NIGHT OF THE SORCERERS
(BCI Eclipse, 2007)

By David Alexander Nahmod

Amando De Ossorio, best known for his Blind Dead films, offers this silly, quasi-erotic Euro-horror entry. Some reviewers may recall the heavily edited, badly dubbed Avco  Embassy release of the film, a staple of late night TV in the 70s & 80s. BCI’s superb,  remastered DVD, which marks Sorcerers’ Stateside home video release, is the director’s cut, in Castilian with sub-titles. (The bad English dubbing remains an option on the extras menu. Stick with the film’s original language.)

Night of the Sorcerers is the kind of movie that feminist groups often rallied against. When lovely young women find themselves held captive in the African jungle, they’re not just tied up. They’re stripped and whipped across their bare breasts! Some may find such imagery erotic, but this reviewer has to side with Gloria Steinem on this one. These scenes are disturbing, ugly, and un-necessary, but the rest of the film is an enjoyable camp fest.  

The film’s weirdest aspect is it’s jazzy, lounge-like score. As the film progresses, almost the entire female cast is turned into bikini clad zombie vampires. As they run through the African jungle in slow motion, admittedly a sensual image, the score, which sounds like something the Rat Pack might have snapped their cool fingers too, makes the scenes side splitting!

But you have to give the cast credit. They play it straight and are quite good.

The simplistic story, which has great potential for a serious scare fest, follows a group of explorers in the jungle, investigating the mysterious deaths of elephants. Our hapless travelers, none of whom seem particularly bright, get caught by a cult of long dead Native voodoo practitioners. One by one, our heroes walk right into a trap. As the body count adds up, that Vegas lounge score makes the film seem too silly to be scary.  

Fans of low budget Euro-horror trash, and they are legion, will no doubt love Night of the Sorcerers. For them, BCI’s disc is a gift. Those who want to see a serious Euro-horror might have to look elsewhere.

BCI’s print of the film is jaw dropping! The film’s American theatrical trailer is included, along with deleted scenes and a stills gallery. Mirek Lipinski, the USA’s ultimate authority on Euro-horror, provides superb liner notes that detail the film’s production  history. Lipinski’s notes are better written than the film’s script!

Euro-horror fans are invited to visit Lipinski’s website, www.latarnia.com, a congenial and often controversial place to learn about and discuss European and Asian horror films.