Virgin Witch (1971) User Reviews

Underneath the Nudity, Do I Sense a Plot?

[gavin6942 · 6/10 · 4 May 2007]

A girl gets a job for a modeling agency, only to later discover that it's all a cover to recruit young girls for a coven of witches. Her sister and her sister's boyfriend get dragged along on the adventure.

The plot here is a little shaky. While the goals of the coven aren't really revealed, and the modeling agency may or may not be real (they never explicitly say), there is a definite story. Whether or not it's enough story to really matter is up to the viewer, I suppose.

The obvious reason this film was made was not to make a horror film or a classic film or any other type of film except one: a movie where two sisters (as well as many others) are naked in approximately 90% of the movie. In the modeling agency, in a field, on a car, in a witch's ceremony, in bed... I didn't time it, but to say that 90% of the film has nudity is really not much of a stretch.

According to Wikipedia, "The film has subsequently been disowned by its sibling stars Ann and Vicki Michelle. Vicki's website makes no reference to the film, while Ann's cryptically refers to it as 'not an experience Ann cares to remember'." I suppose this shouldn't surprise me. Although one (if not both) of the girls became known from this film, it's not really something you want to say was your crowning achievement.

The witch aspects were done very well, with the ceremony and explanation of the high priest's role very believable. The topic of magic was very minimal, which I guess is unfortunate, but it didn't take away from the witch storyline as much as you might think.

On a personal note, my biggest disappointment with this film is the choice of the leading actress. The sister is far more attractive than the lead, so I would have rather their roles were reversed. This way, the attractive one would have more on-screen nudity. Although, if you're watching this to get turned on (as the tagline implies) you might be let down: after the first fifteen minutes, the nudity was so pervasive it wasn't even that odd anymore (like living in a nudist colony).

If you're into exploitation films and horror films, this is worth checking out. The plot is thin, the acting decent and the nudity excessive. Hey, some people go for that -- they made a whole market of the stuff. I expected much worse from this, so I guess I can't complain and would not even be opposed to owning it if it was available for a reasonable price.

Rampant 1970's nudity

[zombie-41 · 5/10 · 19 July 2000]

It seems this was made as an excuse to show plenty of nudity from two highly attractive sisters and some poorly constructed witchcraft scenes. Unlike many Hammer releases, it at least portrays sex with more then a childish giggle. Overall, this takes itself too seriously and the plot becomes too confusing towards the end. However, the dated fashion is worth a look as is the sleazy fashion photographer. Not to mention the main sisters involved, (later to be seen in the popular UK TV series 'Allo Allo').

An agreeable time-killer.

[Hey_Sweden · 6/10 · 15 April 2018]

The real-life Michelle sisters, Ann ("Psychomania") and Vicki ('Allo! 'Allo!) are an extremely delectable pair of sibling birds who strike out on their own, arriving in London. Christine (Ann M.) hooks up with a shady modelling agency run by the mysterious Sybil (sexy Patricia Haines, 'The Avengers'), and with Betty (Vicki M.) in tow, travels to a remote estate for some supposed shoots that will be done. But, of course, the agency is a front for a witches coven. Betty becomes concerned when the impressionable and headstrong Christine decides that she likes what she sees, and wants to know more about becoming a witch.

With the 1970s being a fairly relaxed time for censorship, and with interest in the occult becoming part of the public consciousness, it led to the rise of enjoyably sleazy British horror films like this one. It's rather slow at times, and not always terribly interesting, but does redeem itself with its generous doses of trashiness. Female nudity is abundant, and even when Ann isn't removing her clothes, the two lovely ladies are often to be seen wearing some very short miniskirts. To add more spice, Sybil is a lesbian with a definite interest in Christine, and who resents guys like photographer Peter (James Chase, "The Leather Boys") moving in on her.

The performances are quite entertaining throughout, with Neil Hallett ('The Newcomers') adding more than a touch of class as a kindly "doctor" who introduces Christine to the wonders of the occult. Keith Buckley ("Excalibur") plays Betty's boyfriend, determined to free her from this spooky environment.

