Finally available on DVD, "The Blonde Witch" used to appear on television under its original title "The Sorceress" ("La Sorciere," a French-Italian co-production), where it must have been dubbed into English, though now seen only with subtitles (despite the various titles, it has no horror content whatsoever). Pittsburgh's Chiller Theater had a 20 year run airing double features of the classic Universal horrors, '50s cheapies, and more recent Hammer titles, introducing Paul Naschy to an American audience in the late '70s. Yet there was one season, 1969-70, where the show departed from its usual format to present a non horror feature up front, followed by a more conventional genre item. "The Sorceress" (1956) appeared on Nov 1 1969, preceded by another foreign title, Sophia Loren's famous "Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow" (1963), which must have disappointed monster loving kids but would surely warm the hearts of every red blooded American male watching. Maurice Ronet stars as a French engineer who journeys to Sweden to supervise the building of a road, and learns that his new boss is a beautiful widow (25 year old Nicole Courcel) with a small son. He is quick to notice her attractive legs during dinner one night, and she begins to think about him romantically. Just then, he stumbles upon a lovely innocent in the woods (17 year old Marina Vlady), whom the superstitious locals believe is an evil witch, raised alone by her grandmother in a remote cabin deep in the swamp. The girl is literally one with nature, and soon reveals that she does indeed possess magical powers, but is full of warmth and joy, never using them to do harm. It doesn't take long for curiosity to blossom into love, but their future remains in doubt, as even the workers begin to shun their new foreman. For such a rich and wistful storyline, I couldn't help but be somewhat disappointed by the ending, which seemed a bit too conventional; clearly a film where the viewer should watch and judge for themselves, it has left its mark ever since its initial release (were it not for its presence on Chiller Theater, I would never have found it).
