Virgin Witch (1972)

Nice effects though.

Good start, but then it gets ruined

Good , But It Is Overrated By Some

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.

To put it bluntly, the only reason for anyone to watch VIRGIN WITCH is if you want to see the main actresses naked. The entire film is built around nudity, as there's no real story of note and as a horror film it totally falls down. But almost every scene in the film features nudity of some sort, so fans of softcore nonsense will be well satisfied.The (loose) plotting sees twin sisters Vicki and Ann Michelle (the former famous for her role in ALLO ALLO) finding themselves caught up in various shenanigans involving a pagan cult, although that description makes it sound more interesting than it actually is. Production company Tigon were behind some of the finest British horror films ever made (like BLOOD ON SATAN'S CLAW) but this is undoubtedly their worst hour.The acting and production values are horrible, the dialogue is sometimes inaudible, and the direction virtually non-existent. None of the characters are developed enough for anyone to give anything approaching a decent performance, and the 'twist' ending is just silly. You guessed it - I hated this one, and with a passion.

The difference between a British sleaze film of the 1970s and an American sleaze film of the 1970s is that the British film is well acted and features interesting locations. "Virgin Witch," quite possibly the quintessential sleaze film of the 1970s, manages both. It's not that the film is not exploitative and rather insulting to women, it's just that one would have to take it seriously to take offense. The film stars real-life sisters Ann and Vicki Michelle as an ambitious career woman (Ann) and a repressed virgin (Vicki) who leave their strict parents and come to London. On the way they meet Johnny (Keith Buckley), in one of those 1970s movie coincidences, and he develops a bone for Vicki. Meanwhile, Ann answers an advert for a model and is "auditioned" by lesbian agent Sybil Waite (Patricia Haines), who invites her up for the weekend at a manor house owned by Gerald Amberly (Neil Hallet), a sort of proper Hugh Hefner, who is (of course) also the leader of a coven of witches. Ann (character name "Christine") is all for it, even the attentions of Sybil, if that's what it takes to get ahead, but Vicki (Betty) is still repressed. Sex rites ensue. In fact, the coven really isn't much into black magic at all, just sex games. Suffice it to say that the film did not have much of a costume budget. It would be a lot easier to dismiss this film as so much trash if it were not decently acted, particularly by Haines and Hallet. Ann Michelle--a kind of road company Martine Beswick--also does well under the direction...at least under the camera pointing...of stuntman-turned-director Ray Austin. There's nothing scary about this "horror" film, and truth be told, even with the vast amount of nudity, there's nothing very erotic about it either. It's a time capsule of a particular era of very strange British thriller films, but a rather disarming one.

Brash young Christine (a deliciously saucy performance by the comely Ann Michelle) and her sweet innocent sister Betty (a winningly perky portrayal by equally fetching Vicki Michelle) are invited to a swanky palatial mansion in the country by lascivious lesbian Sybil Waite (a perfectly snippy turn by Patricia Haines) for a fashion modeling shoot. Unbeknownst to the girls, the place is really a front for a diabolical coven of witches. Director Ray Austin and screenwriter Beryl Vertue concoct a compellingly naughty and racy little outing that manages the remarkable feat of showing decadence and sexual perversity in a surprisingly tasteful and fairly restrained manner that never degenerates into outright crudely leering sleaze. Austin and Vertue also do a credible job of astutely capturing the wickedly enticing allure of the black arts. Fortunately, there's a pleasingly plentiful amount of tasty female nudity (the Michelle siblings look positively smashing in their birthday suits) and the hot basement orgy rituals are suitably wild and uninhibited with dancing nude people, crazed chanting, pounding music, and virgins being deflowered. Moreover, Christine's conversion into the cult as a high priestess is genuinely chilling and leads to a truly dark and upsetting conclusion. The capable acting from the sturdy cast rates as another major asset: The Michelle sisters make for attractive and appealing leads, Haines portrays her haughty character with lip-smacking snooty aplomb, plus there are fine supporting contributions by Keith Buckley as Betty's concerned boyfriend Johnny, Neil Hallett as kindly physician cult leader Gerald Amberly, James Chase as lecherous photographer Peter, and Paula Wright as creepy housekeeper Ms. Wright. Gerald Moss' lush and bright color cinematography makes the most out of the beautifully verdant English countryside scenery and boasts several nifty fades and dissolves. Ted Dicks' shivery score likewise hits the shuddery spot. Good bawdy fun.

The main problem with this movie is that it doesn't show you, it tells you. Characters explain everything, so no one has to actually do much to move the story along.It's about a pretty young girl and her twin sister spending a weekend at a country estate and entering the world of witchcraft, but as other posts have pointed out, you don't really see much magic. At the very end, the main character suddenly starts using her powers, but this is mainly just shown with a close-up on her eyes. The only weird, exploitive occult image is a pagan ritual which, since it was their only idea, is shown twice.It ends with the young girl who just discovered her powers eliminating the lead witch from the coven to presumably take control. That seems like a fine enough idea, but the build-up was just too mild. Very English, very relaxed. In one scene, they soothingly discuss last night's virgin sacrifice ritual over morning coffee. When the leader of the coven asks the recently deflowered inductee, "Will you pour for me?" (referring to the pot of coffee), it really hits home just how effete this group is. It's not what you want from characters in a horror/thriller.