The Deathhead Virgin (1974) User Reviews (10)

Soggy Filipino Horror with the Longest Titles Ever

[Steve_Nyland · 2/10 · 27 July 2005]

1970's Filipino made horror is an acquired taste, and I must admit not getting it. THE DEATHHEAD VIRGIN is about on par with DAUGHTERS OF Satan, low budget potboilers set in the Philipines for the cynical reason that it was cheaper to make the movie there than anywhere else. The story idea is not without merit: Damned soul of a virgin girl sunk with a galleon comes back to haunt the beaches and resort communities leased by the film company for their off-season shoot. She walks around wearing a mask and not much else, thought strategic hair placement keeps whatever nudity there was from sullying our eyes.

The problem is that not much happens, and other than some interesting slow speed filming and some interesting underwater photography the movie exists without the thrill factor needed to make something like this work. I bailed out at like the 70 minute point when like another commenter I realized that the director had reached his conclusion at about 62 minutes but exposed a bunch of other footage & felt compelled to use it, probably because he had to. Just ask The Beatles; Those Filipino entertainment unions can be murder.

One curious footnote about the movie is the opening titles. At roughly thirteen minutes into the feature the words DIRECTED BY NORMAN FOSTER flash onto the screen, producing the film's only genuine laugh. My guess is that Mr. Foster had just seen ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST, who's titles go on for about three quarters of an hour. The difference of course is that they were not arbitrarily inserted by an editor who probably never saw the finished result. I don't blame him.

Let Sleeping Virgins Lie

[Coventry · 3/10 · 18 July 2022]

Since, well... forever, I'm attracted to "The Deathhead Virgin" because of its lurid title, the awesome cover poster, and the promising plot-concept of an evil sea-witch guarding the treasures of a sunken Spanish galleon. But for exactly as long, I've also been put off by the low rating, harsh reviews, and the simple fact this is one of those low-budgeted Filipino-horrors from the early 70s. Curiosity always wins, in the end...

Everything about "The Deathhead Virgin" is slow, dull, and unstructured. The opening titles go on forever, and we're already 15 minutes into the film before "directed by Norman Foster" appears. Then there's a forty minutes' lasting (40!) flashback to explain why the movie begins with a funeral service. I still think the plot is interesting enough to tell, as it mixes typically 70s treasure-hunting elements with local Philippine folklore myths, but the pacing is so intolerably slow and the spectacle-level is so dreadfully minimal, that most people will give up (and understandably so). After the flashback (it lasts so long you'll even forget it's a flashback...) there's an interesting twist, but it's too little too late. The "monster" is a naked home girl wearing a ridiculous mask, the underwater footage is underwhelming, and the supportive role of Filipino B-movie hero Vic Diaz is hardly worth mentioning. Believe the rating and the reviews; - "The Deathhead Virgin" isn't worth your time.

Pretty lame, though just about bearable Philipine based trasher

[Bloodwank · 4/10 · 29 July 2010]

With a name like The Deathhead Virgin it was pretty much inevitable that one day I would sit down to watch this one. I'm one of those people drawn irresistibly to films with cool names, regardless of their quality I can just dig the feeling of watching a movie with a good name. This one gets pretty lousy reviews all round with good reason, not good, nor dysfunctional enough to pull off many classic bad movie tricks, The Deathhead Virgin merely goes about its business in its unassuming cheapie fashion and switches out to no fanfare after some 93 minutes or so. The plotting is actually kinda interesting, there's the odd twist and an ambition to the process that really could have done with some money, or better yet more concentration on the elements that work and editing for the bits that don't. The discovery of a supposedly Spanish wreck with attendant fake skeleton (seriously, it doesn't even begin to look like its anything more than a plastic model, so pristinely white and undamaged is its look) and some treasure sparks the return to life of a cursed virgin princess, possession and a spot of murder. Made in the Philipines, I guess the Westerners of the cast all liked the sunny location as there are scenes of various merry making, dancing and characters simply hanging about, which given the inherent interest of the locality isn't as boring as it might be but still rather puts the kibosh on any actual suspense. There' brief nudity and a little smidgen of gore but the murders are poorly staged and shock value is low. On the plus side, there are some fun cheesy solarisation visuals and the appearances of the titular boogeychick (is that the feminine of bogeyman?) are good for a few laughs, surprisingly for such a film she actually looks very close to her depiction on the posters, i.e. pretty cool and heck, once or twice even a little bit creepy. Mostly this film is weak stuff, never wild enough or bad enough, interesting images and ineptly handled schlock nuggets nestled amongst the padding and attractive women in bikini's aside there isn't much good here. I found it watchable enough, but it truly ain't great, worst of all is that it isn't even that funny. Well, it does bust out a ribtickling attempt at a bona fide action showdown at one stage that raises the pulse a little, but the effort would have been better used in the service of more horror goods. Larry Ward and Jock Gaynor can be blamed for a good deal of things, since they wrote and starred in the thing and their acting is non-charismatic and the script too drawn out. Director Norman Foster appears to be some kind of veteran in the profession but I can't say as his experience was visible on screen. I wouldn't really recommend this to anyone, but on the other hand I didn't dislike it nearly as much as I expected to, maybe its my love of really bad films, especially ones that sling a bit of cheapskate exotica around (fan dances for the win!). I was never quite disengaged, I smiled at times, I was even mildly entertained. But I can't really credit too much to the film, much as I'd like to. All in all this is a lowbrow matinée adventure/horror crossbreed that all but dedicated junk hunters can happily pass on by, as one of those unfortunate sorts I give it about a 4/10.

