Witchboard

source: Witchboard

If you're familiar with Kevin Tenney's work, you know what you're getting most of the time. Cheesy dialogue, questionable writing and James W. Quinn are mainstays in a Kevin Tenney movie. This movie is lackluster at best. It's between Witchtrap and Night of the Demons. It is much better than Pinnochio's Revenge. This movie was mildly entertaining. The pace was slow with only a few deaths. The deaths were creative and carried out well. I, personally, would have liked to see more deaths. I also would have liked to have seen the bearded ax murder more. The cast of characters were OK, with the exception of Tawnie Kitaen and maybe James W. Quinn. Both aren't really actors. James W. Quinn is probably a friend of Kevin Tenney's, given the fact that he's in all of Tenney's films. Tawnie Kitaen just stinks. This movie is a half step above the typical 80's horror movie. The plot chugs along with very little gore, horror, or meaningfulness. So overall the movie is rather dull, but worth watching if you've got that acquired taste in 80's horror movies. With this proper acquired taste, you may even think this movie is a classic. Not me, though. 5 out of 10.

Director Kevin Tenney will probably be best remembered for a certain little splatter-and-sleaze fest known as Night of the Demons, (not to be mixed up with that lovable 'Bigfoot the rapist' flick, Night of the Demon), but thanks to the fine folks at Anchor Bay, we can enjoy his debut feature again, fully restored and remastered. Ah yes, there is nothing like screwing around with a Ouija board to tick off some evil spirits. When you were a kid, everyone knew some guys brother's friend who had a piano drop on his head through the roof of his house and had his corpse molested by Satan after he played with a Ouija board. It was one of those things you just don't do! Have some respect for the dead! Witchboard follows the consequences of giving the unliving the greasy goose after a party being held by yuppyish feisty redhead Linda (Tawney Kitaen) results in her getting a tad too attached to that unholy piece of cardboard. One of her guests, Brandon, used it to communicate with the spirit of a little dead boy named David, but after accidentally leaving it behind, Linda starts using the board on her own, much to the disgust of her bullish boyfriend Jim. At first, the spirit seems friendly, it helps Linda find a lost ring. But when Jim's friend on the construction site dies suspiciously under some old collapsed scaffold, it isn't long before Brandon puts two and two together to come up with 666, and the evil spirit fights to take control of Linda in an attempt to be reborn and destroy her for good. You can probably piece together what happens for the most part. Brandon hires a wonky psychic to exorcise the demon, but this only angers up the spirit who launches a full on assault on those trying to expose it. As Linda gets sicker and more unstable, it's up to Jim and Brandon to get to the bottom of who the ghost really is if they want to save Linda's life. Oh yeah, throw in some annoying detective who likes to speak in riddles for no good reason at all! In terms of a low budget film made in the mid 80's, this one still has a lot going for it. The filmmakers made a brave choice to go against the grain and to tone down on needless gore and to up tension and atmosphere. The film is a slow burner, taking it's time to develop the creepy stuff, and allow the story to play out naturally. Tenney gets quite creative in terms of how it is filmed, and actually manages to get some genuine scares and a sense of dread before the OTT ending kicks in. The acting is reasonable for the most part, with only the 'annoying as a pubic hair between the teeth' psychic Zarabeth really grating. It's funny how 80's horror males usually either look like ridiculous nerds or ridiculous homosexuals. Jim and Brandon fall into the latter category. These boys sure knew how to use hair dryers and tanning beds, and at one stage in the motel room, I though they were gonna straight up 69 each other. No joke. Oh yeah, and the cop who pops up to investigate the deaths and speak in riddles has nothing to really do with the film at all. All he does is add more running time to an already lengthy film, it really could have done with losing 10-15 minutes. There were also one too many 'fake scare' moments, the graveyard scene had about three of them, and they were all with Jim putting his hand on Brandon's shoulder! They didn't even bother putting music or stings on them! Lazy. Saying all that, Witchboard is still a lot of fun. Even the plodding bits manage to be interesting enough, and the camera work is of a high enough standard to keep your eyes open. With only one or two moments of brief gore, we do get a late-in-the-day shower scene from Tawney, so don't turn it off before that. I'm sure a lot of folks remember this one from it's VHS days and look back with fond memories. I just wish Anchor Bay had kept the original artwork in the UK, the cover we got was horrible.

