Frankenstein's Bloody Terror (1968)

- La marca del Hombre-lobo
A whole lot of fun and my new favorite Naschy film, 25 July 2006

Finally! I've been searching and searching for a Paul Naschy film that appeals to me. And I'm so happy to have discovered one. After sitting through some less than stellar offerings like Vengeance of the Zombies and Dr. Jekyll vs. the Werewolf, I've finally found a winner. I won't go so far as to proclaim it as one of the best horror movies I've ever seen, but Frankenstein's Bloody Terror is a whole lot of fun and easily the best Naschy film I've so far run across.

To begin with, Frankenstein's Bloody Terror has absolutely nothing to do with either the good doctor or his creation. It seems that an American distributor was promised a Frankenstein movie, but was given a werewolf film instead. Undaunted, the distributor decided to stick with the Frankenstein name he probably had already worked into advertising. Thus Frankenstein's Bloody Terror becomes a werewolf/vampire slugfest.

Frankenstein's Bloody Terror is something of a historical movie for horror fans. It marks the first time Naschy would play Waldemar Daninsky and his cursed alter-ego that Naschy turned into something of a cottage industry. In this one, the residents of a small village blame a series of deaths on wolves. Daninsky joins a hunting party and is bitten, not by a wolf, but by a werewolf before he is able to subdue the creature. It's not long before Daninsky goes through a strange and painful metamorphosis that turns him into a snarling beast himself. A friend, looking to help Daninsky, turns to a doctor who has written extensively on the subject. But it turns out that this is no ordinary "mad" doctor. It seems the doctor and his wife are in reality blood sucking vampires. Before you know it, they've got Daninsky chained to a wall while they prey on his friends. Can Daninsky free himself and save those dear to him? And if he does save his friends from the vampires, who's going to save them from him?

As I said in my opening, Frankenstein's Bloody Terror is a lot of fun. It's hard not to have a good time with the over-the-top storyline and action. The movie actually gives you two werewolves for the price of one. Their battle is a blast and a real highlight of the movie for me. This monster free-for-all is reminiscent of some of Universal's monster mashes from the 40s, only a little more graphic in its presentation. The film has a marvelous Hammer-esquire look to it with vivid colors and period sets. The use of colored gels is a nice touch to the lighting in many scenes. I really liked Naschy's werewolf make-up. It's a little more "wild" than it would be in latter Daninsky films. The supporting cast is good with Rosanna Yanni as a gypsy woman being the most well known.

If you're looking for a sophisticated sort of horror movie with a deep, philosophical meaning that sticks with you long after it ends, Frankenstein's Bloody Terror is probably not the movie you're looking for. But if you're just looking to be entertained and have a good time, it's hard to go wrong with Frankenstein's Bloody Terror. Now that I've found a Naschy film I enjoy, I'm even more excited to discover the rest of his work.

7/10