Most of the time, the film is mildly amusing, but it does kick things into a higher gear for some climactic rituals involving disrobing. Most of the nudity in "Virgin Witch" is female, but some dudes do drop their trousers, too.

Supplemented by a rich music score by Ted Dicks, "Virgin Witch" is decent fun for people who love this era in British filmmaking.

Filmed at the same location as Norman J. Warrens' "Satan's Slave".

Six out of 10.

Virgin on being good (boom boom)

[LewisJForce · 15 March 2004]

This is a nice piece of time-wasting British exploitation cinema with the delectable Michelle sisters becoming embroiled in witchcraft and various sexy shenanigans in a picturesque country-house setting ('filmed on location in Surrey, England').

There's a good score by Ted Dicks, including a rather seductive little tune called 'You go your way', performed by Helen Downing. And effective turns by old-hands like Neil Hallett (as the lecherous head of the coven) and Keith 'Excalibur' Buckley as the excitable investigative boyfriend. A highpoint is the scene-stealing performance by the lovely Patricia Haines ('The Night Caller') as the lesbian boss of a dodgy model agency. She, along with the sisters, disrobes in the hilarious 'initiation ritual' sequence.

Get hold of the 1993 Redempton VHS - a good, colourful print.

Slow and boring film with little much to expect

[lthseldy1 · 3/10 · 5 August 2001]

I expected alot more from this film, I thought it was going to be more into lesbian witchcraft or something weird like that with all the shocking suspense that most 70's films give us. This film was about two young girls that go out and look for a job and one of them finds a job modeling for a lesbian agent. The agent takes her on her first job as a model at a resort home that is run by a group of witches. One of them a perverted old man, another one is a lady that looks like a man but dressed as a woman that comes up creeping on the young girls from time to time, another is a geeky photographer trying to loose his virginity and another one is a man that wants to get the virgin first before the cult does. The agent falls in love with one of the girls and the only lesbian scenes in this movie are two in which she looks at the girl in a mirror as she undresses and the other is when she kisses her. the girl does not care for the agent because lesbianism isen't her style and therefore sets her goals in taking the agents place as high priestess in the cult. the two of them end up using powers against eachother for the title. This movie was slow and unmoving. This was hyped up to be about some lady that is the head of a cult and was supposed to be a sadist or something. It wasen't what it was supposed to be about and therefor I found it disapointing.

Hey, where's the lesbian sex!?

[The_Void · 3/10 · 13 December 2006]

How could a film with such a provocative title be so drab and boring? Released at the height of the seventies exploitation boom, Virgin Witch sadly falls by the wayside of many other similar films. The film sort of like your standard lesbian vampire film, except this time its lesbian witches and instead of being interesting and erotic, it's slow and boring. The plot follows Christine; a young virgin who travels to a modelling agency with her sister in the hope of getting a job. However, it turns out that she wasn't being headhunted for a job after all, as the head of the agency wants Christina to join her witch's coven! Any hopes of this being a gory lesbian sex-fest will not be fulfilled, as the film doesn't feature much in the way of either and director Ray Austin seems more keen to show photo shoots and religious ceremonies than blood and sex, which is odd considering that the film is from the seventies and is titled 'Virgin Witch'. Overall, this film won't do much, even for fans of this sort of stuff. Good elements include the fact that the lead isn't bad looking and that the film isn't on for long. Not recommended.

what a yawn

[tony93666 · 3/10 · 2 August 2008]

this movie is lame... I'm an absolute rabid Hammer horror fan, and this little movie comes nowhere near their great quality(this is NOT a Hammer production). Some of the attraction of B-movies is the cheezy horror, unrealistic premises, and downright bad acting... well, the bad acting is here - and the requisite breasts & bums, but there's no actual conflict going on. Again, we don't expect fabulous scriptwriting in these films, but come on, throw us a bone here, please! Something happen already! How about the witch cult kidnaps nubile daughters from the local villages for their 'infernal rites'? Nope, no such luck... Two sisters want to break free of mum & daddy, go to the big city - one finds a modeling agency, modeling agency has witchcraft rites... that's it! Then one sister decides she wants to be High Priestess after one day in the coven, using a magic spell to kill the lesbian HPs that's been hitting on her the whole weekend(she learns fast, eh?). It's basically a few terribly inaccurate occult trappings as an excuse to show some Brit boobies... don't waste your time.

