The reviews for the new movie The Witch (sometimes styled The VVitch) are in, and well, they are completely at odds with the experiences viewers are reporting.

Let’s document that, shall we? Reviewers on Rotten Tomatoes are praising the Robert Eggers movie at a rate of 89%, but audiences feel rather differently, with only 52% giving it a positive rating.

Anecdotally, my impression is that even that 52% figure might be generous. DM’s head honcho and honchoess Richard Metzger and Tara McGinley absolutely hated it, our Chris Bickel felt lukewarm towards it too, and Doug Benson of the Doug Loves Movies podcast and most of his guests who have mentioned it seem to have a special vitriol for the unusually disappointing stinkbomb.
 

 
So it’s probably a good idea to get ahold of a palate cleanser and start all over again. Nothing could be better for that than the remarkable 1970 documentary Legend of the Witches, written and directed by Malcolm Leigh. One blogger has called it “the Citizen Kane of witchploitation documentaries—however much that is worth.”

That note of ambivalence perfectly captures the experience of watching Legend of the Witches. On the one hand, it seems obvious that the interest in witchcraft is little more than a pretext for showing naked people on film. But it has to be admitted that the movie takes the subject pretty seriously, it’s not just nudie schlock.

It doesn’t take ten minutes before we get to see some footage of a bunch of naked people dancing around a fire. Ten minutes after that and a chicken has been vivisected over a chalk compass/calendar and its entrails examined for auguring purposes. If you’re looking for wiccan ritual, this is a prime artifact. The black-and-white cinematography is simply gorgeous, and Malcolm Leigh’s treatment of the subject is intelligent and interesting, even if the whole thing can’t avoid being a little silly.
 

 
In the image above you can read what may be my favorite movie poster pullquote of all time: “Has more exposed flesh and genitalia per square foot than virtually anything in the sex film genre.”

Can you say “skyclad”?

According to one source, Legend of the Witches is the only movie to feature “the only footage in existence of the infamous ‘King of Wicca,’ Alex Sanders.” Alex Sanders and his wife Maxine had become the de facto “King and Queen of Witches” around this time, and this movie was based on their experiences and her willingness to get her kit off in the name of marketing.

You might remember Alex Sanders from our report last year on the legendary occult rockers Black Widow, with whom he worked closely.

The final section of the movie addresses the subject of “scrying,” which is defined as the act of looking into a mirror and seeing the future. There’s a lot of hypnotic visuals in this part as well as some attractive women and a dude wearing a goat’s head mask—it’s basically the best thing you could put on a party while the music of the Black Angels or Mogwai roils on over it.

Have I mentioned that this movie is definitely NSFW? I guess I haven’t. Rest assured that you do not want coworkers catching you grok this in your cubicle.
 
Click through to watch this very unusual movie….....