User Reviews

NETHERWORLD, a Full Moon picture set in the Louisiana swamps, successfully delivers a Gothic atmosphere filled with lush vegetation, isolated manor homes, and brothels operated by voodoo sorceresses. However, thanks to a hopelessly cheesy script, the film never transcends its early-90s low-budget roots.

The plot concerns a Corey Thornton, a dashing young man who has just inherited a vast estate from the father he never knew in life. While combing through the deceased's papers, he discovers that his father's last wish was to be brought back from the dead. Corey becomes obsessed with this task and seeks help from those around him: Bijou (the slobbering neighborhood idiot-savant), Diane (Southern-fried "jailbait" who actually looks to be about 25 years old), his father's lawyer (who has mysteriously deformed hands), and of course Delores (a prostitute with big hair and mystical powers).

The action alternates between Corey's manor house and Tonk's, the brothel-next-door, where all the girls are named after dead celebrities...or have Marilyn Monroe and Mary Magdalene really been resurrected?! The band plays smooth jazz as passions rise and Delores casts sultry glances at everyone. Then things get weird. A hand flies out of the wall and starts killing people, whose souls become trapped inside the bodies of birds. A bird which is clearly a hand puppet screams "NEVERRRRRR!" We finally descend to the Netherworld, where the forces of evil fight for control of Corey's mind in a scene that will leave you wondering, "Oh...that was the climax?" All in all, Netherworld is a good bit of entertainment which never gets boring; however, one can't shake the feeling that if slightly more money and effort had been put into it, it could have been good instead of just adequate.

Hunky Michael Bendetti plays Corey Thornton, a young man who receives an inheritance from his late father Noah (Robert Sampson, a.k.a. Dean Halsey in "Re-Animator"). He travels to the family estate in Louisiana, where he gets caught up in local mumbo jumbo involving plans to resurrect the dead and a connection between humans and birds.

It's commendable that writer / director David Schmoeller would go to so much trouble to create something different than the usual run of Full Moon product. This is by turns erotic and romantic, with an appealing soft jazz soundtrack by Bon Jovi keyboardist David Bryan (and on screen appearances by Bryan and Edgar Winter). He injects this with as much flavourful New Orleans atmosphere as he can, and that helps, but the movie is still fairly dull.

There's just not that much here to engage the viewer. It moves along at a snails' pace, and none of the characters are all that interesting. The ladies are quite lovely; the plotting involves a nearby brothel named Tonks' where the ladies either look like deceased celebrities, or just might *be* deceased celebrities. There's one that resembles Marilyn Monroe (Holly Butler), and another who claims to be Mary Magdalene (Alex Datcher, 'John Carpenters' Body Bags').

Bendetti is somewhat blank in the lead, but the supporting cast - including veterans Sampson, Anjanette Comer ("The Baby"), and Robert Burr ("Ghost Story"), the likable Holly Floria, and the extremely enticing Denise Gentile - comes off reasonably well.

Director Schmoeller cameos as the bartender, making use of his talent for spinning a bottle on his finger.

Five out of 10.

I had sinking feeling when I put the tape of Netherworld on and the first thing I saw on the screen were the words Full Moon Entertainment. An oxymoron if there ever was one. Netherworld isn't that bad. It isn't that great either but it's more watchable than one would expect for a Full Moon production.

The plot revolves around a young man called Corey Thornton who inherits a property in the bayous of Louisiana after his long lost father dies. When he arrives there to check out his property he finds a set of instructions written down in a journal by his father explaining how he had been involved in black magic and detailing how Corey can bring him back to life. Strangely enough Corey isn't all that freaked out about this and without much prevarication sets about in bringing his old man about from the dead. Corey's lack of reluctance to use magic to bring his father back from the dead might have something to do with the fact it involves having sex with an attractive woman. Thornton senior, or old man Thornton as the staff of his mansion refer to him, gained his abilities with magic through having sex with local prostitute and shaman Delores. I was worried that this premise might an excuse for lots of softcore shenanigins but it restrains itself on the erotic thriller front.