It's pretty, it's English and it moves along

[christopher-underwood · 7/10 · 17 January 2007]

Hardly very 'extreme' but I have a soft spot for this. Anne Michelle stars (with her sister) and through the course of the film develops from a mini skirted dolly bird to a rather convincing coven priestess. The girls look great in their tiny skirts and without their clothes so the fact the plot line is not up to much barely matters, as it were. We get sex, lots of nudity, witchcraft scenes indoors and out and a girlie magazine shoot. That's about it really and there are slight threads involving the deposed priestess's lusting for young Anne and a young man's attempts at rescuing the younger sister from the Sabat. It's pretty, it's English and it moves along. Can't say fairer than that.

VIRGIN WITCH (Ray Austin, 1972) *1/2

[Bunuel1976 · 1/10 · 30 May 2006]

I was half-expecting this to be even worse than THE BODY STEALERS (1969) and, my viewing of it, certainly proved my fears right! This one's the pits: the title promises nudity and scares (or at least diabolism) - it provides the former in spades, though none of it is erotic, but the latter is only present, if so it can be called, in some silly late-night rituals with nude dancing en masse of old and young witches alike!

Tigon only distributed the film and, really, there are no redeeming features to this low-brow venture - whose director was actually an English aristocrat! The premise offers no surprises whatsoever and, in fact, here again we have sisters as the leading characters - one virtuous, one wicked (around this same time, Hammer Films made TWINS OF EVIL [1971] - which were played by Maltese actresses, by the way - and which, alas, I've never watched!). The other characters are stereotypes and the only one who provides any interest is Patricia Haines (formerly Mrs. Michael Caine and who died, at a fairly young age, only a few years later!) as the lesbian High Priestess of the coven.

Perhaps the most hilarious scenes are the afore-mentioned rites, Ann Michelle's photo sessions (a modeling agency serves as a front for the coven) and especially when she, a newly-inducted witch, puts a spell on her rival Haines - having suddenly become an expert in the occult merely by reading a book on the subject (Michelle burns a photograph of Haines, and we see the latter's expression in it change gradually to reflect the pain she goes through!). The film was actually shot in 1970 but the BBFC refused it a certificate - realizing, perhaps, that it was pure exploitation and not really a horror film at all; in fact, it only got released when the producers took the film to the apparently more lenient censor boards of individual towns, after which the BBFC relented!

Check your taste at the door

[m2mallory · 7/10 · 22 March 2013]

The difference between a British sleaze film of the 1970s and an American sleaze film of the 1970s is that the British film is well acted and features interesting locations. "Virgin Witch," quite possibly the quintessential sleaze film of the 1970s, manages both. It's not that the film is not exploitative and rather insulting to women, it's just that one would have to take it seriously to take offense. The film stars real-life sisters Ann and Vicki Michelle as an ambitious career woman (Ann) and a repressed virgin (Vicki) who leave their strict parents and come to London. On the way they meet Johnny (Keith Buckley), in one of those 1970s movie coincidences, and he develops a bone for Vicki. Meanwhile, Ann answers an advert for a model and is "auditioned" by lesbian agent Sybil Waite (Patricia Haines), who invites her up for the weekend at a manor house owned by Gerald Amberly (Neil Hallet), a sort of proper Hugh Hefner, who is (of course) also the leader of a coven of witches. Ann (character name "Christine") is all for it, even the attentions of Sybil, if that's what it takes to get ahead, but Vicki (Betty) is still repressed. Sex rites ensue. In fact, the coven really isn't much into black magic at all, just sex games. Suffice it to say that the film did not have much of a costume budget. It would be a lot easier to dismiss this film as so much trash if it were not decently acted, particularly by Haines and Hallet. Ann Michelle--a kind of road company Martine Beswick--also does well under the direction...at least under the camera pointing...of stuntman-turned-director Ray Austin. There's nothing scary about this "horror" film, and truth be told, even with the vast amount of nudity, there's nothing very erotic about it either. It's a time capsule of a particular era of very strange British thriller films, but a rather disarming one.

