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VIDEO NASTY ARCHIVE ENTRY
The Witch Who Came from the Sea
Original / alternate title: The Witch Who Came from the Sea
A troubled woman working in a seaside bar slips between fantasy, trauma and violence as buried memories distort her sense of reality. The film is both exploitation and character study, using horror imagery to explore abuse, repression and fractured identity.
Film details
| Original / alt title | The Witch Who Came from the Sea |
| Year | 1976 |
| Director | Matt Cimber |
| Country | USA |
| Runtime | Approx. 88 min |
| Main cast | Millie Perkins, Lonny Chapman, Vanessa Brown, Peggy Feury |
UK status
DPP 72 — DROPPED / ACQUITTED
Appeared on the DPP list but was later dropped.
Current UK position:
Passed 18 uncut.
Passed 18 uncut.
Why it caused controversy
The film was placed on the DPP list during the panic because its unclassified VHS release and psychological horror / drama content were considered potentially obscene. The case was later dropped, acquitted or not successfully pursued, so it did not become one of the final 39 successful prosecutions.
UK censorship / Video Nasties history
A quick status check first, followed by the film’s censorship timeline. A DPP prosecution was an obscenity case against a particular video publication — it was not automatically the same thing as a permanent nationwide “ban”.
DPP listYes — DPP 72
Prosecuted?Dropped / acquitted / not successfully prosecuted
Seized?DPP-listed title; the list was used operationally in police raids, but this archive does not claim every individual cassette was seized
Banned / cut / rejected?Modern UK release is uncut; no permanent national ban is recorded here.
Later BBFC certificatePassed 18 uncut.
Now uncut / restored?Passed 18 uncut.
Detailed censorship timeline & facts
1976Released in the United States as an unsettling blend of artful drama and exploitation horror.
British VHS eraIts reputation grew through controversy and the implication of taboo subject matter.
Cult-film criticismWriters began highlighting its psychological depth beneath the exploitation surface.
Home-video rediscoveryRestorations and boutique labels brought the film to a wider cult audience.
TodayOften cited as one of the most unusual and underrated titles connected with the nasty-era conversation.
FACTS & TRIVIA
- Millie Perkins gives the film its emotional core in one of her most striking later performances.
- Dennis Donnelly and Gloria Katz were involved in the screenplay history around the project.
- The film blends sunlit California settings with deeply disturbed subject matter.
- Many modern critics argue that it is more tragic and psychologically rich than the average exploitation film.
- Its mixture of violence, sexuality and trauma made it controversial in censorship debates.
- The title alone gave it a sensational identity that could overshadow its more serious qualities.
- It has become a favourite rediscovery among viewers exploring 'elevated' or art-adjacent exploitation.
Distributor / VHS label
Video release
VTC / Video Tape Center (cover shown).
Trailer
Open a search for the original theatrical / VHS-era trailer. This keeps the archive linking to publicly available trailer sources rather than hosting copyrighted film footage.
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Archive note: the DPP list changed during 1983–84. This site distinguishes the 39 successfully prosecuted titles from the 33 acquitted / dropped titles, and separately labels related censorship-era films.