Honestly, people...

[Gangsteroctopus · 5/10 · 14 April 2006]

I really don't understand why seemingly everyone who's commented on this film finds it to be so utterly awful. Look, it's no masterpiece - we're talking Filipino horror from the mid-'70s here - but it's a lot more interesting than a LOT of other so-called 'so-bad-they're-good' movies out there.

<>First off, you got '60s hottie Diane McBain in a bikini. Scratch that: several different bikinis. You also have any number of very hot Filipino women also in scanty swimwear, nude and/or wet. Also, there is (real) cockfighting, spear fu and various other forms of tropical debauchery. Not to mention Vic Diaz. Those are the film's exploitation bona fides.

<>Then there's the fact that it's the final directorial credit for Norman Foster, an interesting and underrated auteur ("Journey Into Fear", anyone? And don't tell me Orson Welles directed it - even he vociferously denied this). This films is very professionally put together, well-lit, well-miked, succinctly edited - far more so than a lot of comparable junk of the same pedigree.

<>And then there's it's odd, somewhat lopsided structure, what with the bulk of the first 40 minutes or so given over to a lengthy and involved flashback (I kept wondering what had happened to Diane McBain's character, if she was just a cameo or something) and then the curious denouement (did the Deathhead Virgin just wink at me?). This a highly atypical film, even for shot-in-the-Phillipines exploitation.

<>Ignore the naysayers and check it out if you're inclined.

Spare us nothing...

[Volstag · 5/10 · 13 September 2004]

Another plodding, and ultimately boring, b-movie. There isn't much here for bad movie fans. There's no insane dialogue, directing, acting, etc. The problem with this movie is that it simply does nothing. Norman Foster (the director) spent way too much time filming scenes that have NOTHING to do with the story. They, literally, leave nothing to the imagination in this flick. We see endless amounts of footage of the main characters strolling around town, swimming in the ocean, drinking, eating, sleeping, performing menial tasks, driving, etc. This movie could have been a documentary of two idiotic Americans squandering their lives in the Philippines.

What's the movie about? Well, ostensibly, it's about a "deathhead virgin" who is awakened by our Americans (whilst exploring undersea wreckage). The "deathhead virgin" occasionally surfaces, and occasionally murders some poor sot. In the meantime, our American divers mess around on shore, and make perfunctory dives to the previously mentioned wreckage. That's about it.

Is there anything here for the bad movie fan? Unfortunately, no. Other than the aforementioned tons of useless footage/dialogue, there isn't much to sink your "bad movie teeth" into. Really the only highlight of this film, if you happen to be a heterosexual male, are the incredibly attractive Philippino women. Not enough to carry a bad movie (or a good movie, for that matter).

Bad Movie Score: 5/10 Good Movie Score: 3.5/10

Losing my virginity.

[HumanoidOfFlesh · 5/10 · 2 December 2010]

According to IMDb the plot of "The Deathhead Virgin" goes like that:a treasure hunter Jock Gaynor finds a sunken Spanish galleon off the coast of a Philippine island.What he doesn't know is that the ship is guarded by the spirit of an ancient Moro princess-the titular Deathhead Virgin.When Jock removes an amulet from around her bleached skeleton she returns to life.The local legend states that once the Deathhead Virgin is coming back from her watery grave seven virgins must be ritually sacrificed.The action of "The Deathhead Virgin" moves at snail's pace,the acting is amateurish and there is almost no suspense.Sunny Philippine locations are nice and there is a bit of naked flesh.Unfortunately "The Deathhead Virgin" looks cheap and tiresome.However this is perhaps the only one horror film I know that features a masked,harpoon-wielding,homicidal,aquatic and naked zombie girl.5 virgins out of 10.