A bland and dull sexploitation feature...

[paul_haakonsen · 2/10 · 13 February 2024]

I had never heard about this 1972 movie titled "Virgin Witch" when I stumbled upon it here in 2024. And with it being a horror movie that I hadn't already seen, of course I opted to give director Ray Austin's movie a chance.

Writer Hazel Adair put together a script and storyline that fell short of entertaining me. It was a movie where my interest was fast waning as the movie went on and on in a slow, monotonous pacing. Nothing much of anything worthwhile happened throughout the course of the 88 minutes that the movie ran for. And it was quite an ordeal to sit through this snoozefest of a horror movie.

I wasn't familiar with the cast ensemble in the movie, and that is something I do like when I sit down to watch a movie. The acting performances in "Virgin Witch" were actually quite good. Just a shame that the script and narrative was so bland and uneventful.

Visually then you're not in for anything spectacular. The movie doesn't really make use of special effects. A shame really, because it could have spruced up an otherwise mundane viewing experience.

I am sure that this movie, being a part of the sexploitation releases, was simply selling on the nudity in it, because it surely wasn't the storyline that had the audience on the edge of their seats.

This is definitely not a movie that will grace my screen a second time. It was a struggle enough to get through it the first time around.

My rating of director Ray Austin's 1972 movie "Virgin Witch" lands on a very generous two out of ten stars.

Well, well, well my Michelles!

[BA_Harrison · 8/10 · 19 March 2013]

'Allo 'allo, it's tasty British sitcom star Vicki Michelle revealing much more than she ever did on TV, accompanied by her almost as sexy and even more uninhibited sister Ann. The curvaceous pair star as Christine (Ann) and Betty (Vicki), beautiful siblings who are drawn into a coven of witches after Christine accepts a job with lesbian modelling agent/high priestess Sybil Waite (Patricia Haines).

Despite its witchcraft theme, Virgin Witch film is less about the supernatural and more about getting its lovely stars completely naked as often as possible; as such, the film is almost completely devoid of scares but packed with nudity and sex, with hardly a minute passing without one or both of the girls stripping off for a nude photo-shoot, bath, shower, or romp in the woods. Even when they're dressed, the girls wear the shortest mini-skirts possible!

The wild Wiccan rituals in which the sisters participate are the film's sleazy high-points (or is that 'low-points'?), the girls being offered to the coven's lucky leader Gerald (Neil Hallett) for sex while his naked acolytes cavort around them in ecstasy, the scenes lit in garish primary colours, the camera swinging crazily to and fro. The frenetic finale is particularly bonkers, degenerating into a wild orgy of writhing bodies, precisely who is doing what to whom being virtually unfathomable.

7.5 out of 10, rounded up to 8 for IMDb.

She's Magic...

[mickcsavage · 7/10 · 18 December 2021]

Watchable if only for the appearance of the delectable Patricia Haines (Mrs. Michael Caine as was), Virgin Witch also subverts some 70s clichés quite neatly.

Nice music and fairly attractive photography lift this from the mire as does the Surrey location.

Some passages and attitudes obviously grate a little with 21st Century sensibilities. Be disappointing if they didn't. But all in all a pleasant and (to this viewer at least) pretty sexy hour or so.

And who wouldn't want to wake up next to the unclad Ms Haines?

