never go overboard, always maintaining a mood of doom and gloom until its dark twist ending. Alvy Moore plays it pretty straight as a professor who ventures into swampy territory, with some students in tow, to do some psychic research while a killer is claiming nubile local girls. Thordis Brandt is buxom blonde Anastasia, a psychically gifted "sensitive" (yes, the word is used as a noun here) and the granddaughter of a witch, who will help them obtain details, and Anthony Eisley co-stars as our studly hero Vic. Meanwhile, a local Satan worshipper, Luther the Berserk (hulking John Lodge), senses Anastasia's potential and plots to use her for his own purposes. "The Witchmaker" is one of a few productions put together by Moore and contemporary L.Q. Jones, above average genre films that managed to be both intelligent and creepy. These also include "The Brotherhood of Satan" and "A Boy and His Dog". The movie does have a wonderful "late show" sort of appeal, and does have some very nice moments, but they're spread sort of thin at first, as the film gets bogged down in talk and just sort of plods along. However, it does ultimately start getting better, and more interesting in general. It becomes quite fun when Luther starts inviting all manner of witches to his abode, some of them played by the likes of Sue Bernard ("Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!"), Patricia Wymer ("The Babysitter"), and TV horror host Larry "Seymour" Vincent. Also appearing are character actor Burt Mustin, and Helene Winston, who also acted in "The Brotherhood of Satan" and "A Boy and His Dog". Lodge is the most fun as the villain of the piece, a part that John Davis Chandler was originally tapped to play. Moore and Jones are the executive producers, and William O. Brown is the writer / producer / director. The film does benefit from the music score by Jaime Mendoza-Nava, although some viewers could find the lighting by John Arthur Morrill to be too murky. The undeniable highlight of the entire thing is seeing Brandt run in slow motion while covering her ample bosom with her hands. Worth seeking out for die hard horror fans eager to discover the lesser known efforts of yesteryear, "The Witchmaker" is interesting viewing as far as witchcraft cinema goes. Seven out of 10.

The Witchmaker (1969)

** (out of 4)

The setting is deep in the Louisiana swamps where legend has it there have always been witch's who kill young ladies. It turns out one of the last members of a coven of witches is doing the killing and soon more victims arrive. A group of psychic researching, posing as location scouts, show up and before long they come face to face with the witches.

THE WITCHMAKER was one of the first films to try and cash in on the success of ROSEMARY'S BABY and it pretty much goes by the handbook as far as witch movies go. Well, to be fair, I guess we should say that a lot of films dealing with witches and Satanic curses showed up in the later part of the 1960s but this one here certainly isn't among the best.

It's really too bad that there were so many flaws with this picture because there are some very good things scattered throughout the running time. The film was obviously shot with very little money and this actually helped the picture and especially where the look was concerned. The swamp setting is actually wonderful and the film has a good atmosphere to it. I think a lot of the atmosphere was created because they simply didn't have much money for a fancy looking picture so we're left with a rather raw film.

The problem with the film is that the majority of the over-long 98-minute running time has characters talking and the dialogue isn't that interesting. In fact, I'd also argue that none of the characters are all that interesting and you certainly don't care about any of them. The more they talk the more annoying they become and you eventually just tune them out. The performances range from fair to poor but this is pretty typical of this type of film.

I will say that the film offers up quite a bit of blood and especially for a movie of this era. There's not really any graphic violence and there is some rather funny bits of sexuality. It seems the director was willing to hint at the nudity but not show it so whenever you think you're about to see something we then get a quick edit. The highlight of the film is when actress Thordis Brandt goes running through the woods but covering her breasts to make sure there isn't any nudity shown.

All right.

So, there is some satanic rituals going on in the bayou. Alvy Moore(from GREEN ACRES, and also one of this film's producers) and his group are investigating into this Deep South hell, and its RACE WITH THE DEVIL time.

I have a somewhat trimmed version of this film, but despite this, I enjoyed WITCHMAKER emmensly. It has blood, nudity, and some pretty intense scenes. In a sense, it is what all drive-in films should be, entertaining.

I'll be getting the DVD version, once they put it out. And I definitely won't be buying that wimpy BLAIR WITCH flick. WITCHMAKER is the real deal.

History of THE WITCHMAKER initial marketing and premiere in 1969 ------------- Here's the background story of my connection with THE WITCHMAKER (1969 Excelsior Films) starring Alvy Moore, Thordis Brandt, Anthony Eisley, and John Lodge (also Susan Bernard).

Before that, I worked two years as a regional movie publicist for the Jack Wodell Associates SF CA USA based regional ad/PR agency which specialized in local (SF Bay area) movie publicity, primarily for Warner Bros., but also for other studios, large and small.

United Artists Theatre Chain of SF CA showed a lot of "Indy" movies (along w/Hollywood studio movies) in movie houses and drive in theaters the chain owned.

