Muñecos infernales (1961)

- The Curse of the Doll People
The "dolls" certainly are creepy little buggers, 20 August 2006

I feel very fortunate to have seen the original Spanish version of Munecos infernales instead of the cut, poorly dubbed American film known as The Curse of the Doll People. If you go into Munecos infernales expecting great cinema, you'll probably come away disappointed. But, if you lower those expectations a bit and enjoy the film for what it is, you might just have fun with it.

The plot concerns a group of men who have returned from a trip to Haiti. While there, they witnessed a voodoo ritual and managed to steal a voodoo idol. Before they could get away, however, the voodoo priest put a curse on the men and their families. Now, one by one, the men are dying mysterious deaths.

The best part of Munecos infernales has to be the "dolls". In reality, they're nothing more than midgets with paper-mâché masks that resemble their last victim. It may sound silly, but these are some creepy little buggers that actually manage to create a little atmosphere and sense of dread. On the downside, the film fells terribly padded to extend the runtime. For example, there are a couple of scenes where we see people going through windows that seem to go on forever. I previewed The Curse of the Doll People and, unfortunately, the cuts made to it don't include scenes like this.

6/10