Spanish horror

Rojo Sangre

Rojo Sangre (2004)

Pablo Thenevet (Paul Naschy) is an aging actor down on his luck. After playing many classic characters on stage and on screen, he is now relegated to pitiful walk-on roles and sucking up to his scumbag agent. After making a deal with Reficul (Miguel Del Arco), owner of a decadent nightclub to make appearances dressed as the great murderers in history such as Jack the Ripper and Ivan the Terrible. Now back on his feet, Pablo turns to executing those that have offended him. Unfortunately, Pablo did not read the fine print of his contract and now he must pay for his recent successes with his soul.

Spanish horror icon Paul Naschy is excellent in this well-made though rather odd film. The editing is top notch, even inspiring and the camerawork is flawless. CGI effects are mostly well done with a few awkward moments but nothing too awful or embarrassing. While quickly paced, the ironic and comically cruel story has a strange (and only occasionally hokey) flow to it and the ending is very bizarre as well.

Naschy fans will be very pleased to see the great Jacinto Molina still in fine form this late in his career. The script (written by Naschy himself) gives the actor a chance to vent some rage at the state of the film industry. The opening conversation where Pablo explains to a fellow actor why he enjoys putting mice in a very special place is a riot. There is plenty of blood, gore, sex, and sadism to be found in this surprising little number from Spain.

Faceless

faceless

Faceless (1987)

Helmut Berger plays Dr. Frank Flamand, a plastic surgeon who will go to any lengths to help repair the scarred face of his sister, Ingrid. He is drugging and kidnapping women to find the perfect candidate for a facial transplant. His assistant, Nathalie (the stunning Brigitte Lahaie), and his henchman, Gordon, are willing to do anything to assist the good doctor in his scheme. When they kidnap an American fashion model named Barbara (played by Caroline Munro), her father (Savalas) hires a private eye named Sam (Mitchum) to find her. Dr. Frank manages to track down a Nazi doctor who is more than happy to perform the potentially deadly operation. Can detective Sam find Barbara and rescue her before she loses her face?

Wow, what an evil creature this is. Faceless is a sadistic tribute (Tribute? Remake? Parody? Whatever!) to Georges Franju’s Eyes Without A Face. It’s difficult to compare this gorefest with Franco’s earlier works. Clearly, he was trying to tap into the splatter trend of horror flicks of the 80s and I’m sure glad he did. Franco fills this wacky flick with cornball pop music, ludicrous characters, and opportunities for softcore lovin’ wherever he can.

The worst part about this movie, without a doubt, is Christopher Mitchum. He is the hammiest ham that ever hammed a ham and I can’t figure out how he got involved in the project. The part of Sam Morgan, private eye seems to have been written for a much older actor and Mitchum never even comes close to fitting the bill. The only scene where he seems at home is when he gets into a fistfight with the stereotypically gay fashion photographer’s muscle-bound bodyguard.

The kitschy quality of Faceless may put off some viewers. For instance, the cornball pop music that is interspersed throughout the film should produce mild hysterics or nausea. Luckily for Franco, the horrifying elements of the film are truly horrifying. Most of the special effects are very well done; although there is a certain rotting severed head that could have used a little more work. Dang, it looked good when it came off but now I’m not sure. Well, just throw some maggots on it. Perfect!

If you’re looking to get into the films of Jess Franco, then please choose another gateway such as Vampyros Lesbos or The Diabolical Doctor Z. Faceless is not very much like his other films although it has some traces of his style. Don’t expect a classic here but get ready to enjoy some nice Euro-cheese with several gory moments that you won’t soon forget. Plus anything with Brigitte Lahaie (Grapes Of Death) is worth watching. Right?

Exorcism

exorcism

Exorcism (1975)

After getting high at a black mass, Leila (Grace Mills) and her fiancé, Richard, get into a car accident. Afterwards, Leila begins to exhibit strange behavior and a change in personality. Her mother, Patricia, asks Father Adrian (Paul Naschy), to come and speak to Leila, who may only be reacting to her car accident or grieving over the recent passing of her father. Father Adrian has trouble getting Leila to speak to him and her overprotective brother, John, is no help either. When John turns up dead and Leila’s behavior begins to worsen, Father Adrian believes that she may be possessed by an evil spirit.

