Bridget O’Brien (Anastasia Elfman, The Once and Future Smash, Aliens, Clowns & Geeks) is a red-haired waitress and burlesque dancer at a Van Nuys dive bar where she performs Grand Guignol-style dance routines with her partners Pepe (Marcos Mateo Ochoa) and Leticia (Naomi de la Cruz) while avoiding the sexual come-ons of her boss Tony (Tom Ayers).

Her life isn’t all that great, despite her perky attitude. Her boyfriend Edwin (Christian Prentice) basically sleeps around right in her face and the guy who seems like a knight in shining armor, a lawyer named Goldman (Adam J. Smith) assaults her and she ends up in jail when she fights back. She’s soon attacked all over again by a female prison guard and tries to kill herself before she’s saved by Baron Samedi (Jean Charles), who thinks that she’s the reincarnation of his long-dead wife, Maman Brigitte, the former Celtic goddess who has become a Haitian death goddess who drinks the blood and hearts of evil men.

He recreates the lost woman in the image of that scarlet woman and sets her on the path of revenge. But soon, she wants her soul back, as Samadi slept with her to give her the power when she was drunk on spirits from the spirit world. And yet Satan (Richard Elfman, who directed and wrote this) claims that sometimes, women will do that. I’m certain lots of folks will be upset by this moment but I am even more certain that Elfman doesn’t care. Have you seen Forbidden Zone?

If you haven’t seen a movie by Richard Elfman, well…buckle up. There’s a stand-up routine in here that’s more offensive than in like ten Hollywood films. Doesn’t mean it’s good, but it’s in there. What is great, however, is the look of the film, the music and the lunatic energy. I mean, what other film has a father and son lawyer duo — Daniel Dershowitz Sr. and Jr. (Rick Howland and Evan Eckenrod) — trying a case in Hell?

You can learn more at the official site.

Bloody Bridget is part of the Popcorn Frights Film Festival. You can get a virtual pass to watch the festival from August 10 to 20. To learn more, visit the official site. To keep track of what movies I’ve watched from this Popcorn Frights, check out this Letterboxd list.