Few horror films receive just critic ratings. Few horror films truly scare, substituting gore for suspense which merely grosses out viewers rather than frightening them. "Witchboard" is truly a scary film. A young woman becomes obsessed with using a Oiji board - but she uses it alone - and a very dangerous ghost, pretending to be an innocent boy, uses it as a portal to enter into the material world.

Kevin Tenney, the man behind the fun eighties cult horror 'Night of the Demons' is also the man behind this film; an undeveloped, yet overlong supernatural inspired horror flick. The idea of a Ouija board is certainly an intriguing one, and since there aren't a great deal of films that make said item their main focus, this one really deserved to be better. Perhaps my rating of the film is a shade lower than it should be, as I really don't like this sort of film in general; although I don't think too many will disagree with me that this isn't a very good film. The worst thing about it is the fact that there isn't really anything memorable, and in taking lots of different ideas from a range of films; Kevin Tenney has only succeeded in making one that is easy to forget. The plot is purely routine and features an evil murderer getting access to the world of the living through a Ouija board. All of the cast take everything very seriously, and there's nothing like Linnea Quigley's lipstick moment in this film. It's easy to see where it's going at all times, and Witchboard never really provides any surprises. I don't really know why some people would like this film; as all the ideas contained have been done better elsewhere. There's nothing else to say about it, and if I had to sum my thoughts up in one word, I would use the word 'meh'.

People have been pretty hard on this film, and I have to admit my expectations going into it were rather low. Especially when you consider it was written/directed by somebody I had never heard of with a nearly anonymous cast including a leading lady named Tawny Kitaen (Tawny Kitten???). But overall I was impressed. With a modest budget of two million dollars this independent film managed to produce a small profit back in 1986. Rather than being a boring gore fest with wooden acting, as were so many of the 80s horror films, this one keeps you engaged with suspense, camera technique, and an interesting score written by a relative of the obscure writer/director. In fact you might classify this film as horror/mystery, as it is not at all clear exactly what is going on until the end. The film opens on a party with Brandon, who seems to be an intellectual snob, talking about the spirit world. He brings out his ouija board and gets his ex-girlfriend, Linda, interested in contacting the spirit of a ten year old boy, David, that he has contacted frequently. A rather jealous Jim - Linda's current boyfriend - makes snide remarks during the session, apparently angering the spirit and causing it to slash Brandon's tires. Linda asks to borrow the ouija board for a few days. She soon becomes obsessed with it and her behavior becomes erratic. Also, there is a sudden rash of what could be accidental deaths, maybe murders of people close to Jim. And by close to him I mean he is nearby when they happen to the point where he could have been killed too. In each case the cause of the accident/death involves an axe, and Jim's hammer/axe combo that he uses at his job on the construction site has gone missing. This causes Jim to be dogged by the most annoying homicide detective in the history of the world. What goes on here? Has David become a malevolent spirit? And if so what does he want? Watch and find out. This one has pretty good acting including some good scenes between Jim and Brandon as the source of the tension between them is explored, as well as the history of their friendship. I'd recommend it. Look out for Rose Marie of the Dick Van Dyke show in a small role as Jim and Linda's landlady.