Not a lot happens, and the running time of 84 minutes is breezed through. There is a subplot involving the housekeeper and her 'jailbait' daughter, who looks like she is in her mid twenties- by the standards set in this movie most guys are pederasts or potential pederasts. The daughter falls for the handsome young Corey but her mother understandably disapproves, given Corey seems to be sinking further and further into the black arts and tries to use her own magic against him. There is also some stuff with Delores having encounters with local low-lives. The introduction deals with her dispatching a would be rapist by summoning a flying stone hand that can pass though walls. The mysterious flying stone hand is definitely the coolest thing in the movie. There is a whole bunch of scenes involving Delores and her cronies and acting creepy and also some stuff with a big, weird and probably gay guy, who used to work for Thornton senior, intermittently helping Corey in his quest to find out more about his father and threatening him with violence and/or unwarranted sexual advances. The character completely disappears from the story about halfway having done very little. There is a rather brief mystical showdown ending which seems rather abrupt and unless Hughie Lewis is involved somehow the whole 'power of love' resolution doesn't fly with me.

Netherworld is a serviceable piece of entertainment. It is quite succinct and it doesn't quite go in the direction I was expecting but on the flipside not a lot does actually happen and when it does it is all over with a bit too quickly. There are few mildly cool things about it. As mentioned, the flying stone hand. The movie has a distinctive atmosphere with an oddly laidback vibe and good use made of the eerie bayou setting. A fair amount of the movie is set in the whore-house and attached bar, which is an interesting, if goofy, location. There are brawls breaking out there constantly, weird masked figures roaming the corridors, it is big and creepy with a system of tunnels underneath, a jazz band playing constantly, lots of weird mystical trappings and a crazy prostitute who claims to be Marilyn Munroe brought back from the dead. Though to be honest if I were inclined to go to brothels I would probably pick one less creepy and weird, even if the prostitutes are as unfeasibly attractive as the ones at this place. There are a few other touches I liked, such as the bird motif. It is indicated the victims of Delores and her flying stone hand have their souls trapped in the birds she keeps caged about the place and those somehow affect by her magic find feathers growing out of the side of their heads, just above the ears. There is also a creepy lawyer (The best kind), who doesn't do much in the movie other than provide some exposition, who wears for no obvious reason protective leather gloves all the time, who is kind of cool. The soundtrack is quite good and there is an amusing post credits joke that you would have to watch the movie to understand. On the downside protagonist Corey Thompson is played and scripted in the ways of the bland is better school of characterisation and is pretty useless. There is also a really bad voice-over near the start of the movie which tries to be deep and mysterious by constantly using two or three adjectives when only one would suffice e.g. 'It was unknowable, unimaginable, inconceivable. Fortunately, or unfortunately depending on your tastes, it disappears for most of the film.

On the whole, you could do better but you could do worse. I just wish they had made a sequel focusing the flying stone hand.

Poor movie, some nasty special effects and several beautiful girls are the ingredients of a horror movie that makes you smile, unintentionally, at how bad it was done.

Other reviewers were right on the mark - it had promise and atmosphere, but really went nowhere. I recall one genre reviewer dismissing one Full Moon release as "another talkfest" and I have to agree - their scripts and sometimes the direction just weren't well paced and seem padded out. However, you have to at least watch the end credits for an in-joke that you'll get if you didn't fall asleep. It was the best laugh I had that day.

Netherworld is another dull, low-budget clunker from Full Moon Entertainment, director David Schmoeller failing to embrace the cheesiness of his material, leading to a lacklustre horror film that aims for sexy and stylish, with a side-order of surreality, but which misses the mark on all counts.

Michael Bendetti leads a no-name cast as Corey Thornton, heir to his father's Louisiana estate, which comes complete with housekeeper Mrs Palmer (Anjanette Comer), her jailbait daughter Diane (Holly Floria, who is clearly too old for the part), creepy lawyer Beauregard Yates, Esq. (Robert Burr), and unsavoury neighbours, the rowdy crowd at swampside bar/brothel Tonk's Place.

