A band of pirates known as “The Wreckers” place lighthouses
close to shore, so they can cause boats to shipwreck; making them easy targets
to loot and pillage. (Kind of like in
The Fog.) When the Wreckers happen upon
two beautiful mute shipwreck survivors, they rape them and leave them for
dead. Somehow, the women manage to
survive and with the help of a clown find a castle that contains an ancient
spirit who dresses like Elvis. They free
him, and he agrees to help them get revenge on the Wreckers (but not before
they all have sex together).
Man, this movie has everything. Sexy pirate women, clairvoyant hookers,
creepy clowns, stud spirits that dress like Elvis… you name it, it’s got
it. Director Jean Rollin doubles down on
his trademark surrealism here. The scenes
of the vast ship graveyard are atmospheric and the sequences inside the castle
ruins are equally beautiful. Some scenes
feel like they came out of a nightmare.
Take for instance the scene where a pirate menaces the women with a
giant brandy snifter and he winds up falling face first on it and slashing his
throat. You don’t see that kind of shit
every day, folks.
The movie really belongs to Joelle Coeur, who plays Tina,
the sexy pirate. This Tina is something
else. Not only does she get off on instigating
murder, she always seems to find a reason to rip her shirt off and grope
herself a whole bunch and roll around on the ground in ecstasy. It’s truly a fearless, full-tilt performance.
Like much of Rollin’s work, The Demoniacs has a tendency to
bog down in places. Honestly, there was
no reason for this to be two hours long.
Even with its extended running time, some of the plot detours are
entertaining (like the aforementioned clairvoyant hooker). Because of that, it’s a fun, if drawn-out ride.
AKA: Revenge of the
Virgins. AKA: Curse of the Living Dead.
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