It is so hard to find Horror movies that want to be fun these days. Everything is so serious and depressingly realistic. But thankfully, there is still a small group of filmmakers who just want you to have a good time when you sit down on a Friday night to watch something new. For Sale By Exorcist, from director Melissa LaMartina, is a rip-roaring good time filled with spooky ghosts, goofy gags, and zero complicated metaphors. If you’re looking for something silly after a long work week, this indie horror comedy is just what the witch doctor ordered.Â
Presented as a documentary about ‘real-life’ realtor/certified exorcist Susan Price (Emily Classen), For Sale By Exorcist follows the trials and tribulations of navigating today’s tumultuous real estate market, all while trying to evict some stubborn poltergeist. Over the years, Susan has made a name for herself finding buyers for homes that other realtors have deemed un-sellable. Her customer base is full of unorthodox clients looking for homes that appeal to their darker interests, but it’s hard to make a haunted house a home. You can slap a fresh coat on an old house but if the walls are dripping with blood as soon as you turn your back, you’ve got bigger problems than HGTV can solve.Â
“A rip-roaring good time filled with spooky ghosts & goofy gags.”
Susan is the name in haunted home realty, really carving out a space for her unique talents, but along the way she has also built up a pretty lengthy rolodex of pissed off spirits. Let’s not forget, ghosts have nothing but time on their hands and they can hold a grudge like no body can. Rounding out the cast is a murderers row of kooky characters, including an unordained catholic priest, a black metal band that specializes in banishing evil spirits, and (of course) a gaggle of ghosts including: A group of stoner spirits from the swinging 60s! A phantom that communicates with lipstick messages on mirrors! A spooky TV static specter! And more!
Melissa LaMartina, who beyond celebrating her feature film debut with For Sale By Exorcist is also a star and co-producer of Out There: Halloween Mega Tape (aka WNUF II), a member of a monster-obsessed surf rock band Beech Creeper, and if that’s not enough, moonlights as Horror Host Aurora Gorealis (who was recently nominated for a Rondo Award if you want to give her a vote). Melissa LaMartina, and her creative partner Chris LaMartina (who both cameo in the film as a married couple in a love triangle with a succubus lol) are two of the hardest working creeps on the planet, and every project she’s a part of it is Grade A Independent Gold.
“If you’re looking for something silly after a long work week, For Sale By Exorcist is just what the witch doctor ordered. “
For Sale By Exorcist is as homemade as horror can be. It’s got such a charming indie spirit and carries a playful energy that you see so rarely nowadays. It’s inspiring to see so many people come together and work so hard for something so silly, and LaMartina carries her unique flare for the magnificently macabre through every moment of this mad cap mockumentary. If you need to see a million dollars thrown at the screen to have a good time, you’re digging up the wrong grave here, but if you like movies that look like they are made by real people with real senses of humor, For Sale By Exorcist is putting in an competitive offer for a guaranteed good time that you’d be crazy not to take it.
Melissa LaMartina’s For Sale By Exorcist is out now! It’s super fun so go check it out immediately and share your thoughts with us over in the Nightmare on Film Street Discord!