Soon after arriving at the home of his late father, Corey learns of his old man's dying wishes: to be revived from the dead via that ol' black magic, as practised by voodoo queen Delores (Denise Gentile), who has a supernatural connection with birds, those she entrances bearing feathers in their hair (Why? I really couldn't say).

As Corey slowly falls under Delores's spell, the viewer is treated to some weird stuff involving strange characters with bizarre facial features, a saxophone player with a really bad hair style, a flying stone hand that attacks people (!?!), a beating bird's heart, astral projection, women sharing a bath, and Corey's zombie father, all of which might have been fun if it hadn't been for Schmoeller's lame attempt at classy direction.

2.5 out of 10, rounded up to 3 for the music, which isn't bad despite the musician's dodgy barnet.

I have seen this DVD so many times and last I've seen it cheap so I thought, looks nice. And I remember it being analyzed in an old Fangoria which looks nice. But did I regret it that I bought it. Nothing really happens at all, except a lot of birds you see and I mean real birds. Denise Gentile, playing the main lead is a nice and beautiful girl to watch and I guess that was the main attraction. There is a hand flying around, reminded me of Phantasm. But take a look when it was made. 1992, really a period when horror was not done and on his lowest as it can get. This shows why. There is maybe just 5 minutes of horror in it, the rest is blah blah and seducing each other. Okay, there is a bit of nudity in it but it is all too late. And then there is the score coming right out a cheap porn flick, just even look at the guys playing at a bayou club. One song is played entirely while both main characters are trying to make love. Let's hope that the real netherworld does deliver...I should have known it being a Full Moon (Charles Band!) release.

"Netherworld" is a typical Full Moon's horror flick-entertaining for a while,but not really memorable.The cast is decent,the photography is pretty good and the story is okay.Basically it's about one guy,who with the help of a sexy witch tries to re-animate his dead father.Not very violent,although there are two or three gore scenes made by Mark Shostrom("The Mutilator").The film is also quite atmospheric and relatively well-made.David Schmoeller("Tourist Trap")is definitely a talented genre director.Anyway,if you like horror movies I would recommend this one.Not the greatest horror flick ever made,but worth checking out.

NETHERWORLD (1992)

BASIC PLOT: A man, Corey Thornton (Michael Bendetti), returns home to Louisiana, after his father, Noah (Robert Sampson), dies, to claim his estate. It's an old world plantation, with many strange happenings, and people. Corey, who never knew his father, becomes preoccupied with him, by reading his father's diaries. He begins dreaming of his father's mistress, Delores (Denise Gentile). He is warned by Diane Palmer (Holly Floria), the daughter of the woman who runs the plantation, against going to the backwoods brothel where Delores works. But his dreams keep intensifying, and the pull is strong. There are many powerful Voodoo Queens about, but which one can he trust? Is there a way to discover his father's true intentions, before his passions consume him?

WHAT WORKS: *This is an atmospheric, plain and simple. The only problem here, is they forgot to layout the plot and characters, so what you are left with, falls short. It does have beautiful locations, and beautiful people.

*Louisiana Voodoo is it's own religion, separate from Haitian Voodoo, Cuban Sanitaria, or Hoodoo. It is heavily dominated by women, Voodoo priestesses, which this movie accurately portrays. The women have the real power in the movie, and in the spiritual arts of Louisiana.

*Imprisoning souls in birds, is a cool take on an old Haitian Voodoo practice, but doesn't have much to do with reality. I can forgive this, it is fiction after all, but one cool plot device, can't carry the whole movie.

WHAT DOESN'T WORK: *There's no plot, not really. I'm a huge fan of Full Moon Productions, and this is not terrible, but it leaves a lot to be desired.

*There's no character development AT ALL! Not one character had a backstory, it's all surface. He's an accountant, a henchman, a prostitute, does that tell you anything? NO!

TO RECOMMEND, OR NOT TO RECOMMEND, THAT IS THE QUESTION: *If you are a fan of Full Moon movies, you might want to see this. If you like movies that contain Voodoo, or Louisiana locations, you might like this. Otherwise, I'd probably give this a pass. It had real potential, they just never utilized any of it.

