This is it! The final installment in the Mary Horror trilogy. The film premiered at Chiller Theatre in New Jersey this Saturday and I was lucky enough to attend. I worked on this title doing special effects, but you can still read my unbiased opinion of Witches Blood below.
Witches Blood is written and directed by Ryan Scott Weber. Cast members include Joe Parascand, Kimberly Graff, Ryan Scott Weber, Thomas Brady, Kristen Accardi, Kayte Supple, Jason Jackson, Jessica Mulcahy, Jessica Montano, Stephen Ohlarik, and Randy Memoli. Witches Blood also features appearances from The Zombie Hunters, Jeffrey Weisman (Back to The Future 2), Carmela Hayslett (Apocalypse Kiss), Shawn C. Phillips (Ghost Shark), and a cameo from A Nightmare on Elm Street’s Robert Englund.
“Mary Horror is back…and she wants her spell book! The only way for her to regain its full power is to find three witches and enchant the book with their blood. Then she will be unstoppable…but, Sheriff Tom is not about to let that happen! After traveling to Salem, Massachusetts, Sheriff Tom is advised on how to stop Mary once and for all. Along with returning favorites Billy, Jimmy, and Kristen and a slew of new friends, it’s the final showdown between Mary Horror, Sheriff Tom, and humanities last hope!”
Let me start by saying Witches Blood is the first Weber Pictures production to get it right since the first feature, Mary Horror. In my opinion, Mary Horror is the best out of the trilogy. The sequel, Sheriff Tom vs. The Zombies, never quite lived up to the hype; and the prequel spin-off “Zombies Incorporated” was just…well…not good. The tone of Witches Blood was spot on – the perfect mix of horror and comedy, something Mr. Weber has been striving for recently. Mary Horror was a serious independent horror title. Sheriff Tom vs. The Zombies was straight comedy, filled with testicle jokes and sexual innuendos. And Witches Blood? A fully actualized combination of both.
Another thing I need to compliment Ryan Scott Weber for is finally “listening to me!” Two of the main things I’ve always harped on him for is focusing way too much on subplots and for cheesy background scoring. Sure, the public reacting to the Mary Horror news cameos went on a little longer than they should have, but Ryan really cut down and focused on only two subplots this go around. It made a lot more room for the important parts of the movie that audiences really wanted to see. As far as scoring goes, the official Mary Horror/Sheriff Tom theme was ever present, but I applaud Weber and composer Scott Vincent for making new scores that were the best in the trilogy.
The acting in Witches Blood is half and half. Some actors such as Randy Memoli, Patrick Devaney, and Jessica Montano really stood out with their performances, and Mr. Weber as Billy was much more enjoyable in the new, toned down manner. Although, I have to say, second time in a row Kristen Accardi was by far my favorite actress and character. And, really, the caliber of any movie rises about 100 points when Robert Englund has a cameo! Seriously, does Ryan have a knack for cameos or what?
Now for my negative critiques… I’ll begin with my biggest problem: the writing. The first five minutes of Witches Blood contains all the valuable information you’ll need to understand what’s happening and how to stop Mary Horror. The information is thrown at you nonstop in a short amount of time, so I personally had a hard time understanding what the fuck was going on. Important information should be spaced out, not thrown at you as soon as the movie rolls. Then, continuity and realism take a massive hit when the script doesn’t always make sense. Let’s me provide an example. Vixen Randall (played by Kayte Supple) supposedly died at the end of the previous movie. However, we soon learn that she only played dead to survive an attack from Sheriff Tom. She returns to Witches Blood, much to the surprise of her “friends” a week and some change later. What kind of friends does Randall have? They didn’t even attempt to find out when her funeral was? It’s a fairly common way of re-introducing a beloved character, but was sloppily written.
My other biggest critique is basically – I’m not a huge fan of Ryan’s filming style. The daytime or outdoor scenes are too bright – almost whited out – and the nighttime scenes are sometimes too dark. He also films in a guerrilla style, and by that I mean I don’t think he uses a tripod a lot. This leads to interesting angles, but shaky shots. Another noteworthy aspect of Weber Pictures films is a knack for finding beautiful and original set locations. The Salem set was particularly beautiful. It would have been nice to see it in its full glory.
Production critiques aside, Witches Blood was watchable AND enjoyable. It’s not completely cohesive, but it’s a step in the right direction as far as career aspirations go. It’s the last entry in a home grown New Jersey horror franchise, and it’s always a wise decision to go out on top. And, really, it does have the perfect ending. I rate this a 7 out of 10 and bid the Mary Horror franchise a warm goodbye!