Or is it just me?

A sleazy 70's British exploitation flick that lacks horror

[Colbridge · 4/10 · 11 January 2022]

Low budget, low rent British exploitation flick starring sisters Ann and Vicki Michelle, yes that Vicki Michelle from the UK comedy TV series 'Allo 'Allo making her feature film debut, and it is on that basis that many fans will probably want to take a peek at the nudity on display here.

The sisters play a couple of naive young women who travel to London to pursue a modelling career but fall foul of Sybil Waite, played by Patricia Haines, who lures them into her modelling agency and takes them out into the countryside for a weekend photo shoot whilst staying at a private castle. Here they encounter the owner of the castle Gerald who along with Sybil are recruiting women to initiate into their witches coven with sex rituals and black magic. However Christine, played by Ann Michelle, has psychic powers and plans to overthrow Sybil as the High Priestess.

Almost every actor involved gets their kit off at some point but with it being filmed in the chilly English countryside there's not much eroticism or artistic merit on display here and not much in the way of horror either. The atmosphere and narrative does pick up towards the end and the climax (no pun intended) is well handled but this typifies the type of films that were being made in the early 1970's, primarily to cash in on a prevailing permissive society and the growing popularity of occult films. Hammer Films also began incorporating nudity into their gothic horrors around this time but they maintained some artistic integrity, this one feels more grubbier and voyeuristic in tone.

Censorship by the BBFC delayed the cinema release by 2 years with cuts but was released uncut on home video in the 1990's. The Virgin Witch is now a forgettable oddity and one that the Michelle sisters have since disowned.

The Horrors of Swinging Surrey

[gavcrimson · 26 March 2004]

Warning: spoilers

Virgin Witch hails from an era when witchcraft was depicted as a new novelty in the world of swinging suburbia. The topic had already spawned several sex paperbacks sold from the back pages of Continental Film Review. Filmmakers were also quick to get in on the act, the enigmatic Malcolm Leigh directed the documentary The Legend of the Witches (1969) while Wife Swappers auteur Derek Ford helmed Secret Rites (1971) a 47 minute featurette on 'witch king' Alex Sanders. If the still sets are anything to go by the two reoccurring themes in the Ford film are bald men in face make-up and female pubic hair. This sub-genre also got its own magazine in Witchcraft,the 'monthly chronicle of Horror,Satanism and the Occult'. Witchcraft was a mixture of surprisingly literate articles on vampires and witch hunting alongside pictorials of recognisable sexploitation actresses posed in satanic tableau. One article 'Initiation into an Essex Coven' features shots of swingers with blacks bars over their eyes to protect their identity and drawn on Y-fronts to protect their modesty. Virgin Witch replays the contents of an issue of Witchcraft within a traditional horror film narrative. It's an early 'Elton Hawke' production;Hawke was the appropriately occult-sounding pseudonym of Crossroads creator Hazel Adair and wrestling commentator Kent Walton.

'Made on location in Surrey, England' the film features Vicki and Ann Michelle as two girls fresh from the provinces looking to break into modelling. Despite warnings to avoid 'backstreet photographers',Ann goes to a casting call in which she's required to go nude for the head of an advertising agency. In a gender twist the person in question isn't some salivating bloke,but Sybil Waite a stern and intimidating middle aged lesbian. Using her position of power to prey on young models,Sybil insists on taking Ann's measurements all the while trying and failing to feign apathy with statements like 'just for the record'. As a reward for playing along with the scenario Ann gets a modelling gig shooting a cider advert at a country house,Vicki tags along too.

