|
 Abby
(1974)
R1 / NTSC DVD
Cinefear / 2007
Director: William Girdler
Writer: William Girdler & Gordon Cornell Layne
Cast: William Marshall, Terry Carter, Austin Stoker & Carol
Speed
Review by Ted Phipps
When The Exorcist was making Hollywood history, there was a
rush to produce cheap films that would capitalize on the
whole possession shtick. According to the story, Warner
Brothers proceeded to send ‘cease and desist’ letters to
everyone who released that sort of movie, making the
outrageous claim that they owned the copyright on the
concept of demonic possession! Most companies ignored the
threatened lawsuits, but at least one distribution company –
American International - pulled their demonic movie from the
theaters. Abby had been playing to decent reviews for less
than a month, and was not seen again for almost thirty
years.
Abby was nearly titled “The Black Exorcist” (or even worse,
“The Blackorcist”) because it’s a blaxploitation version of
the original. Instead of a little girl, Abby is a young
housewife who is married to a minister. Instead of a
Christian demon, we have the African god Eshu taking
possession of her. As Eshu takes control of Abby, she
gradually changes from a sweet churchgoing lady into a
cruel, foul-mouthed slut. There is, of course, plenty of
foaming at the mouth and cursing going on, and the big
climax involves an exorcism in a disco.
The special effects are strictly low-budget, consisting
mostly of the aforementioned foaming at the mouth, some
really big fans set just off-camera to blow things around,
dubbing Abby with the demon’s voice, green makeup and
subliminal shots of the “demon” face inserted here and there
when Abby is possessed.
The acting is better than average for a low budget flick.
Carol Speed really shines as the possessed Abby, when she
goes from demure to insane bitch in zero seconds flat.
William Marshall has a gravitas that fits his role
perfectly, and Terry Carter as Abby’s husband puts in a fine
performance as a man who’s watching everything go to hell
(no pun intended) and doesn’t have a clue about how to stop
it. |
