The Alchemist (1981)

Member Rating:

"B"-movie legend Charles Band cranked out this deadly-dull black magic flick through his then-fledgling Empire Pictures company in 1980, though the film never saw widespread American distribution until its video release five years later. The main character is an ageless glassmaker (Robert Ginty) who, thanks to a feud with the evil sorcerer Delgado (Robert Glaudini) in the 19th century, is not only doomed to live forever but regularly transforms into a barely-seen, werewolf-like monster. A century later (the 1950s, for no apparent reason), Ginty meets a woman at his mountain cabin whom he believes to be the reincarnation of his dead wife (Lucinda Dooling), who was the chief catalyst for the feud in the first place. The climactic battle (sort of) between the rival wizards involves low-budget demons called up by Glaudini from a gateway to hell. Despite a decent employment of attractive woodland locations and occasional bouts of cheap but creative effects, this is a rather tedious exercise, bogged down by slow pacing, shoddy lighting and bland performances by the entire cast. ~ Cavett Binion, Rovi