Cinema of the Weird: Ammoru (1995)

As well as my sexy cinema column, I've decided to add one called Cinema of the Weird covering strange, rarely seen films from around the world. The Boxer's Omen is the first in my review series.

Ammoru (అమ్మోరు) is an Indian horror cum fantasy film. It reminded me a lot of Indonesian film, Mystics in Bali. Which is well worth checking out. The film involves an evil witch doctor who tries to do away with a young orphan woman, after she has him arrested. Her maid servant takes the form of Goddess, Ammoru and uses her magical powers to protect her.

This isn't your typical Bollywood film. There are some musical numbers, but they are very brief. There isn't really a romantic subplot. The running time of two hours is fitting with the length of typical Bollywood fare. There is a very brief sex scene, and loads of gore and blood. The film was released in 1995 and the special effects are decent. The film owes more to 80s and 90s straight to video horrors; not the video nasties, but those 18 rated ones I used to see posters for in Blockbuster and those sleazy, dark video shops in seaside towns, which sadly no longer exist.

I first saw the film on late night TV. There was a series of called Mondo Macabro. They occasionally screened a film after it, from the country featured on the documentary. A DVD label was later set up in the UK, unfortunately it was short lived, but the label went Stateside. Our loss was America's gain. It's fantastic that these films are gaining a wider audience. I'm not sure if Ammoru has an official release, but check it out if you get a chance. It hasn't been released by Mondo Macabro, but every Mondo Macabro release is gold.

Eye Popping Special Effects