Corpus_Vile Lila Lee (Cheryl Smith) is an angelic 14-year-old girl, in the care of the local church after her vicious gangster father goes on the lam, after he commits a double murder.One day, Lila receives a letter from the mysterious Lemora (Leslie Taplin) telling her that her father is gravely ill and that she may see him, but only on the condition that she tells no- one. So begins a dreamy, garishly coloured and magical journey for our innocent protagonist to reach her mysterious destination. However, it turns out that Lemora is not who she appears to be and has her own special plans for Lila, that will change her forever...Lemora: A Child's Tale of the Supernatural is a film that I had on my "Film to see" list for quite some time now and when I finally watched it, I gotta say I was absolutely kicking myself, I'd neglected to see it for so long as it really is a gem. Set in 1920s/30s America, it veritably drips atmosphere and has a languid, dreamy (or nightmarish if you like) tone, reminiscent of Let's Scare Jessica to Death, (1971) or perhaps more pertinently Messiah of Evil (1973) in terms of visual style and in fact, due to its visual overall look, I can't help wondering if a certain Mr Argento seen Lemora back in the day,and whether it influences his Suspiria, as both films have an undeniable similarity in style, visually. Cheryl Lee gives a very effective performance as the lost and innocent Lila, with her expression consistently exuding fragility and vulnerability, and Leslie Taplin is great as the mysterious,alluring and subtly sinister Lemora. For a (U.S.) PG-13 film it's surprisingly dark in tone, with certain touching upon sexuality themes that I'm not sure would be passed today in a PG-13 film and emerges as a decidedly adult fairy tale and an intelligent one at that.Any horror fan who liked the aforementioned films should check this one out immediately. While I see threads on the film on the IMDb horror occasionally and know it has a place in the hearts of several regular posters there, I'm still somewhat surprised it apparently doesn't seem to get its proper dues as it truly deserves its place in the annals of classic/iconic horrors, as it's one of the best I've seen of its decade, and this is coming from a decade of absolute quality in regards to horror cinema.8.5/10, a highly recommended gem that puts an innovative and intriguing spin on an established horror sub genre, it should be sought out by any self respecting horror fan.

ElijahCSkuggs With a title, Lemora: A Child's Tale of the Supernatural, you'd think that Lemora would be the child. Well, you'd be wrong. And I'd be wrong. The story revolves around a young girl who after learning the whereabouts of her father, journeys to find him. All the while running into weirdo characters, werewolves and vampires. Holy moly! First off, I can't explain how happy I am that this movie delivered. I truly wasn't expecting a movie that was this good. With a seriously eerie atmosphere, chilling sound effects and music and a plethora of creepy characters and monsters, this flick easily rose above all my expectations.My only gripe with this flick was the lead child. Her acting was very wooden, but at the same time, her lack of character kinda worked. It made her feel like innocence personified. But, at the same time, felt kinda crappy....weird. Another strange thing about the girl in this movie is that she appeared to be very young, like under 16, but you actually see her boob and she's involved in some pretty erotic scenes. Don't get me wrong, there's nothing even slightly "hot and heavy". But I can relax, after being turned on by this young girl, I found out she was 19. I also found out she became a popular exploitation actress, which explains the weak acting. I kid!! Also another (dumb) thought occurred to me, there are scenes of vampires and werewolves (called beasts in this movie) fighting. I wonder if this film was the first to have that battle shown on film. If anyone does know the answer to this, please tell me. Another thought, Underworld sucked.Time and time again I shrug my shoulders at films that I hear only positive things about. And time and time again I kick myself for not checking out the film when I first heard about it. Don't mess up like me, if you have the chance to check out Lemora: A Child's Tale of the Supernatural, do so, it's a classic. 8.5 outta 10

Falconeer Cult starlet Cheryl Smith is absolutely mesmerizing in her role as the young and sheltered daughter of the town minister, who runs away from home in search of her lost father. 'Lemora' has all the qualities necessary for it to be the cult classic that it is; It is surreal, strange, and perversely erotic. And it is one of Cheryl Smith's earliest screen appearances. If you have seen "Caged Heat" than you are familiar with this actress. And while not being the greatest actress ever, Smith possesses an undeniable and powerful screen presence, which is recognizable here. As "Lila" travels through the dark, foreboding forest after receiving a strange letter, stating that her criminal father is ill and needs to see her, she encounters and endless stream of sinister men, and later, some zombie-like children in one terrifying sequence. Lila doesn't yet realize that she has been summoned by Lemora, a sinister woman who lives in a great old house, that is filled with strange children. Laced with erotic symbolism "Lemora" is inevitably about the loss of innocence. Hypnotic, dreamlike, and filled with beautiful Gothic imagery, and appears as a kind of fairytale for adults, as I imagine children would be absolutely terrified by this! This unique film would be perfect but for a couple of sequences near the end, the first when Lila escapes her captor and is running through the woods, and than through a creepy, abandoned building. These scenes of Smith walking around in the shadows really are dragged out for too long. Also the "Battle sequence" at the films climax is very sloppy, and some tedious slow motion effects don't work. This is sad because the film is so hypnotic, really trance-inducing, until you get to these sloppy scenes, and the illusion is temporarily interrupted. I believe with just a little re-editing of those scenes this film could be truly exquisite. Fortunately it all redeems itself at the end, when the Reverand finds his much-changed daughter. Anyway do not let this slight imperfection dissuade you from seeing this wonderful, beautiful cult film. The restoration that Synapse has done for the new DVD is pristine, and this is well worth the price. Not much here for the gore hounds, but for fans of classic, Gothic horror, "Lemora" is essential viewing.

Woodyanders Late, great 70's drive-in movie goddess Cheryl "Rainbeax" Smith gives a smashing, touching performance as Lila Lee, a passive, ingenuous church choir girl who's lured into a remote and dangerous part of the Georgia wilderness by artful, poised vampire countess Lemora (a strikingly hypnotic portrayal by Lesley Gilb) under the pretense that she will be reunited with her errant mobster father. In all actuality, Lemora wants to turn the fragile, dewy-eyed innocent Lila into a vampire and induct the severely uptight lass into a darkly amoral, but liberating nocturnal netherworld of wine, sex, song and dance. Writer/director Richard Blackburn (who later co-wrote "Eating Raoul") does an expert job with this extraordinary period horror film (it takes place in the late 1920's), deftly creating and maintaining a creepy, oddly credible and most colorfully surreal alternate reality in which the fine line between right and wrong, good and bad, and purity and wickedness is chillingly blurred. Moreover, Blackburn acquits himself fairly well in a sizable supporting role as a hypocritical bible-bangin' preacher who secretly harbors illicit carnal desires for the delectable, but underage Lila Lee. Tense, atmospheric and often genuinely frightening (the giggling gaggle of little vampire kids is especially scary), with a perfectly pungent'n'potent brooding Southern Gothic-style ambiance, a bold and provocative subtext which bravely tackles head on such daring adult themes as incest, pedophilia, lesbianism, repression and the awakening of one's sexuality with the onset of puberty, and a wonderfully wigged-out bit by unsung fright film ham Hy ("Nightmare in Blood," "Vamp") Pyke as a fidgety, ill-fated wacko bus driver, this bang-up bloodsucker gem wholly deserves its substantial cult reputation.