[Nosferatu@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by Frankie Teardrop

WITCHERY – 'Witchery' hails from late eighties Italy and stars David Hasselhoff and Linda Blair. If that isn't enough to recommend it, I don't know what is. It's about a house on a deserted island, the ghost of a movie star, and... well, even though it's pretty linear, I kind of lost track. Suffice it to say that, despite some boring bits, there are also enough instances of haywire Euro-weirdness to justify its existence in my eyes. I was particularly taken with the 'Dr Who theme sequence worm-hole effect' which happens when various victims are sucked into a demonic counter reality / dodgy film set where their lips are sewed together and where messed up hags taunt young pregnant woman by waving dessicated babies around. There's also a fairly obnoxious sex assault initiated by another dude with the lip-stitch problem. For me though, the film's shining moment was a bit right at the end which involves L Blair, D Hasselhoff, a child in peril and a Sesame Street cassette recorder. If I said much more, my mind would melt. 'Witchery' is not the pinnacle of Italian horror, and I sometimes wonder whether it's simple nostalgia which makes these things seem worthwhile to me, but if you're into this kind of stuff you'll probably like it.

I have this on DVD with the title Witchcraft, but haven't seen it in years. I remember thinking it passed the time and was an enjoyable watch, if only for having David Hasselhoff and Linda Blair in the same film. It would have been a different matter if it was a spoof horror, but for both to play it completely straight and the end result not be a complete mess is an achievement in itself.