The ad involves Ann sprawled naked over a car. Peter a sexually desperate looking photographer with a comb over snaps away trying to get the right shot. And there's not a drop of cider in sight..funny old game advertising. Sybil,who goes through the film with fixed scowl on her face,reminds Peter of his low end of the pecking order status within the household. If anyone's getting their hands on the sisters during the weekend it's either her or the house's owner Dr Gerald Amberley 'an authority' on the subject of witchcraft played by the extremely likeable Neil Hallett. The inquisitive sisters eventually discover Gerald,Sybil and Peter are all part of a witch's coven in which Gerald is the chief white witch. Over dinner Gerald reassures the girls that the coven only use their powers for good,dropping swinger expressions like 'friendship' and 'give pleasure' as other attributes to his lifestyle. Ann wants in on the sexy scene. As Gerald, Hallett is the epitome of the charming,non-threatening English gent with a raised eyebrow for the ladies. While Gerald is seemingly serious with regards to his lifestyle and religious beliefs you suspect stripping off and 'initiating' giggling virgins into the coven by having sex with them on altars have great appeal for the old fox as well.

A fairly mellow horror film (compare and contrast to Satan's Slave shot several years later on the same country estate),Virgin Witch's intensions aren't far removed from that of the Hallett character. It has a shamelessly leery fixation on its lead actresses and is perfectly in touch with the Dirty Mac sensibility. The Michelle sisters spend most of the film in a state of undress or in a state of just about to get undressed. In rare occurrences when they are allocated a costume,it includes some of the shortest skirts in cinema history. Ann's considerable coolness in handling advances from both genders means she's much more than a mere sex object though. The need for a dramatic plot thread sees upstart Ann trying to knock Sybil off her position of power within the coven. Ann has hither to unsuspected psychic powers and uses them to naturally defend younger sibling Vicki against creepy men and give Sybil a taste of her own medicine. The film subscribes to the wishful fantasy of young vulnerable girls eventually gaining the upper hand over sexual predatorily casting agent types. It all ends with a psychic showdown between Ann and Sybil amidst the rest of the coven madly shagging away in the bushes. Virgin Witch was directed by Ray Austin,a former bit part actor of 'bruiser' appearance,who had helmed episodes of The Saint and Randall and Hopkirk Deceased. He approaches Virgin Witch very much like a horny ITC episode. His talent lay in creating atmosphere whether it's the hero's bright red sports car thundering down dark country roads,a blues music interlude,or the psychedelic flavoured orgies. Austin also shows a flare for offbeat compositions such as a scene framed by a milk float.

Very much directed from a heterosexual male perspective the film views lesbianism as somewhat abhorrent,yet hilariously at the same time has no hang ups with regards to young girls embracing the occult. Ann reacts to the news that she's been accepted into the coven with all the hop, skip and a jump of a brownie who has just received her first badge. `Now I'm a witch, now I can please myself',she tells a male acquaintance. The film was the first in the 'Elton Hawke trilogy' of Virgin Witch,Can You Keep It Up For a Week and Keep It Up Downstairs,three films loosely linked and greatly benefited by Neil Hallett's reoccurring performances as the genre's most suave and charismatic swinger. In turn the film also kick started Ann Michelle's mini British horror film career,still a working actress she leaves Virgin Witch off her CV these days and refers to the film as an experience she doesn't care to remember.

More talk than action

[jfgibson73 · 5/10 · 22 March 2009]

The main problem with this movie is that it doesn't show you, it tells you. Characters explain everything, so no one has to actually do much to move the story along.

It's about a pretty young girl and her twin sister spending a weekend at a country estate and entering the world of witchcraft, but as other posts have pointed out, you don't really see much magic. At the very end, the main character suddenly starts using her powers, but this is mainly just shown with a close-up on her eyes. The only weird, exploitive occult image is a pagan ritual which, since it was their only idea, is shown twice.

It ends with the young girl who just discovered her powers eliminating the lead witch from the coven to presumably take control. That seems like a fine enough idea, but the build-up was just too mild. Very English, very relaxed. In one scene, they soothingly discuss last night's virgin sacrifice ritual over morning coffee. When the leader of the coven asks the recently deflowered inductee, "Will you pour for me?" (referring to the pot of coffee), it really hits home just how effete this group is. It's not what you want from characters in a horror/thriller.

