Slow pace in the most part of the movie.

I wanted to like it more than I actually did... But much of the humor totally escaped me and I walked out only mildly impressed.

Excellent and certainly provocative... If nothing else, the film is a real conversation starter.

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

For a good while after it was first released, ABBY was a difficult film to see: that's because Warner Bros, the producers of the THE EXORCIST, sued AIP, the producers of ABBY, claiming that it was nothing more than a cheap rip-off of their classic horror film. Well, they were right. ABBY is a rip-off, and that's obvious right from the very beginning; both films are about possessed women and the exorcist attempting to save them; both have similar scenes of mini-hurricanes tearing up the inside of the rooms, and even the demons sound alike. Still, most of the B-movies I watch are rip-offs of one film or another, so I didn't let this fact bother me too much.ABBY starts off on a good footing. This time around, the demon is an African one, accidentally released on an archaeological dig by the exorcist himself. I liked this angle; it worked well. Early scenes of Abby suffering possession are genuinely creepy; there's lots of saliva and an excruciating moment when she self-harms. However, about halfway through the movie, the plot seems to lose momentum; this may be because the production was interrupted by severe tornadoes and the bad luck that apparently plagued it thereafter. The last half of the film has Abby going on a rampage through town, making love to unsuspecting guys and killing them (although we never see what happens). This latter part of the film is quite dull, padded out with endless scenes of disco dancing and bad acting from some extras, and it only picks up in the last ten minutes for an exorcism that promises more than it delivers.Essentially, the low budget is what hampers this film. Carol Speed, who is quite effective as the possessed woman, doesn't wear any make-up towards the end like Linda Blair did; she has a pair of scary contact lenses, but otherwise it's all down to her fierce expression. The supernatural stuff is limited to furniture and people being thrown around rooms which quickly becomes tiresome, although there's a hilarious aside in which a limo starts smoking which didn't make much sense; more stuff like that would have made this a better film. Director William Girdler, whose short-lived '70s career produced half a dozen cheapie horrors, works hard at instilling atmosphere and dread, and he succeeds in disturbing the viewer with some subliminal inserts of a rubbery demon head. But that's about it.The cast is decent for a low-budget '70s blaxploitation movie. Headlining it is William Marshall, well-known of course for his turn as BLACULA, who puts in another good turn as the commanding exorcist. Carol Speed, as Abby, is very convincing, and outdoes what Linda Blair did; while Blair's horrific performance relied on special effects, Speed's relies on her acting ability, and she comes up trumps. Also along for the ride are Austin Stoker (ASSAULT ON PRECINCT 13), playing a hard-ass cop who may well be a forerunner to his character in the John Carpenter film, and Terry Carter, giving a strong performance as Abby's put-upon husband. For fun, I spotted British character actor Don Henderson as a sleazy nightclub patron, just before he appeared as the titular menace in the Peter Cushing flick THE GHOUL.If the second half of this movie had been as strong as the first half, I would have enjoyed it far more. But I can't help thinking that the behind-the-scenes troubles succeeded in scuppering this film's promising aspects.

Though I knew there were some DVD copies around, I guess I should thank YouTube for finally being able to watch this movie since that's where I discovered it. Having seen it, I can see why Warner Brothers sued and won their lawsuit against American International for blatantly copying WB's hit The Exorcist. Sure, the differences are that one involved a girl child and the other a grown woman but they both have shaking furniture and demonic possession in which they both say very vulgar things involving sex. Okay, with that out of the way, let me say what I think of it. I thought it was hilarious whenever the title character played by Carol Speed had-through the voice of Bob Holt-said all those blatantly provocative remarks to various people but after that, I managed to also find some genuine scares and thrills. Both Ms. Speed and William Marshall as Bishop Garnet Williams who tries to get the demon out of her provide great presence in their scenes together. But the supporting players of Terry Carter (Rev. Emmett Williams, Abby's husband and Garnet's son), Austin Stoker (Abby's brother Det. Cass Potter), and especially Juanita Moore (Miranda "Momma" Potter) also hold their own against them. If there's one thing I have a beef with, it's the print I watched. Perhaps because of that lawsuit, no one's bothered to restore it. So the one I saw looked washed out. Still, the sound wasn't bad so that's a plus. Really, all I'll say now is if you get the chance to watch Abby, go for it! P.S. How interesting that after not sharing a scene in The Mack, Ms. Speed and Ms. Moore played daughter and mother in this. And nice to hear Carol's writing and singing skills with the song "My Soul is a Witness".

I remember seeing this movie with my father as a teenager in Chicago.as a matter of fact we saw it 9 times in one day.from am to pm.glad we did because it was pull off by a lawsuit by good o warner bros.The Exorcist was good for the white folks and scare a lot of us.Abby was a version for the afro-American.just like Blacula version of Dracula.Carol speed did her best performance since The Mack.the late William Marshall playing the black priest leashing out the sexual demon from Africa..the f/x was cheesy but funny.what do you want from a movie that only cost $200,000 to make.William Girdler never get to see the $4 millions but wasn't afraid to challenge the exorcist or warner bros.this was all a races attack,because beyond the door wasn't attack as much as Abby.but i agree that Abby should be release on a good DVD remaster.Cinefear is okay but it's like watching a bootleg version.i enjoy Abby back then and i still enjoy Abby today in the good o tropical island..

William Girdler, the king of Kentucky trash film-making, ran into legal hassles when this black version of Warner Brothers' THE EXORCIST hit theaters. Despite making tons of money at the box office, WB had the film withdrawn because of similarities to their Friedkin blockbuster and it's been tough to see ever since. Is it worth tracking down? Well, it has its crazy moments, but is no camp classic.Carol Speed (THE MACK, THE BIG BIRD CAGE) is Abby, the happy-go-lucky marriage counselor wife of the local preacher. When her father-in-law (William Marshall, BLACULA himself) unearths the remains of a demon in an expedition in Africa, for some reason the spirit of the denizen of Hell transfers itself to Abby's body back in the U.S. At first, Abby just does crazy things like slicing her arm with a butcher knife and coughing hysterically during her husband's sermon, but soon she's speaking in a deep baritone voice, sexually insatiable and spouting obscenities til the sun comes up. Marshall returns after a desperate phone call from his son, leading to a good-vs-evil showdown at the local disco (!).Girdler's film is one of those films which made the 70s so great. Lots of big Afro's, wacka-wacka musical score and the filmmakers throwing in everything but the kitchen sink to please the drive-in crowd. Yep, there's the typical EXORCIST-influenced puking and deep man's voice throwing out profanity; the quick-shots of the demon's face are even copied with Speed appearing in goofy green make-up. It's a goofy enough rip-off to provide enjoyment to fans of 70s exploitation, but just don't expect it to blow you away. Girdler sets up suspense quite well during the first 20 minutes, but lets it all hang out by the time Abby is possessed.The cast includes blaxploitation favorites Terry Carter and Austin Stoker, as well as Juanita Moore (IMITATION OF LIFE) as Abby's momma. But this is Carol Speed's movie all the way. She digs her claws into this role with a vengeance, and strangely this would be her last starring role before her early retirement. Did the film do damage to her career or did she call it quits for other reasons? Who knows... Worth tracking down, even on the unauthorized ugly quality DVD from Cinefear Video. The print is very red and splicy, but this is the only place you can get this; all other versions stem from their 35mm print.