Curse Of The Crying Woman

This quick-off-the-mark Mexican homage to Mario Bava's Black Sunday wastes no time in creating a haunted world that, on its own terms, comes close to giving the Italians a run for their money.

As a coach bearing three travellers continues its journey through an eerie wood, a sightless woman, flanked by three hounds, silently bids her henchman to stop the coach and murder its occupants. Hell of an opening, and, for the viewer, things get even better when Emily (Rosita Arenas) arrives at her Aunt Thelma's spooky hacienda, a matter of hours before her 23rd birthday.

As one of the most renowned films from Churubusca Azteca Studios, The Curse Of The Crying Woman certainly lives up to its reputation, with Rita Macedo taking centre stage as the black magic woman who plans to use her niece to help resurrect one Marianne Lane - 'The Wailing Witch.'
Macebo and Arenas are both excellent here, pushing their compelling battle of wills to the limit, while Salazar (Emily's husband) and Moctezuma (Thelma's hired hand, rescued from the gallows) make for good opposing characters; the real deal, however, comes with some exceptionally unnerving special effects: haunted mirrors, decaying not-quite-dead bodies, Macedo's gobsmacking entrance through a window and a wonderful series of shots featuring satanic rituals, shot with negative film stock - think Benjamin Christenson meets Italian Gothic. Just a few of the highlights from a film which may have come under the scrutiny of a pre-Baron Blood Mario Bava and, possibly, Dario Argento: check out Inferno again and note not only the finale, but also certain dialogue similarities.

Unfortunately, the DVD from Casanegra is now out of print, but well worth the effort to track down.
The film has been remastered from newly restored vault elements, and contains a commentary track from Mexican Cinema expert Michael Liuzza. There's also a full colour booklet,with some terrific poster art and writing on the legend
of La Llorona.

The Bloody Vampire

Wanted: female servant for general duties in the residence of Count Seigfried Von Frankenhausen. Disappearance of previous employee necessitates immediate start. Pay to be negotiated. Living quarters provided.

In this particular case, 'living quarters' means a casket in Von Frankenhausen's underground cave, joining a macabre collection of females who were abducted by the Count (Agosti). While Frankenhausen keeps his new bride (Moss) firmly under lock and key, oblivious to his nocturnal hobby, his sworn enemy, Count Cagliostro (Raxel) agrees that daughter Anna (Palacios) should embark on a fact-finding mission as an undercover maid. Soon, Anna comes up against Frau Hildegarde (Bauman), the Count's loyal confidante, and can only rely on a dazed and confused manservant and a doubting Doctor, who possess all the intellect and logic of your average police inspector.

With a running time of 100 minutes, The Bloody Vampire threatens to outstay it's welcome on several occasions, with long, overly talkative passages containing little to hold the attention. A crying shame really, as the opening minutes promise so much, with a coach and horses silently gliding through woods, driven by a cloaked skeleton and only stopping to regard the body of a man hanging from a tree. The coach's arrival at the Frankenhausen abode - where Frau Hildegarde greets the occupants, surrounded by swirling mist - is, like the previous scene, reminiscent of Murnau's Nosferatu but that's where the comparison ends, leaving Agosti's Count to instigate sudden bursts of other-worldly menace, aided by some decent set designs which come alive as lightning flashes and shadows leap off walls.

Overall, there's just about enough here to repay the viewing time invested, and those with a benevolent sense of humour will love the straight-faced in-fighting between the Count, his wife and their servants; a Mexican version of 'Upstairs, Downstairs' with some rather sadistic torture scenes thrown in for good measure.

Oh yes, and you'll love the wonderful half-bat, half-rabbit creature near the end.

Spiritism. Mexican Horror.

A middle class dinner party takes a turn for the worse when Louis and Mary Howard (Veryan and Fernandez) take part in a seance. Their host, medium Elvira (Ochoa), warns the couple that April 8th will mark the beginning of a tragic period in their lives, and goes on to mention an encounter with inhuman creatures wielding extraordinary powers. The date in question happens to be their 20th wedding anniversary and at the end of an evening of celebration, their son, Rodolpho (Cardona jnr), asks for a loan of $4,000 to finance a new business venture. Sure enough, the first tragedy occurs soon after, eventually prompting the initially sceptical Mary to attempt to hold her family together by doing business with the ultimate loan shark. "

"By the time we reach the one hour mark, Spiritism may come across as an overly-talkative piece that only moves on to crowd-pleasing familiar territory during the final act, which is based on W.W. Jacob's "The Monkey's Paw". This viewpoint, while understandable in some respects, actually does the film a great disservice, as this is really a quality drama about a family falling apart at the seams. Amongst a cast of performers who often leave a lot to be desired, it's Norma Veyran who takes centre stage, wringing every ounce of emotion from her role of concerned wife and increasingly desperate mother.The second seance is probably the main source of ammunition for critics of this film: it's a lengthy scene where Mary - now a commited believer following a wonderfully eerie vision on hallowed ground - attempts to halt the spectre of doom that threatens her family. The troubled abode of Elvira again plays host to a communication with the dead, beginning with some expanded theories regarding the dear departed, and moving to a shattering climax with an unquiet spirit who does not realise she's dead. Perhaps this scene is a little dialogue-heavy, but subsequent viewings may well reveal the script to be less ponderous than first impressions suggest. The only other gripe concerns some terminally dodgy less-than special effects, which suggest a two-way split between paucity of budget and lack of imagination; chief offenders being scare-free apparitions and a botched stand-off between Christ and Satan, though one has to at least applaud the audacious concept of the latter. "

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"Overall, Spiritism is a successful portrait of a family afflicted by the spectre of bad luck, and it's ill-advised attempts to use unconventional means as a way of stopping the rot. Jealousy, lifelong friendships put under intolerable strain, the pain of losing loved ones and the very real fear of growing old and dying poor will doubtless strike a chord with many viewers, while the last 20 minutes deliver the goods for anyone with a spine demanding to be chilled."

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