Grubby and almost entirely without merit

[Leofwine_draca · 3/10 · 12 January 2015]

To put it bluntly, the only reason for anyone to watch VIRGIN WITCH is if you want to see the main actresses naked. The entire film is built around nudity, as there's no real story of note and as a horror film it totally falls down. But almost every scene in the film features nudity of some sort, so fans of softcore nonsense will be well satisfied.

The (loose) plotting sees twin sisters Vicki and Ann Michelle (the former famous for her role in ALLO ALLO) finding themselves caught up in various shenanigans involving a pagan cult, although that description makes it sound more interesting than it actually is. Production company Tigon were behind some of the finest British horror films ever made (like BLOOD ON SATAN'S CLAW) but this is undoubtedly their worst hour.

The acting and production values are horrible, the dialogue is sometimes inaudible, and the direction virtually non-existent. None of the characters are developed enough for anyone to give anything approaching a decent performance, and the 'twist' ending is just silly. You guessed it - I hated this one, and with a passion.

Weirdly entertaining

[Freethinker_Atheist · 1/10 · 29 November 2021]

If you make use of the fast-forward button, you might enjoy this film. It is pretty bad and silly. Obviously, it reflects the times in which it was produced, when many movies were made with the sole purpose of showing naked women. But this one is bad even at that, in the sense that the women shown are not very pretty, or sensual. There is no eroticism. Most entertaining parts are the cult rituals, because hilariously weird.

Allo Allo!!

[Stevieboy666 · 7/10 · 23 October 2017]

This film has a simple plot about two beautiful sisters who stay at a creepy English manor house on a modelling assignment and end up getting mixed up with the coven of witches that reside there. These two beauties are played by real life sisters Vicki and Ann Michelle (of 1980's BBC sitcom "Allo, Allo" fame) and the main reason for this movie is really to see them with their clothes off, which it does very well (most of the cast strip off for orgy scenes). As for being an occult horror film then it's nothing special but it is smutty fun. I have just purchased a restored Blu-ray release and it look great.

There is good news, and there is bad news

[neil-476 · 5/10 · 9 March 2018]

This 1970s British film concerns two sisters who, in pursuit of career work in advertising modelling, get caught up in witchcraft.

The good news: there is a story, it is nicely photographed, and there is copious attractive nudity.

The bad news: it's all a bit silly, the cast take it much more seriously than it merits but you get the feeling their hearts aren't really in it, and much of the acting isn't very good.

A period piece.

Has a lot of potential but falls short

[Red-Barracuda · 6/10 · 26 October 2021]

This is one of those movies which definitely promises more than it ultimately delivers. Vicki Michelle from 'Allo 'Allo in a sexploitation witch movie with her sister Ann. How could you go wrong with that? Well, it feels a bit unfocused and it never really gets out of third gear. Its not bad though - it just never lived up to its potential.

It Never Quite Becomes a Witch Pursuit Thing

[By-TorX-1 · 4/10 · 23 December 2021]

Virgin Witch is a 1972 grotty supernatural thriller that sees sisters Christine and Betty (Ann and Vicki Michelle) run away from home, get picked up by the ostensible hero, Johnny and eventually end up at Advertising Company owner Sybil Waite's stately country retreat, where Christine takes part in a series of photo shoots. The plot involves Betty discovering a ritual space which is the locale for a witch's coven, lead by Sybil and the suave Dr Gerald Amberely. However, it is intimated throughout the film that Christine is a natural witch and she begins to exert her powers to take the High Priestess role from Sybil and introduce a more wanton degree of sexual coven action. At face value this sounds pretty interesting, but the plot is soon revealed to merely be a thin platform to regularly disrobe the sisters (especially Ann Michelle). That said, Ann Michelle puts in a good performance, suggesting a sense of ambiguity about her powers and motives, and so does Patricia Haines as Sybil (to the point that her professionalism delivers a quality that the film does not deserve). Virgin Witch is certainly a film from a curious cinematic era, but it never really casts a spell on the viewer.

