"Evil comes in many forms..."
Stitches is a 2001 Direct to Video supernatural horror film directed by Neal Marshall Stevens and produced by Full Moon.
Mrs. Albright, an apparently sweet old woman, arrives at a bed and breakfast. However, Albright is not what she seems to be. She's actually a demon who manipulates people with their innermost desires until they make a bargain with her so she can steal their skin to make her skin suit, and starts working her magic on the other guests.
It was later mocked on a 2020 episode of Rifftrax.
This film contains examples of:
- Alternate DVD Commentary: RiffTrax released their comedic commentary in 2020.
- Ambiguously Bi: Albright is perfectly willing to act seductive towards both men and women in order to get their skin, and does have sex with Mrs. Lester, but it's unclear if she would also have sex with men.
- And I Must Scream: Albright stores her victims' souls in paper dolls, which she keeps in a scrapbook. Opening the pages makes their screams audible.
- Attempted Rape: Albright manipulates Mr. Delaney into trying to rape Ms. Lester.
- The Bad Guy Wins: Albright claims every soul in the house.
- Batman Gambit: All of the bargains see Albright playing to a given person's personal desire. The biggest example is the final bargain, where Albright seemingly tortures Catherine to get Gray to give up his soul in order to protect her. After it's done, she remarks to her victim that she knew all along about this characteristic and gloats about exploiting it.
- Big Bad: Mrs. Albright, a manipulative demon sorceress.
- Devil, but No God: Mrs. Albright and her minions/victims are the only supernatural entities we see, and no prayers or holy symbols have any effect on her. Best exemplified when Kathryn holds out a cross necklace to defend herself and Albright remarks that "our kind invented the cross."
- Domestic Abuse: Mr. Delaney berates his wife past the point of tears because she got his cufflinks wrong.
- Downer Ending: Albright claims the souls of everybody in the house. She makes Gray into her new imp, and traps everybody else in paper dolls. The film ends with her leaving the house, musing about how the world will be lovely after everybody is dead.
- Evil Plan: Albright seeks to claim all the souls in a bed and breakfast, revealing at the end that she's plotting to claim everybody's souls.
- Genuine Human Hide: Albright wears suits of human skin to disguise her demonic nature.
- Greater-Scope Villain: The reason Albright is doing what she's doing is because the Devil challenged her to.
- Karma Houdini: The last we see of Albright is her walking away from the scene of her crimes.
- Kick the Dog: Albright tricks one guy into giving her his soul by tricking him into an Attempted Rape to get him shot.
- Laser-Guided Karma: Catherine not only makes a bargain with Albright of her own free will, but she also participates in a scheme to trick Gray into giving up his soul. She even mocks Gray before departing and muses he'll be turned into one of those paper dolls. That is instead her fate.
- Manipulative Bastard: Albright plays off of people's greatest desires in order to get them to make bargains, which end with her taking their skin.
- Omnicidal Maniac: Albright thinks that Earth will be lovely once "all is silent."
- One-Word Title
- Our Demons Are Different: These are manipulative fiends who wear perfect disguises made of human skin and trap souls in horrible fates via deals.
- The Sociopath: Albright, a demon who manipulates people into fulfilling their desires so she can trap their souls in eternal torment and intends to do this to the entire world on a bet with the Devil.
- Too Dumb to Live: Catherine completely buys the idea she can become a "queen of Hell" by agreeing of her own free will to join Albright. Albright herself muses that "amazing. I think it's actually going to be a surprise to her" that Catherine ends up just another one of her dolls.
- Villain Opening Scene: The film opens with Albright making her skin suit.
- You Fool!: Gray to Catherine after learning of that given bargain.