Very minor picture is sub-atomically more professional than it probably should be.

[EyeAskance · 19 March 2004]

*Minor spoilers*

Unrenowned U.S./Phillipines co-venture involves treasure-hunters plundering an ancient sea vessel which is also the watery tomb of a Mori princess. When her manacled skeleton is heedlessly set free, the bones transform into a naked girl wearing an ugly witch mask over her face. As you've probably guessed, nearby island natives begin to die mysteriously, and some suspect that the ages-old curse of the Deathhead Virgin is to blame. Things aren't necessarily all that they seem, however, as the story takes some hairpin turns during the final-third.

THE DEATHHEAD VIRGIN is a fairly watchable and not inefficiently formulated low-budget horror-drama(and Diane McBain is gorgeous in a slingshot bikini). Still, there's nothing of any real distinction to make this recommendable(unless your dying to see what is possibly the world's longest spread of opening credits). It's miles short of a legitimately good film, but it is a wee bit more professional than I had anticipated.

4/10

Nice idea, shame about the execution

[Leofwine_draca · 4/10 · 12 November 2019]

American funded but shot on the cheap in the Philippines, THE DEATHHEAD VIRGIN is one of those underwater horror/thriller combos that were all the rage in the 1970s. I admit that I do like the back story and the folklore in this one, and the idea of the skeletal remains of a sea goddess returning to life to wreak havoc on the living - well, that has plenty of mileage for me. Sadly, as with most Filipino movies, this is so cheap as to be completely trashy, and spoiled by long stretches where very little seems to happen. There's a bit of bloodshed and nudity to titillate viewers, and a supporting role for the ubiquitous Vic Diaz, but the murky underwater scenes are hard to make out and generally this is a below par production despite the story and occasional bit of atmosphere.

Can you say "smelly?"

[stlo112 · 1/10 · 10 April 2001]

As a child at summer camp, the councillors were hard pressed to find an effective way to punish our cabin for out mis-doings. Well, the day that they made us watch this film in its entirety (without letting us fall asleep), was the day that they found that effective punishment. This film is actually painful to watch. I am not exaggerating!

A dismally dull & dreary dud

[Woodyanders · 2/10 · 12 May 2006]

Filipino horror films don't come much worse than this unbearably dull, drawn-out stiff which boasts a decent enough plot, but precious little energy in the telling of said story. In short, what we have here is a classic case of cruddy schlock movie-making that crucially lacks the necessary trashy vitality to pass muster as a fun, worthy fright flick. Jock Gaynor, who was also one of the co-producers ("A Taste of Hell" 's John Garwood was another one) and designed the many boring underwater sequences featured herein, listlessly plays a treasure-seeking deep sea diver who discovers a fabled 1850 sunken galleon which contains the corpse of a legendary Moro tribe virgin princess. When Gaynor steals a priceless amulet from the princess' skeletal remains, the skull-faced sea siren (the gorgeous Iraida Arambulo, who's naked throughout the entire film except for a hokey monster mask that covers her cadaverous face) comes back to life and forces Gaynor to kill seven virgins in order to appease the god that the princess was sacrificed to a century earlier.

Despite a goodly serving of both gratuitous nudity and bloody violence, plus the enticing sight of sexy female leads Diane McBain and Kim Ramos walking about in skimpy bikinis, "The Deathhead Virgin" proves to be a static, lifeless, sleep-inducing waste of time thanks to Norman Foster's drab direction (Foster, who started out as an actor prior to becoming a director, had a very uneven career which includes several episodes of Disney's "Davy Crockett" series), Fredy Conde's clunky, grainy cinematography, Ward Gaynor's arid, dead obvious, gab-ridden script, such excessive padding as tacky night club scenes, a horrible comic sequence in which Gaynor and his fellow diver buddy Larry Ward get drunk together on the beach, and a cock fight, the pitiful wasting of the great Vic Diaz in the nothing role of an investigating police chief who tries to piece together the whole fantastic story in a logical manner (Vic does what he can with a thankless part, but even he's let down by lousy dubbing -- some drip with a flat, hollow tenor substitutes for Diaz's wonderfully ripe and oily baritone!), cheesy solarization effects, uniformly indifferent performances from an understandably out of it cast, and Richard La Salle's slushy, overbearing score. So bad that it doesn't even qualify as enjoyable junk, this terribly lame loser of a flick should be avoided at all costs.