Simon, King of the Witches!

Some movies are deserving of cult status. Simon, King of the Witches, out on DVD next week, is definitely one of them -- and then some. This oddball 1971 film is about a warlock named Simon (Andrew Prine) who lives in a storm drain and is dragged into the spotlight by a young hustler (George Paulsin) and egged on into using his evil powers against a disbeliever, which ends up coming back to haunt him. Set during the hippie/love/cult era, Prine makes a shambling, long-haired, hipster warlock. Warhol favorite Ultra Violet shows up later as a witch too in this psychedelic, strange film. Directed by Bruce Kessler (The Gay Deceivers), Prine himself talks about the making of the film in a revealing featurette. He claims the screenwriter was a warlock who had his own coven. Simon is a bizarre film because it doesn’t fit into any category -- and that’s part of its great charm. And Prine really is fabulous as Simon. He makes you believe all the nuttiness. The DVD quality is also extraordinary. I could finally throw away my old VHS. It’s even got nine extra minutes of footage. And more Simon, King of the Witches is just fine with me!