Pretty Good

Expected more

A waste of 90 minutes of my life

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

It is a very odd 70's movie and I watched (parts of) it again recently after many years. What makes it unique is that it is the only movie that portrays the life of a magician in a realistic way. This is especially true for those who have been into the occult for a long time. Besides from that, it was also well acted and the story quite interesting in other ways. So it's highly recommended for those who wants to now what the life of a occultist is really like. How it becomes, the pitfalls, and the consequences that can follow from doing certain things. The name of the character is also a hint of what kind of magician he really is. Still one (at least I did) roots for him for most of the movie.

Simon, King of the Witches is a real gem. This must be the most unusual movie of its type I have seen. I was captivated at the start when Simon introduced himself. There is so much going on in this movie you really need to see it more than once to understand the storyline, events and eventual ending. The team of Andrew Prine and his then wife Brenda Scott was fascinating and it's not the first time they have acted together. Brenda Scott has always impressed in the more unusual dramatic story lines but sadly this time the film let her down. Prine has charisma and Scott has beauty and both go well together. The only criticism I would make is that Prine "owned" this film. It was almost as though he needed to be in every scene to make sure it was a success. There could definitely have been more story lines for his co-stars but maybe that's the way it was intended. This movie is said to be hard to get and indeed my thanks go to the person who shared this on Youtube.

This is barely a horror movie. There are only a few deaths on screen, and very little blood. What this movie lacks in gore, it makes up for it with the concentration of Prine's performance, the period psychedelic fashions, and the amusing dialog and situations. Saw this here in L.A. at a revival screening this week. Andrew Prine was on hand and talked about the film for a bit. Apparently, this film was written by a real warlock, and this was "his story." This probably accounts for the deadly serious tone of someone writing a memoir with earnest purposefulness. Prine took the film to make the jump from supporting roles to a lead, and he sank his teeth into the role, pouring all his intensity into a very stong performance. Even when he does something silly and laughable like talking to a huge tree ("Hello, my old friend, how are you?"), he remains utterly believable as that character, even though you laugh. Fans of high Hippie Couture and silly psychedelic effects (dig the trippy "walking into the mirror" effect) have some good stuff here to treat their eyes with. (If you liked the look of "Psych Out" or "The Trip" you'll have a ball.) There's a fairly linear plot with a few twists, but overall an enjoyable ride. Recommended, if you can find it. I believe it is not available on DVD and the print that was screened was purportedly "one of only three in existence." UPDATE 1/2008: Reports on the internet state that this film will becoming out on DVD, later this year, 2008. I will probably be picking up a copy when it comes out. It was quite an enjoyable viewing and I am looking forward to exposing it to my friends. Yeah boy!

This is a enjoyable little film that has Andrew Prine as a warlock who lives in the storm drain underneath the city. He meets a hippie who takes to a rich guys party and he encounters adventures and later wages war on the entire police force. Lots of great scenes, and Prine give a real honest performance. Character actors Normann Burton and Angus Duncan also are good. Recommended.