Witchouse 2: Blood Coven (2000)
So this one has a couple of things working for it. Ariauna Albright is back as Lilith, this time in the flesh, not just a voice. Horror mainstay (and frequent Trek actor) Andrew Prine stars as both Sheriff Jake Harmon and Angus Westmore (it makes sense in the movie) and is easily the best actor in this lot. Yet I never felt like he was "Slumming it" he gave this one the same level of professionalism I see in all his movies.
The plot is simple. A university professor and her grad students are sent to this old house where bodies are discovered. The city wants to tear down the old house to make way for a new shopping mall and the city can't wait. So when the bodies are found and deemed to be too old for a cold case they bring in the archeologist and her students.
Right away you can see the effect The Blair Witch Files had on this movie with all of the "first person video" shots. It is not effective here.
The bodies are dug up and soon the professor is processed by the ghost of Lilith and so are her students with the ghosts of her coven. Only the willing sacrifice of an innocent can stop Lilith, but Andrew Prine goes along as well after being wounded.
Good bits: For an RPG guy and former grad student like me the good bits are showing all the different avenues of research the students go though to get all their data information.
Bad bits: most of the acting is not great. The "interviews" with the locals (while likely fun to make) was dull and rather pointless.
*I noticed I had watched Witchouse (1999) back in 2015 and completely forgot it. Since I counted it this year as an "FTV" I am going to count this one as a rewatch, even though it is new to me to balance my tally.
Annie (Tanya Dempsey) is in an abusive relationship with Burke (Paul Darrigo). Three minutes in and I already want the guy dead. She goes to see her friends Stevie (Debbie Rochon) and Rose (Tina Krause) and stays at their place. Stevie and Rose are filming a witchcraft ritual when she comes in. They tell her she can stay with them as long as she likes.
Stevie has a grant to film a witchcraft documentary. Which they have to discuss in the hot tub of course. After a night of drinking Stevie convinces them to try one of the rituals she found curiously enough in an antique store in Covington County, MA, the location of the other movies.
They start the ritual and summon Lilith LeFey. But it turns out the book was something that Stevie got at gag shop and all the pages are blank. She made up the ritual on the fly.
The next day they all wake up hung-over, except for Stevie who is excited about filming some wiccan at a festival. Soon they all begin to see things in the house. It is Lilith, this time played by horror icon Brinke Stevens.
Annie and Rose are all freaked out about the video. Stevie tells them they are overreacting. Soon even Stevie is seeing things. Soon Lilith is talking to both Stevie and Rose, but doesn't let them see her.
Stevie runs into Burke and he tells her Stevie is crazy. He never hit her and she was the one writing "Witches Burn" on her mirror. We later see Burke in a car watching the house and someone, presumably Lilith, films him while his car fills with exhaust fumes. Coming home Rose and Annie see a "Play Me" sign on the TV and watch it.
Rose and Annie run out, but Rose goes back into the house and is attacked by an unseen assailant. Annie returns to the house to see Stevie crying over Rose's bloody body.
There is a video of Rose getting killed. Stevie and Annie watch it and it revealed that Annie was the killer all along (shocked I know), BUT she actually WAS possessed by Lilith. Turns out Annie wanted revenge because Rose and Stevie both slept with Burke.
Angry at the death of Rose, Stevie does the most un-horror movie thing I have seen in a while. She beats the living shit out of Annie. Lilith is impressed and offers her a deal.
Not sure what happened but Stevie is no long worried about getting caught for Burke and Rose (assuming she is leaving Annie to take the fall) and now she is in league with Lilith.
Ok. The acting is not great here, but it is better and this is a much better movie. Debbie Rochon had some good moments. While it was no shock that the killer was Annie, the procession by Lilith was a good switch-up.
For use in NIGHT SHIFT and War of the Witch Queens
Now, more than ever I need to work on an adventure where one of the evil witches from the War of the Witch Queens comes back to plague the characters of NIGHT SHIFT.
Just gotta figure out who and how.
October Horror Movie Challenge 2022
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