I have to confess that I have an inexplicable affinity for European clones of The Exorcist. For some reason these lighter versions of the film just strike a chord with me. My favorites are The Antichrist and the chilling (and delightfully cheesy) Beyond the Door. When I found out that Paul Naschy had written and starred in a Spanish exorcism flick, I just had to check it out.

Director Juan Bosch (The Killer with a Thousand Eyes) brings this awkward genre oddity to life. The film has a very atmospheric punch to it and an undeniably European feel. The rickety plot is a little off (a possessed dog and that confusing final shot) and oh man, those day-for-night filters. The original Exorcist is blatantly borrowed from but Exorcism has its own agenda. Both the attention-grabbing soundtrack and the swaying Satanists are just so dang wild.

Paul Naschy (Werewolf Shadow) is excellent in this film and his character is very well written. Father Adrian wants to help Leila and her family but his approach is very gentle and caring. He doesn’t want to impose his opinion on anyone unless he feels they really need help. And when it comes time to kick some paranormal ass, well, the man does what needs to be done.

Grace Mills does a fine job as Leila, a girl possessed by the spirit of her dead father (not the devil for a change). The dynamic role of Leila gives Mills a chance to go through a wide range of emotions and act her butt off underneath a ton of nasty friggin’ makeup which she pulls off superbly. The rest of the cast is decent but it’s really Naschy and Mills’s show.

While not a great film by any means, Exorcism is still holds a unique place in the Naschy canon. It gives the actor a chance to show that he could be subtle (and not turn into a werewolf) even when the film is not. Unfortunately, the plot feels pretty rushed and there are some details that need expanding. I think this would be a terrible starting point for folks interested in Naschy (try Horror Rises from the Tomb for that) but if you’re down with “Exorcist Lite” movies like I am, then give this one a spin.

“Demon from Hell, you’ll not deceive me. She is not guilty. It’s you, because you’re inside her.”

The Swamp of the Ravens

swampoftheravens

The Swamp of the Ravens (1974)

Dr. Frosta (Ramiro Oliveros) has been conducting illegal and immoral experiments on the recently deceased in an effort to conquer death and perfect the mental control of his subjects. All that Simone (Marcia Bichette), his estranged girlfriend, knows is that the doctor works too hard and doesn’t give her enough attention. The police inspector (played by Fernando Sancho) assigned to the case is getting closer and closer to catching and stopping Dr. Frosta. The obsessive doctor is pushed over the edge when Simone starts seeing another man and he decides to use her as his next test subject.

I was lead to The Swamp of the Ravens by this poster. Much like the video-store days of my youth, clever and beautifully morbid artwork have steered me wrong in the best way possible. While very, very far from obscure Spanish horror perfection, the film does deliver on the fog-enshrouded swamp and the ravens. Well, there are some ravens. Mostly, the swamp is populated by buzzards. Anyway, let’s get down to business.

The eerie mood and the sickening tone of this film communicate one thing: death is everywhere. I still can’t believe that director Manuel Caño is the same guy who brought us the inept and idiotic Voodoo Black Exorcist. He really outdoes himself here by taking a film with a lame, somewhat confusing, and tired plot and filling it with an atmosphere so heavy, it’s suffocating. A classic horror tale unfurling in a somnambulitic 70s haze? Oh, I’m already there, duder. Oh yeah, and that badass cinematography comes from Manuel Merino of Horror Rises from the Tomb and Vampyros Lesbos.

Most of the cast doesn’t do much for me but the intense Ramiro Oliveros (Cannibal Apocalypse, The Pyjama Girl Case) works as Dr. Frosta. And Fernando Sancho makes for a great police inspector who perfectly delivers some dark humor. Marcia Bichette is pretty good as Dr. Frosta’s imperiled girlfriend but only shines when it’s time for her to scream.

The film’s fiery finale would be more satisfying if the damn thing had ended there. I won’t give anything away but let me just say that the final wrap-up is completely awful. Instead of a horde of Dr. Frosta’s zombies going on a rampage we get something much, much cheaper. Oh well, can’t win ’em all! Another unfortunate misstep is that The Swamp of the Ravens has a pretty slow pace but I barely even noticed because this flick is so grim and so odd. What’s that? Necrophilia and a (supposedly) real autopsy? Now, you’ve got my attention!

“I don’t like buzzards. They are birds of death.”