SIMON, KING OF THE WITCHES

“As gloriously post-Woodstock as you can get, this comic fantasy about white magic in Los Angeles was marketed as a horror film — butis a lot weirder and more interesting. It's an endearing slice of magic realism with a committed central performance by drive-in staple Andrew Prine (ELIMINATORS, the ‘80s mini-series V).

First seen addressing the camera about how he lives in a storm drain and possesses secret powers, Simon is convinced he's the latest incarnation of a powerful master, and makes a living out of high-society sleight-of-hand to more elaborate acts of genuine magic. Eventually he must bring a biblical spell of sorts down on the city as he passes through the earthly realm via a magical mirror, but that's far from the end of his journey.

A counterculture piece loaded with goodies like Warhol Factory icon Ultra Violet leading a nude Wiccan ceremony, or a psych freakout of a climax that gets quite close to Saul Bass territory.” (Nathaniel Thompson, Mondo Digital)