‘Vampire leopard women prowl the jungle”
Night of the Sorcerers – original title: La Noche de los Brujos translation: “Night of the Warlocks” – is a 1973 Spanish horror film written and directed by Amando de Ossorio (Tombs of the Blind Dead, Night of the Seagulls, Demon Witch Child).
Cast:
Maria Kosti, Lorena Tovar, Barbara King, Kali Hansa, Jack Taylor, Simon Andreu and Joseph Thelman.
Plot teaser:
1910, Bumbasa, West Africa: A white missionary (Barbara King) is kidnapped by native Bokor (sorcerers) to be sacrificed under a full moon. The Bokor tie her between two posts, whip her, then decapitate her. However, the voodoo ceremony is interrupted by British soldiers who shoot all the participants. Unnoticed in the melee, a shedim (demon) takes possession of the woman.
Years later, Professor Jonathan Grant (Jack Taylor) commands a safari investigating the disappearance of elephants. The safari team stumbled across the clearing where the natives had performed their rituals, before being wiped out in colonial times.
Unfortunately, they decide to camp nearby…
Reviews:
” … it’s hard to find a better-paced, more enjoyable exercise in sensationalism of its kind. It can’t decide what kind of horror movie it wants to be, so vampirism, voodoo, possession and the walking dead are all tossed in like a big salad, and a very tasty one at that. The film is also not afraid to spill blood or allow for some kinky sadism, notably in repeated rituals where pretty women have their blouses literally whipped off… George R. Reis, DVD Drive-In
” … a mean-spirited, poorly made exploitation picture that relies on nudity, brutality, and gore rather than story, acting, and characterization. And what’s worse, it’s not even competent on this level, for it breaks the first rule of exploitation filmmaking: Shock, sicken, and titillate, but never, never bore your audience.” Bryan Senn, Drums of Terror: Voodoo in the Cinema
“The film’s general shoddiness is everywhere. In the daytime, the vampire women take the form of animals, played by stuffed leopards whose heads peer out through some bushes. Fernando Garcia Morcillo’s roller-rink organ-driven score is like something out of an Emmanuelle knock-off. The tired jungle cliches uneasily mix with the ’70s sexploitation elements, which in turn don’t blend well with the intended horrors.” Stuart Galbraith IV, DVD Talk
“The plot is paper thin, the acting amateurish and some scenes were too dark due to the shooting process. Although, that said, when the shots weren’t too dark there was some great lighting and atmospherics. It hasn’t a shred of pc awareness and, you know what, it is great fun. It is leopard skin bikini vampiric fun from a master of exploitation horror.” Taliesen Meets the Vampires
“Graphic violence and plentiful soft-core sex cannot relieve the tedium…” Phil Hardy (editor), The Aurum Film Encyclopedia: Horror
” … endearingly kitsch jungle exploitation flick … De Ossorio brings his familiar spooky touch to scenes where zombies crawl out of their graves and cannibals cavort around piles of skulls. By the far the most enjoyable aspect are the leopardskin bikini-clad vampire women, as Barbara Rey and Loli Tovar prance around the jungle with demonic glee.”Andrew Pragasam, The Spinning Image
“Racist, risible and completely redundant, it’s a forgettable effort.” Jamie Russell, Book of the Dead
Filming Locations:
Aldea del Fresno, Madrid, Spain
Wikipedia | IMDb | Image credits: Chilling Scenes of Dreadful Villainy | VHS Collector
