It was about time I got around to featuring a Paul Naschy movie (I might even feature him in the near future), and what better movie to suggest than the first of his many...many...werewolf movies: La Marca del Hombre-lobo, aka (in the USA) Frankenstein's Bloody Terror!
One of the many victims of really crappy dubbing and inappropriate cutting for American audiences, I'd suggest just getting a hold of the original Spanish language version and watching it with subtitles. There isn't even a Frankenstein monster in the movie...until we got our hands on it. Then we threw this little bit in there...solely to attach this movie as a double feature to an actual Frankenstein movie.
Bitching about cinema massacres aside, 'La Marca del Hombre-lobo' is a pretty fun little ride. Dramatic shots with plenty of gaudy lighting. A fancy costume party. Make-up reminiscent of the Wolfman, perhaps if he let his mane grow out...clearly it would influence the designs for Game of Werewolves...I could go on for ages.
Honestly, until I watched this, I thought the twist in the Wolfman remake was a bit...odd. Particularly where the curse originated, but once I saw La Marca, I realized it was a reference to this movie, making Benicio's film a combination of the original Wolfman and essentially the Spanish one.
Bottom line, Naschy is just a fantastic actor. Even if the movies he was in weren't always as good as him, he was great onscreen. That's why this week's featured film is La Marca del Hombre-lobo/Frankenstein's Bloody Terror/The Mark of the Wolfman/The Vampire of Dr. Dracula/The Werewolf's Mark/Les vampires du Dr. Dracula/Hell's Creatures/O horos ton vrykolakon/Le notti de Satana/Etc. Etc. There are so many titles for this movie, by the time you're done reading the list, you forget the plot.
No comments:
Post a Comment