Simon, King of the Witches

A baffling curiosity of a film, in which a handsome stranger who lives in a storm drain and calls himself a magician, tries to harness powers that will elevate him to God-status, while helping some local hippies get one over on the D.A. The film is shot with a confidence of style and budget, but the acting is weak and the story makes little sense. It veers back and forth between macabre, funny, and bewildering... but not in a way that makes you want more, or wish it was any longer.

Weird in a way that's not quite arty but I guess they did try to elevate this beyond mere schlock. This is not quite successful. Intriguing because of a lack of predictability in the plot and an original invocation of magic, and yet its psychedelic taint cheapens things. Still quite fascinating, involving and original.

Propelled by a charasmatic lead turn by Prine (a chunk of the film would have fallen apart without him), Simon is a strangely typical ‘rise and fall of power’ set in LA movie, but high as hell and occult enough to believe in hell’s power (IMO, *very* LA). There are a few non sequiturs plotwise, but the witchcraft is surprisingly sober and played mostly straight, which elevates the film considerably. I have a suspicion they snuck in more than they let on. The red orb is the best character.

Quirky 70s horror with a good performance from Andrew Prine. A little too genteel for the hardcore horror buffs, no doubt, but worth seeing for fans of the offbeat.