In Witchboard, Tawny Kitaen, sultry babe of many a Whitesnake video and star of the wonderfully daft Gwendoline, plays Linda Brewster, a young woman who slowly becomes possessed by an evil spirit after meddling with a Ouija board. Written and directed by low budget B-movie maker Kevin S. Tenney, this film is poorly scripted, badly acted and generally pretty dull. Tenney very occasionally shows some flair with the camera, but with material as mediocre as this, there is very little that can be done to really impress. Kitaen proves that there ain't much more to her than a pretty face (and huge hair!), and her co-stars try their best not to outshine her. Kathleen Wilhoite is particularly annoying (not funny as was obviously intended) as psychic medium Zarabeth, an extremely nasty example of 80s day-glo, new wave/punk chic (think very trashy Cindi Lauper wannabe) who fortunately meets a sticky end. Things could've been made more bearable if there had at least been some effective gore, but the film scrimps on decent effects; oh well, at least Tawny does the decent thing and gets her kit off for a brief shower scene.

WITCHBOARD is a fun film that is scary depending on when you watch it. If you watch it at around ten or eleven o'clock at night, you will feel the full scary effects that Kevin S. Tenney wants you to feel. I own a ouiji board and after seeing this film, I don't think I'll ever touch it again. Some users say what this COULD'VE BEEN and all that crap. Truthfully, this film is as good as it could've been and deserves to be re-released so that a new generation of horror fans can appreciate this film for what it's worth and not for what it could've been. **1/2out of****For an enjoyable late-night horror fare.

For a low-budget American possession flick with a no-name cast, WITCHBOARD is pretty good and a cut above the average teen genre fare of the '80s. This is due to the fact that instead of bombarding us with cheap gore effects (aside from a couple of clumsy ones), the film works at and actually succeeds in creating a spooky atmosphere of dread and foreboding. The storyline is an old and clichéd one (ever since THE EXORCIST really) yet is given a breath of fresh air by the young, talented cast and the involved direction of Kevin Tenney who works hard to keep things interesting, even if much of the film is slow-paced and lacking in incident. The plot is very thin and seems stretched at an hour and a half. Basically, girl becomes possessed by evil spirit. Nobody believes it. People die. Friends investigate background of case. More people die. Good confronts evil in a violent battle. The end. You can guess the outcome from the start but WITCHBOARD works hard to keep things as unpredictable (as is possible for such a story) and twisty as can possibly be. The death scenes are done pretty unspectacularly on a low budget (unlike those in, say, SUPERSTITION), and consist of impalement, crushing, and a cheesy hatchet in the head. I'm grateful that the film doesn't have to rely on these to work. Tawny Kitaen takes the lead role and has a gratuitous * scene like most young horror actresses in '80s cheapies. Aside from her irritating hairstyle she isn't too bad and almost creates a believable transition from good into evil; she may be a Linda Blair imitator but let's face it, Linda Blair wasn't that great to begin with (however, the voice-over actress and special effects men WERE). Todd Allen is pretty good as the volatile, confused boyfriend who makes the hard change from sceptic to believer, while I also liked Stephen Nichols' performance as a stressed-out former boyfriend. The only other characters of the small cast are an irritating detective with a penchant for magic tricks and an irritating medium who thankfully dies quickly. The climatic battle between good and evil is pretty suspenseful, although the whole project is nearly scuppered by a really bad back-projected scene of someone being pushed through a window. Pretty, yes, realistic, no. I liked WITCHBOARD for its atmosphere and change of pace, and the fact that it keeps the identity of the spirit hidden for much of the movie which adds a layer of mystery to the proceedings to give the film an extra boost. Two sequels followed in the early '90s; the first is a lesser rehash of this one which is good for a laugh, the second is by all accounts appalling.

80s horror films are remembered fondly for being fun and over-the-top, but most were fairly unoriginal, gratuitous and campy. Witchboard is special because its not a sequel or a ripoff of anything, isn't made for horny teens or punk rock sadists and it has a genuine interest in the scary subject matter - the occult. Director/writer Kevin S. Tenney would explore demonic possession with more fun and splatter with "Night of the Demons" years later on a bigger budget, but Witchboard is a good preface as its more believable, emotional and mature. I wish it was more exciting at parts but this is an independent horror film with limited means. Anyway its a good contribution to the horror genre for its time and it holds up better than many others.