I liked how when the film began, it had a little prologue where the Devil himself talks to the audience. In most films, this would be a negative, but for a Roger Corman horror film, this sort of thing worked well--after all, these sort of films should never be taken too seriously. And, later in the film, this same silly spirit remained--with witches appearing and disappearing, changing form into animals and doing all kinds of incantations! And, an adorable pointed-eared Billy Barty was also on hand as an imp!! You really can't take this film very seriously--and I liked that.
The film begins at the present day. Two psychic researchers are trying a strange experiment using a prostitute ( no, not THAT sort of experiment--you sicko). They use hypnosis to take her to past lives to prove that reincarnation is possible. By the way, this is actually the plot of an Ed Wood (BRIDE AND THE BEAST) that was made just a year earlier--though the lady was not a prostitute AND it turned out in a past life she was a gorilla!!). Unlike the Wood film, most of the film is spent in the past--seeing her past life acted out for the audience. And, late in the film, one of the researchers himself goes to the past to rescue her when she is in peril! When they use regression, it seems that the prostitute was a French woman who was accused of witchcraft centuries ago. It turned out that real witches framed her in order to get her out of the way. A female witch wanted the lady's boyfriend and framing her of consorting with the forces of darkness was a convenient way to get rid of her. And, because the psychic researchers somehow interfered with time, they must go back and correct any changes their study has made--and battle the Devil himself along the way! Explaining the plot any further would probably confuse you--it is pretty weird and incomprehensible.
The film's strengths are it unusual plot, very odd ending and self-deprecating humor. Minuses are the cheesy special effects (at times), such as the bats with very obvious wires supporting them as well as the confusing explanations as to how time will be affected by the woman's life or death. Overall, it's a cheesy movie that actually works pretty well and is very watchable--much more so than most of Corman's films of this era.
The film begins at the present day. Two psychic researchers are trying a strange experiment using a prostitute ( no, not THAT sort of experiment--you sicko). They use hypnosis to take her to past lives to prove that reincarnation is possible. By the way, this is actually the plot of an Ed Wood (BRIDE AND THE BEAST) that was made just a year earlier--though the lady was not a prostitute AND it turned out in a past life she was a gorilla!!). Unlike the Wood film, most of the film is spent in the past--seeing her past life acted out for the audience. And, late in the film, one of the researchers himself goes to the past to rescue her when she is in peril! When they use regression, it seems that the prostitute was a French woman who was accused of witchcraft centuries ago. It turned out that real witches framed her in order to get her out of the way. A female witch wanted the lady's boyfriend and framing her of consorting with the forces of darkness was a convenient way to get rid of her. And, because the psychic researchers somehow interfered with time, they must go back and correct any changes their study has made--and battle the Devil himself along the way! Explaining the plot any further would probably confuse you--it is pretty weird and incomprehensible.
The film's strengths are it unusual plot, very odd ending and self-deprecating humor. Minuses are the cheesy special effects (at times), such as the bats with very obvious wires supporting them as well as the confusing explanations as to how time will be affected by the woman's life or death. Overall, it's a cheesy movie that actually works pretty well and is very watchable--much more so than most of Corman's films of this era.