THE WITCHMAKER (1969) was aimed at drive in theaters, which did big biz w/teen agers in parked cars necking quite a bit, and not paying attention to the quality of the movie.

It was a rather dull movie, never became a "classic," but did well anyway, made money for it's investors when presented at large chains of drive-in movie theatres, still operating in the LA CA USA area and elsewhere in 1969.

It was created from the partnership of LQ Jones and Alvy Moore, both character actors of long experience and high standing in Hollywood for 20 years before THE WITCHMAKER (1969) was made and released.

The movie was shot in Louisiana in 3 weeks, featured Ms. Thordis Brandt, who was a famous beauty queen of the times who had appeared in FUNNY GIRL (1968) starring Barbra Streisand...Brandt was a Ziegfeld Follies beauty (in contrast to ugly Steisand, which was the joke of the movie.....Fanny Brice/ Streisand made more money, got more famous than the beauties who worked as Ziegfeld beauty queen girls).

Brandt was no actress. She was a model for still photos.

She ran through the jungles of Louisiana bare breasted, but cupping her tits with her hands. THAT was the big sex scene in the show.

Keep in mind porn had just become legal, and the Sex Revolution of the 1960's was in high gear.....subject of big interest for the public which the major studios didn't get near.

Indy movie makers jumped in to make money and did covering the subject, recruiting the likes of Thordis Brandt and other "witches" and girls of beauty part of the movie to show off their charms and parts.

Making Indy movies is not an original idea....many get made, most go nowhere, including very good ones with very famous names and big stars...but no distribution.

Jones and Moore got VERY lucky connected with the SF CA USA based United Artists Theatre Circuit....which backed THE WITCHMAKER (1969) ...already finished when the deal was made.

MORE movies were funded and made, but never did as well as the THE WITCHMAKER which was tested and promoted and premiered in Phoenix, AZ at the Acres Drive In, and promoted on the local KOOL-TV Gene Autry owned TV station.

I was the main guy in Phoenix AZ flown for a month or so to Phoenix AZ to set up and execute the premiere of THE WITCHMAKER (1969) which eventually included a gathering of all the big shots and actors part of the movie....they appeared on local TV and other local media, and hyped the show.....which did VERY well at the Acres Drive in during the hot summer of 1969 (June or July or so).

I was 25 years old, but quite a big shot publicist and publicity/ PR manager for JackWodell Assoc. Ad and PR Co. at 582 Market St, 19th Floor (which also was the main publicist for the SF CA USA Film Festival, and did non-movie PR on occasion for restaurants such as the IMPERIAL PALACE Restaurant of fame in Chinatown, SF USA).

Jack Wodell Assoc. created the TV ads and previews of coming attraction ads (aka "Trailers") and also the radio spot ads and also the newspaper ads for THE WITCHMAKER (also the "one sheet" movie posters, which I have a copy of in my kitchen as I type this in 2012 in Columbia PA USA!).

It also placed all the ads for the movie in Southern Calif. where United Artists Theatre Circuit owned maybe 70 drive-ins, ALL of which opened THE WITCHMAKER on the same 1969 weekend, and that resulted in VERY big money for everybody! Sue Bernard was in the movie, and she was the 25 year old daughter of Bruno Bernard, aka "Bruno of Hollywood" who was famous for movie star celebrity portraits.

Sue is now a very rich old lady in her late 60's still raking in money because her Dad shot the most famous photo of all of Marilyn Monroe, and left Sue the Copyright.

Right! The movie lasted and lasted and lasted.

It was turned into a VHS tape in the 1980's which few Indy horror movies of the 1960's were......one can still buy movie posters for the movie on the Internet.

Most of the people part of it are dead or geezer.

Well.....memories from Tex Allen (birth name David Roger Allen) of THE WITCHMAKER (1969 Excelsior Films) starring Alvy Moore, Anthony Eisely, John Lodge, Thordis Brandt, and Sue Bernard (and others

Alvy Moore leads a group of individuals into the deep swamplands to investigate paranormal activities. As luck would have it, this little neck of the bayou has been the locus of several ritual murders over the past couple of years, of which all the victims were pretty young girls. One of the crew of outsiders(the lovely and zaftig Thordis Brandt) is the descendant of a witch, and her presence piques the interest of an evil warlock determined to recruit her into his coven.

Despite its financial strife, The Witchmaker is an atmospheric, smartly made production with an effective curveball ending, and I suspect it may be a bit more lettered in illustrating the various wonts of occultism than many other films of its type. Surprisingly scary at points, and benefiting from a creepy score by Jaime Mendoza-Nava, this one's worth seeking out(if only for the scene of Ms. Brandt running slow-motion and topless through the swamp, cupping her hands over her gigantic bare breasts).

7/10