Mystics in Bali (1981)

That was an excellent one.

It’s sentimental, ridiculously long and only occasionally funny

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

Great movie. Not sure what people expected but I found it highly entertaining.

It can't be adequately described in words so I implore you to experience this bizarre film yourself, but every line by the main characters is delivered in an uninterested deadpan monotone, and they act as though there was nothing remarkable happening. Meanwhile the female lead is turning into animals, vomiting up snakes, witnessing black magic duels and having her severed head fly around as a vampire-like creature. The juxtaposition is very funny. Why she puts herself in this insanely dangerous situation is never really explained either, she just says she's "studying black magic", which may as well have been "I thought it would be a laugh."I'm guessing that at least some of the lower scoring user reviews saw a subbed version?

Cathy (Ilona Agathe Bastian), an American student of witchcraft, travels to Bali in order to learn about Leák, the most powerful of all black magic. With the help of local man Mahendra (Yos Santo), Cathy becomes an apprentice of the Leák queen (Sofia W.D.), an ugly old hag who talks like Yoda and laughs like Salacious Crumb. But although the queen seems happy to reveal the secrets of her dark arts, she is actually using the young woman to increase her own powers, detaching Cathy's head from her body and sending it on night-time missions to collect the regenerating blood of new-born infants.Despite featuring such bonkers sights as a flying head with vampire teeth and dangling entrails feeding on a woman about to give birth, talking fireballs engaged in mortal combat, Cathy and the queen transforming into animals (including a pig creature with breasts!!), Cathy vomiting up live mice in green goop after a night spent in the form of a snake, and a supernatural showdown with lightning bolts and electric fingers, Mystics in Bali isn't quite as enjoyable as one might imagine: the action is rather repetitive, the queen's incessant manic laughter gets really, really annoying, Mahendra's romance with Cathy is as dull as ditch-water (no gratuitous nudity here, folks!), and the visual effects are absolutely dire.For a slightly more satisfying example of Indonesian craziness, check out The Queen of Black Magic.

An American woman named Cathy asks her Indonesian boyfriend Hendra to help her investigate Balinese black magic known as 'Leyak'.Leyak is the most powerful black magic there is and she soon begins to pay a terrible cost when she turns into a flying head that feasts on unborn babies.I have seen my share of crazy Indonesian horror cinema and "Mystics in Bali" is perhaps the most known of 'em all.It is based on Indonesian mythology and for a supernatural culture largely undiscovered by Western movie fans.The special effects are incredibly cheesy and inept,the dubbed dialogue is absolutely hilarious,still there's a flying head which has the body's internal organs trailing behind,along with a little foetus eating and an evil sorcerer for all of you fans of Indonesian trash.The main actress Llona Agathe Bastian is incredibly wooden-in fact she was never an actress at all,but a German tourist spotted in Bali by one of the producers.Give this amusing trash a look.7 out of 10.

"Leak" is a more appropriate title, but "Mystics in Bali" will suffice. In the early 80's, Indonesia had a healthy fantasy film industry and this became one of its poster children. It's really quite a silly, juvenile horror flick with awful performances, inventive but cheesy effects, and some hackneyed ideas.The Baliness people are known for being quite laid back and philosophical about life. Their days aren't ruled by the clock and they don't exhibit a great deal of stress. One interesting exchange of dialog is testament to this admirable demeanor; it goes something like this --Demon: "I want fresh blood." American girl: "Not right now. I'm busy." The premise is simple. An American woman asks her Balinese boyfriend to help her learn about the black arts in Bali. The helpful chap arranges for her to meet the local Leak, a shape-changing demon who laughs a lot. Before you can say "Flying Head!", the Leak and the American lass are holding laughing parties and upsetting the peace.The premise is little more than an excuse to wheel out a barrow full of surreal effects.Because everything is so matter-of-fact (the local exorcists sit down for a smoke before charging off to exterminate demons), the tone is more amusing than scary. Come to think of it, showing them this film might be a good way to get children interested in horror. Or swearing off it for life.