CLOSING NOTES: *I have no connection to the film, or production in ANY way. I am just an honest viewer, who wishes for more straight forward reviews. Hope I helped you out.

I was so pleased to find a copy of this film in the bargain bin at Walmart last weekend. I'd been watching my old VHS copy I'd purchased from my local movie rental place in the early 1990s for the last couple of decades. This film was underrated in my opinion. It makes me wonder if it was just never properly marketed in a way that it could find it's audience? Everyone that I've ever shown it to has loved it. The film is the perfect amount of voodoo mysticism, great gore effects, and an entertaining plot all in a beautiful but eerie setting. It contains an extremely talented cast and director. The plot line is very well written. I always hope there is really a place like Tonk's out there and I'll stumble upon it someday.

This movie seems to be a surprisingly gentle film for its genre.I think the sound track lures you into this feeling.With the music luring you into such a tranquil feeling. There are a few surprises in the form of rushes that will catch you totally off guard.I found that my main interest focused on the sound track.Some very " comforting" sounds.On a scale of 1 to 10, I would give the movie an over all rating of 7 1/2 to 8.I would also like to locate a copy of the sound track for home use.

Netherworld (1992) is a Full Moon Pictures movie I recently watched on Tubi. The storyline follows a young man who wants to get to know his father better and decides to move in with him in his mansion in Louisiana. Shortly after moving in he quickly discovers why his father has kept him away, there's a practicing cult in the very mansion he resides in...

This movie is directed by David Schmoeller (Tourist Trap) and stars Michael Bendetti (21 Jump Street), Denise Gentile (Quantum Leap), Anjanette Comer (The Baby) and Robert Sampson (Re-Animator).

This was a crazy movie. The acting and writing is fairly mediocre. This movie is entirely focused around a killer prop...that's a glove. Seriously. 😂 The movie focuses too much on the settings and circumstances and not enough on the horror elements. There is 1-2 fun kill scenes that prevents this from being a complete waste of time, but not enough to make it "good."

Overall this is a below average addition to the genre that I would score a 4/10 but would still recommend seeing once.

Given my fascination and love of the horror genre, then of course I had to sit down and watch the 1992 movie "Netherworld" when I stumbled upon it by random chance here in 2023. I had actually never heard about the movie prior to watching it, so I had no clue as to what I was in for.

Initially I was somewhat thrilled to see that Charles Band was involved with this movie, as he does have some fairly interesting titled to his name.

Writers David Schmoeller and Charles Band put together an interesting script and storyline, I will say that. However, the movie also feels somewhat chaotic and disjointed, as if director David Schmoeller was sort of half ignoring the script and making things up as filming progressed. Sure, "Netherworld" was watchable, but I don't feel that I have been missing out on a horror gem here.

The acting performances in "Netherworld" were adequate. And it was a cast ensemble that I wasn't familiar with.

Visually then "Netherworld" doesn't really impress, as there weren't that much special effects being used. Whatever effects were in the movie were adequate enough, taking into consideration the age of the movie. However, it is effects that haven't particularly aged all that well.

All in all, a watchable movie, though it was a movie that left no particularly lasting impression on me. And thus, my rating of "Netherworld" lands on a four out of ten stars.

...since it involves birds more than nethers, and is an absolute turkey.

The premise for the dullest film ever made goes like this: Cory inherits his recently deceased father's huge estate, so he travels to Louisiana to check out the place. There he meets the estate's caretakeress and her daughter, and also finds out about a nearby brothel, run by a mysterious woman. So now Cory must decide if he's going to be one of the undead bird people his father apparently rooted for, or just the cool and wealthy loverboy he's clearly thriving for. While he contemplates this for around 80 minutes, various strange occurrences take place. Intermittently.

If prompted, I'm pretty sure I could explain in detail what happens and why in this film but I sure hope that will never happen. At first it feels like it's slightly ripping off Lucio Fulci's spectacular mess of a film The Beyond (the parts concerning unexplained violence and the house inheritance) but then it reminds me of Phantasm (brothel instead of graveyard, seductress instead of tall man, a flying concrete hand with fingers replaced by snakes instead of the flying marble thing). Turns out it is ne(i)ther.