An enjoyable British soft-core horror romp

[Woodyanders · 8/10 · 6 November 2009]

Brash young Christine (a deliciously saucy performance by the comely Ann Michelle) and her sweet innocent sister Betty (a winningly perky portrayal by equally fetching Vicki Michelle) are invited to a swanky palatial mansion in the country by lascivious lesbian Sybil Waite (a perfectly snippy turn by Patricia Haines) for a fashion modeling shoot. Unbeknownst to the girls, the place is really a front for a diabolical coven of witches. Director Ray Austin and screenwriter Beryl Vertue concoct a compellingly naughty and racy little outing that manages the remarkable feat of showing decadence and sexual perversity in a surprisingly tasteful and fairly restrained manner that never degenerates into outright crudely leering sleaze. Austin and Vertue also do a credible job of astutely capturing the wickedly enticing allure of the black arts. Fortunately, there's a pleasingly plentiful amount of tasty female nudity (the Michelle siblings look positively smashing in their birthday suits) and the hot basement orgy rituals are suitably wild and uninhibited with dancing nude people, crazed chanting, pounding music, and virgins being deflowered. Moreover, Christine's conversion into the cult as a high priestess is genuinely chilling and leads to a truly dark and upsetting conclusion. The capable acting from the sturdy cast rates as another major asset: The Michelle sisters make for attractive and appealing leads, Haines portrays her haughty character with lip-smacking snooty aplomb, plus there are fine supporting contributions by Keith Buckley as Betty's concerned boyfriend Johnny, Neil Hallett as kindly physician cult leader Gerald Amberly, James Chase as lecherous photographer Peter, and Paula Wright as creepy housekeeper Ms. Wright. Gerald Moss' lush and bright color cinematography makes the most out of the beautifully verdant English countryside scenery and boasts several nifty fades and dissolves. Ted Dicks' shivery score likewise hits the shuddery spot. Good bawdy fun.

What to do in the country side

[kosmasp · 6/10 · 24 July 2022]

Two females having the time of their life. Well sort of - because while they have been chosen to be the object of desire/camera (no pun intended), they are also being treated ... well strangely to say the least. You can't blame them for feeling weird and exploited.

They must have read the script you say? Well I certainly do hope so (again no pun intended). Nudity and debauchery commence - not always consensual. Suggestions during shoots to take clothes off and doing poses ... all cleverly build up to. Because just saying "get naked" would be something that does not fly with most.

But it is not just the nudity and the general exploitation our main characters have to deal with. No there is something sinister going on .. will they be able to resist and have a .. happy ending? No pun intended again. Well done horror movie that may not have aged well in certain regards but is more than decent if you suspend your disbelief.

Wafer thin plot, anaemic Tigon production.

[parry_na · 5/10 · 26 February 2022]

This stars sisters Anne and Vicki Michelle, the former long since having disowned the film, saying the producer had just wanted nude scenes. She's absolutely right of course. This Tigon tale presents the two girls as impossibly naïve, unknowingly sexy and always willing to disrobe. The media at the time often presented young females in this way.

The disrobing ironically acts as a cover-up, because there is not much plot to speak of, outside of what you can imagine from the title. I was hoping for something a little Hammer-esque amidst the blatant exploitation, a hint of something to justify the 'witch' of the title. There's nothing much - some very nice locations from a bygone era, lots of frolicking and a nicely downbeat ending.

However, I'm not sure how an exploitation movie featuring much nudity and dark rituals could turn out to be quite this dull, but Director Rayt Austin and super-soap Crossroads founder Hazel Adair manage it. There are sinister moments, but they seem to be directed with such a leisurely pace, and a musical score devoid of any menace, it's difficult to become invested.

On the acting front, there are no particularly bad performances here, but Patricia Haynes really injects some life into the role of Sybil Waite. Other than that, 'Virgin Witch' is distinctly average. My score is 4 out of 10.