TheSheBeast

The She Beast (1966)

The movie opens in the 1700s with a group of villagers hunting down and killing a witch that has been taking their children. They do this against the advice of Count Van Helsing, who warns them that the witch needs to be exorcised first. A couple of hundred years later a man and his beautiful young wife are traveling thru Transylvania on their honeymoon when they have an accident that plunges them into pond. But this wasn’t an accident because it is the same pond that the witch was executed in and she manipulated it so that she could now possess the woman. Using the young bride’s body she now is able to take revenge on the descendents of those who executed her. Lucky for them (the villagers and the young couple) there is a Van Helsing around to stop her!

This movie isn’t at all what I expected. While there are some attempts to be creepy this movie is mostly played for laughs. The story is very tight and filled with amusing characters like Count Van Helsing, the Innkeeper, and the very Keystone Cops like local police. This movie, set in Transylvania during the time of communism, goes out of it’s way to poke fun at the local government and communism in general. But if there were any doubt as to how serious the movie was taking itself it was settled by the goofy chase scene between the cops and the heroes trying to banish the witch. The cast is very good, but be warned the top billed Barbara Steele is barely in the movie. Ian Ogilvy as the groom trying to save his bride, and Mel Welles (Mr. Mushnik from the classic Little Shop of Horrors) are entertaining in their roles. But for me John Karlsen steals the movie as the comedic Count Van Helsing.

This is a fairly well put together movie. If you are looking for a horror film filled with killer special effects and stomach turning death scenes this isn’t the one for you. The titular She Beast looks like someone thru a bowl of porridge on her face! Not only that but the kills are mostly off screen and when they aren’t they are tame, even for the 60s. But then I don’t think that this was ever meant to be a serious horror film like that, so the silly effects do not bother me. For me they work for the rest of the movie and only add to the enjoyment. The picture and sound are okay, but be aware that this movie is in the public domain. That of course means that there are many copies of varying degrees of quality. The one that I watched was from Mill Creek and is in decent shape.

As long as you realize the kind of movie that you are sitting down to watch and are in the mood for some laughs then I think you will be pleased with The She Beast. With that in mind I recommend the movie. For more information on where you can pick up a copy check out the Mill Creek Entertainment website at www.millcreekent.com/

3 out of 4

reviewed by John Shatzer