The oh-so-profitable low-budget horror market was winding down by the early 90s, so it was time to try other things. Basic Instinct introduced the modern erotic thriller, and that was hot at the time, so that's the way they went. Directed by David Schmoller (hailed for his work on Tourist Trap and arguably the most well-known Full Moon film Puppet Master) it should have been a fair effort, combining a stylish mystery with the supernatural and the softer than softcore erotica.

The supernatural effects are entertaining, but about 30 seconds of bloodshed and stop-motion snakes in a film that feels like it lasts three hours won't make a difference. The erotic moments are so far-removed from anything touching or enticing that I'd probably get more fired-up by reading out-loud old Jallu Magazines (a finnish adult media primarily known for their raunchy content in the conservative 1970s). The ridiculous and uneventful plot could be forgiven if the film stood out in any of these areas, but it's so dull and uninspired throughout, there's just no salvation.

Having said all that, you have to forgive this film for its flaws, since it was clearly a rushed production not capable to reach its actual potential - whatever that might have been. There are a few silly scenes where it shows notably, like when we see the flying hand from pov perspective and the camera cart's shadow is visible on the wall. There's also a moment when Holly Floria forgets her southern accent, even though through the rest of the film she exaggerates it with such a finesse Daniel Craig would be proud.

To be completely honest, there are a couple of atmospheric moments. The seedy blues tunes played by Edgar Winter sort of strengthen the hazy feeling for people like me from the other side of the pond, that this is exactly what life in the american deep south must be like. There's a cheesy and jazzy love theme as well, played by none other than Bon Jovi's keyboardist. Gladly Mr. Bongiovi isn't there to vocalize the scene, since that would make me automatically remove a star.

The film has a few gags too, some of which I was able to enjoy. The best one is a cameo, played by the director himself, as a bartender who constantly rolls a beer bottle on the tip of his finger. That is a seriously astonishing ability I did not know human beings are capable of. Imagine how many bottles he must've smashed while practicing!

Lastly, I must mention that this film truly testifies that Charles Band and Roger Corman share the same dna. Netherworld has ne(i)ther the starpower or the set designs that made the Poe-era Corman movies memorable, but it does have the exact same sleep-inducing effect. It's not much but it is something!

Also, it can't be completely redundant since it evoked such a lengthy review from me. Thanks for reading!

(1992) Netherworld HORROR

Co-written and directed by David Schmoeller that has Mr Yates (Robert Burr) fetching estranged son, Corey Thorton (Michael Benedetti) he has not seen in years, to inform him that his father has died and had left everything to him. However, by the time Corey shows up, he is then given specific instructions in terms of his insurrection after meeting the caretaker, Mrs. Palmer (Anjanette Comer) and her daughter, Diane (Holly Floria).

There's a brothel nearby the mansion Corey inherited Diane warns him not to go ithere, but of course, he does not listen. And it was during at this time, he becomes infatuated or entranced to a demon-like lady named Delores (Denise Gentile) to whom she plays a part in reviving Corey's father.

Just when I thought "Netherworld" had a bad ending, it doesn't, therefore I give this movie a thumbs up. The downside is that although there are some gory moments, it is far from being scary.

I give the producers of this movie credit for great type casting. The actors did a great job in helping to make this unique movie and enjoyable. I hope someday someone will come along and remaster it to be seen in HD. I really like horror movies that rely on great story lines instead of gratuitous cheesy special effects.

I actually thought I was in for something interesting during the first few minutes of this film, the section I'll call "the prologue". It was atmospheric and strange enough to hold some promise. Unfortunately, I kept waiting for something to happen for the rest of the movie, and very little does, except for the last 10 minutes when I finally learned what the title really means, and that I had been had, big time. This isn't scary, suspenseful or even erotic as the trailer suggested, the only positive thing I can say about it is that it's well photographed. I certainly expected more from the director of Tourist Trap and the original Puppet Master. Netherworld is an infuriating disappointment.