Even for a Hershell Gordon Lewis film SOMETHING WEIRD really sucked. I am not just talking bad--I am talking colossally inept, ridiculous and completely stupid bad! There was almost nothing about the film that I liked, except perhaps to look at the pretty lady playing the witch--she was awfully cute. The acting, direction, script and especially the cinematography were abominable--so horrible that I would consider this film even worse than some of Lewis' other grade-z movies. BLOOD FREAK and THIS'LL KILL YA looked more intelligently made than this film--and they, too, really sucked as well.
The fact that the director was inept wasn't a big surprise, but the biggest problem was actually not Lewis' direction but the cinematography. The camera often darted about, moved jerkily, the camera jiggled and the shots were often poorly centered. And who can we blame for this aspect of the film? If you check the credits, you'll see that it's credited to none other than Hershell Gordon Lewis himself! Okay, it's inept. So let's at least talk about the plot--which is probably the best thing about the film (other than the cute and sexy witch who cannot act to save her life). The first few scenes really have nothing to do with the film. Why he showed guys doing martial arts and some of the other early scenes was beyond me. Anyway, after a while the real film begins. A guy is hit by a live wire and it nearly kills him. In the process, however, it fries the left side of his face AND leaves him with psychic powers (kids: DON'T TRY THIS AT HOME). You'd think he'd be happy about this, but the guy is a whiny jerk. His life only starts working after he meets a witch (who I must point out again was really good looking....and a horrid actress). She can give him even more psychic powers AND restore his face to normal. At first, this arrangement works out great...but, as with all deals with Satan, it naturally comes to bite the guy in the butt by the end of the film.
Overall, this film is a mess only bad film buffs like myself can enjoy. It's every bit as stupid as PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE and a total waste of the $583 they spent to make the film (including film developing and catering costs).
Dumb, inept and silly from start to finish.
The fact that the director was inept wasn't a big surprise, but the biggest problem was actually not Lewis' direction but the cinematography. The camera often darted about, moved jerkily, the camera jiggled and the shots were often poorly centered. And who can we blame for this aspect of the film? If you check the credits, you'll see that it's credited to none other than Hershell Gordon Lewis himself! Okay, it's inept. So let's at least talk about the plot--which is probably the best thing about the film (other than the cute and sexy witch who cannot act to save her life). The first few scenes really have nothing to do with the film. Why he showed guys doing martial arts and some of the other early scenes was beyond me. Anyway, after a while the real film begins. A guy is hit by a live wire and it nearly kills him. In the process, however, it fries the left side of his face AND leaves him with psychic powers (kids: DON'T TRY THIS AT HOME). You'd think he'd be happy about this, but the guy is a whiny jerk. His life only starts working after he meets a witch (who I must point out again was really good looking....and a horrid actress). She can give him even more psychic powers AND restore his face to normal. At first, this arrangement works out great...but, as with all deals with Satan, it naturally comes to bite the guy in the butt by the end of the film.
Overall, this film is a mess only bad film buffs like myself can enjoy. It's every bit as stupid as PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE and a total waste of the $583 they spent to make the film (including film developing and catering costs).
Dumb, inept and silly from start to finish.