Lemora!

 

LEMORA: A CHILD'S TALE OF THE SUPERNATURAL-1973-Gangster Alvin Lee (William Whitton) kills his wife and her lover. While escaping he's taken prisoner by the mysterious Lemora (Lesley Gilb in her only film role) and her pale faced followers. Lemora learns that Alvin's daughter  Lila Lee (Cheryl Smith), is "the singin' angel" at a church run by an uptight Reverend (director Richard Blackburn) who is also Lila's guardian. Lemora writes a letter to Lila supposedly on behalf of her father asking Lila to come see her dad as he is dying. Lila kind of runs away and takes a bus driven by a sleazebag (Hy Pyke) who rants about the town Astaroth and it's inhabitants. The bus is attacked by some kind of zombie monsters who kill the driver. Lila is taken prisoner.

 While trying to escape she meets Lemora, obviously a vampire. Later she discovers that Lemora is kind of a vampire queen who drinks the blood of children. Creatures in the woods have some kind of disease that makes them animalistic. They are at war with Lemora's followers. Meanwhile The Reverend searches for his charge. It seems Lemora either wants Lita for her successor, partner or both. 

This movie is very strange, well directed and acted but not perfect right up to the ambiguous final scene. 

Director Blackburn later wrote EATING RAOUL and was the voice for Dr. Zaius in the animated “Return To The Planet Of The Apes” TV show. Unfortunately Lemora portrayer Glib was killed in an automobile accident in 2009. The tragic Cheryl Smith was in CAGED HEAT and THE SWINGING CHEERLEADERS the next year.

Thanks for reading!