Les possédées du diable

This is one of jess franco's most erotic films. Contains some hardcore lesbianism between lina romay and Pamela Stanford. But overall a pretty good film but the title really has nothing to do with the film. There is no excorsism or exorcist in this film.

I imagine that Lorna the Exorcist was given its title to try and cash in on the success of The Exorcist (1973), but the film is actually a Faustian tale with very little in common with William Friedkin's movie.

Guy Delorme plays successful businessman Patrick Mariel, who suddenly changes a family vacation from St. Tropez to Camargue, much to the disappointment of his soon-to-be-18-year-old daughter Linda (Lina Romay). Once in Camargue, Patrick meets with a mysterious woman named Lorna (Pamela Stanford), who sports hideous eye make-up that resembles a cross between Captain Spaulding, a drag queen and Peter Criss from KISS. It turns out that Lorna is an emissary of Satan who, eighteen years earlier, promised Patrick wealth and success if he promised to hand over his then unborn daughter to Lorna once she reached her 18th birthday. Now the time has come for him to keep his end of the bargain but he is reluctant to do so.

Being a Franco film from the '70s, Lorna the Exorcist is chock full of the director's trademark tedious sex scenes (mostly lesbian), with even more of his in-your-face crotch shots than usual (I must have seen every inch of Romay's body in close-up by now). The frequent frottering and bumping and grinding is dull and repetitive and seriously hinders the storytelling. That said, there are two things about the film that are guaranteed to stick in the mind: the worst case of crabs imaginable, and the deflowering of Linda with a big stone dildo (possibly the most shocking scene I have witnessed in a Franco movie so far).

5/10 - At roughly 100 minutes, the uncut version of the film feels unnecessarily padded out with sex scenes and shots of '70s architecture.

The vast filmography of Jess Franco is littered with cheap timewasters that are not of interest to anyone; but among those films are some real gems. Lorna the Exorcist, however, falls somewhere between the two sets of films; it's not vintage Franco, but it's better than a lot of his stuff and does at least make for a decent viewing. I had a feeling that this film may be a rip off of another film released in the early seventies with the word 'Exorcist' in the title; but actually the film is more of a nightmarish fairy tale with some sex involved (although clearly the film is cashing in on the title!). The plot focuses on a businessman named Patrick. He takes his wife and daughter on holiday; but things turn awry for Patrick when a woman named Lorna turns up. Lorna and Patrick had relations some years earlier and it emerges that Lorna is some kind of witch that has power over various women; including his daughter, who is almost ready to turn eighteen. Lorna begins to infiltrate Patrick's life, and he tries to protect his daughter.

The main draw of this film for most Franco fans will undoubtedly be the beautiful Lina Romay who stars as the eighteen year old daughter. The rest of the cast is nothing to write home about; but there is a role for Franco stalwart Howard Vernon, as well as sometimes collaborator Pamela Stanford in the central role. The version of the film that I saw ran for just over eighty minutes, and I wouldn't be surprised to find that its cut as the film is not particularly graphic or disturbing. There is a fair bit of sex; including lesbian sex and we are treated to the entire usual trademark Franco zoom shots. The most memorable scene takes place in the bedroom and involves a really bad case of crabs! The plot itself takes a backseat to the atmosphere and sleaze elements, but it's actually not too badly worked and it does at least succeed in keeping the film interesting for most of the duration. Overall, Lorna the Exorcist is not hugely memorable and is in no way a classic horror film; but it's decent enough stuff and most Franco fans wont regret tracking it down.

This Review Is Only For The Full 100 min UNCUT Version of "LORNA, THE EXORCIST"... Imagine a perverted old man director like JESS FRANCO (who directed close to 200 movies in his career) not having learned a thing about filmmaking in all that time. Seems unbelievable doesn't it? His last movie was as incompetent as his first. Why then did he make so many films for so many years? Probably because it was his personal perverted fetish fantasies realized in his film after film. Foreign producers were able to make profits from this deranged sick old man's fantasies and daydreams. This was his 1974 sickie known as "LORNA, THE EXORCIST". First of all, there is no exorcist or exorcism in this movie. Most of it is incomprehensible. It's obvious it's just a perverted old director's excuse to fill the screen with scene after scene of graphic fetish lesbian porn. Under the cloak of a story about some whorish witch who makes a bargain with some old creep that she will make him wealthy and fulfill his perverse desires IF he promises her his first born, the day he finally has his own child. He has one, and 18 years later on the child's 18th birthday she comes to collect. The rest of the film is director Franco's own perverted fetishes filmed. Director Franco even appears on camera as a depraved doctor. In 1974 this film could only have played in X RATED Movie Theaters for its graphic female depravities. You can tell Franco is nothing but a talentless old perv holding a camera. All the males in the film are either old or grotesque. Leaving only naked women to be drooled over and only with each other. 35 years after making this garbage Franco was still making the exact same kind of movies only he was around 90. Talk about the depraved and talentless living the longest lives. This entire movie LORNA has only 1 minute of anything you could call "acting". It is the last 60 seconds of film. I still think he gave the girl drugs to achieve the scene because at no time during the entire run of the film did she ever show a shred of talent. Final Comment : A Real Curiosity Like Visiting An Old Time Carnival Freak & Deformity Show.

A very young Lina Romay stars in this Jess Franco classic about a wealthy business man who makes a deal with a female demon; in exchange for wealth and prosperity, daddy promises his first born daughter to the sexy, mysterious Lorna. He doesn't take any of it seriously, until 18 years later, when Lorna returns to claim his nubile 18 year old daughter (Lina Romay in an early role) for her own. "Lorna the Exorcist" features wall-to-wall style, typical of director Jess Franco. Swanky casinos, nightclubs and beautiful homes and fashions, combined with a sultry and bizarre jazz score. And bizarre this film is; weird, even by Franco standards. It is never really explained why Lorna wears the crazy green eyeshadow halfway up her forehead; but the story is good, and there are some nice twists and surprises. The sex is extremely graphic here, bordering on hardcore. if you want to see ALL of Lina Romay, this is the one to seek out. I think the film would have been a bit better without the open clitoris scenes, as those elements take the viewer a bit out of the story, as things are put on hold for close-up vaginal shots. They are sexy, but unnecessary in a film that is good enough to maintain interest without them. The original language seems to be French, and the version I have seen is the longer 97 minute cut. For Jess Franco fans, "Lorna the Exorcist" is one to track down. And for fans of Lina Romay, this film is mandatory viewing! Romay, barely 19 years old here, has long hair, instead of the short cut that she sported later on. And Lorna must have kept her promise, because the home they live in is an absolute palace. The scene where Lorna "takes" Lina's soul is shocking and unforgettable!