The Witch Who Came from the Sea

The Witch Who Came from the Sea (1976)

Runtime: 88 minutes

Directed by: Matt Cimber

Starring: Millie Perkins, Lonny Chapman, Vanessa Brown, Peggy Feury, Jean Pierre Camps

From: MCI; yes, that was the company named in the opening credits

Well, this was quite the grim experience… that’s not necessarily a negative. Originally I was going to watch something on Netflix but for reasons I’ll explain at the end for those that care, instead I went to Shudder and selected something I’ve known of for a long while now-chiefly, how bizarre it was-but without knowing much as to WHY it garnered such a reception.

From the opening scene I knew that this would be a markedly different film than typical; Molly is on what looks like Venice Beach w/ her young nephews. For some reason they are named TADD and TRIPOLI. She looks at some weightlifters in a sexual manner… then fantasizes their graphic deaths. This happens after she opines over her late father, a sea captain who disappeared long ago. The film maintains such an unsettling vibe throughout. Her sister Cathy does not share such a rosy opinion; the film shortly proves through flashbacks that the sister’s comments were correct. That’s only mentioned as the relationship between Molly and her father is of the gross variety so I hope that’s not triggering to anyone reading this—but I am cognizant it’s always possible.

From there we get more weirdness as there are deaths shown and one extended scene which was presented in a surreal way as if it could have been a dream-that query is later answered so this is not one of those inscrutable, obtuse films that aren’t always my bag. The entire journey had a dream-like vibe and despite the occasional laugh from me (usually in disbelief or nervous confusion) the movie is a real downer, especially in the final act. Molly doesn’t quite realize just how bonkers she is although her sister then her friends do eventually realize this-what a sad, depressing picture which never becomes so much that it was a struggle to finish.

A nice score and direction are big assets; personally it was nice seeing Buck Flower in a supporting role, especially when I did not realize until the opening credits he was present. In this low-budget production he was also the casting director, which is why his daughter played the younger version of Molly in flashbacks. How it was presented, it wasn’t a scenario where the child would be traumatized on set. Traumatized is not a word I’ll use to describe my opinion of Witch but its title is eventually explained and I’ll never be able to forget various elements of the movie: the general tone, the oddball performances, the razors, the importance of television/commercials in this world, someone’s politically incorrect opinion of American football players…

As for me and Netflix, besides their lineup not being as appealing to me as what other streaming services offer, the smart TV app and even sometimes the web version more often than not runs incredibly slow so it makes me not even want to bother with the aggravation. It’s been that way for a few years now so that is one of several reasons why I usually don’t subscribe to the service.