Les larmes de la sorcière

Enter Gothic Mexico! Easily one of the best Horror films of the classic Mexi-Horror era. This film is oozing with the lush atmosphere, bizarre imagery and beautiful, shadowy photography which many of the Mexican horror classics of this era are known for. Like several other classic Mexican horror films, this one also plays off the the old Mexican folklore tale of Llorona, the weeping ghost/witch of the Mexican countryside. Real horror buffs will see (during the opening scene) a striking similarity between this film and Mario Bava's masterpiece, Black Sunday. The setting, where the Witch lives is actually a old Mexican Hacienda Mansion. I think the scenes where this "Haunted" mansion is depicted rivals that of the old Gothic castles which were typically used as settings in the European classics, mainly the Christopher Lee Dracula films. It just looks different but is creepy as can be. There is also some dreamy, almost psychedelic like sequences also not unusual during this period. Combine all this is the mutated, malformed man kept prisoner in the mansion, the boney flesh-eating hounds, Abel Salazar (Brainiac) playing the heroine and Rita Macedo playing the Witch you have a film any horror fan is not likely to forget.

This Mexican made horror flick is said to be based on an old Mexican legend called "The Crying Woman." However, this film has little to do with the legend and is essentially an original story about a women who comes to a haunted mansion to claim an inheritance and is plagued by the ghost of a dead woman and a rotting corpse that comes to life. Some descriptions claim the woman is a descendant of the original crying woman, but I saw no mention of this in video copy I saw. Perhaps this was removed when the film was prepared for English language release by K. Gorden Murray. I understand that there is a more faithful version of the original legend filmed in Mexico in 1930's.

"La Maldición De La Llorana" aka. "The Curse of the Crying Woman" (1963) is a haunting and absolutely ingenious little treasure of Mexican Gothic Horror cinema, that simply has to be seen by anybody interested in Horror. In spite of an obviously low budget, director Rafaél Baldedón accomplished to create a film of incredibly eerie atmosphere and genuine creepiness that represents all the great qualities we love in Gothic Horror film. In some parts clearly inspired by Mario Bava's milestone "La Maschera Del Demonio" ("Black Sunday", 1960, which is probably my choice for THE greatest Horror film ever made), "La Maldicion De La Loorana" is a stroke of genius of its own right that mesmerizes like few other films.

"La Llorana" (the 'Crying Woman') is apparently a classic character of Latin-American folk tales, and has been the theme of several other Mexican Horror films; As far as I know, however, the 'Crying Woman' in this film has very little resemblance to the folk story character. The film begins magnificently creepy when the passengers of a stagecoach passengers fall victims to a gruesome encounter. Shortly thereafter, newlyweds Jaime (Abel Ferrara) and his young wife Amelia (Rosa Arenas) come to the area in order to visit Amelia's aunt Selma (Rita Macedo). Amelia notices that her beautiful but mysterious aunt, who lives in an eerie mansion, has not aged a day since she last saw her as a child... "La Maldición De La Llorana" is an absolutely awesome classic Gothic tale of witchcraft, curses and resurrection that simply has everything my fellow fans of Gothic Horror so love about this kind of cinema. Incredibly eerie settings and macabre set-pieces, such as an eerie mansion, dark tombs and secret passages, a captivating score, ingeniously creepy makeup and, not least, a delightfully macabre and haunting story make this an absolute must for every Horror lover to see. This one's budget wasn't high, but director Baledón made the best out of it, and proves once again that it doesn't need a vast sum of money in order to make a film look and feel magnificently creepy. Beautiful Rita Macedo is great and eerie in her role and Rosa Arenas fits greatly in the role of the innocent beauty. Abel Salazar, who plays the husband may be recognized for playing the title role in the wonderfully trashy gem "El Barón Del Terror" (1962) and prolific Mexican actor Carlos López Moctezuma shines in the role of the sinister servant. The film also includes a small appearance of Julissa, who would later star alongside Boris Karloff in some of the Horror deity's very odd last films.

It seems as if my enthusiasm for Mexican Horror films is growing with each film I see, and though I regrettably cannot (yet) claim to be an expert on the field, I can say that, judging by the films I've seen so far, Mexico of the 1960s was a great country for Gothic tales. Though it my have some minor flaws, "La Maldición De La Llorana" is a downright brilliant film that ranges only slightly below the absolute masterpieces of 60s Gothic cinema, such as Antonio Margheriti's "Danza Macabra", Roger Corman's Poe-films with Vincent Price or anything that Mario Bava made. This little masterpiece, as well as the equally brilliant Mexican Goth-Horror gem "Misterios De Ultratumba" ("Mysteries From Beyond The Grave"), is deliciously creepy beyond belief, and an absolute must-see for all Horror fans to see. Very Highly Recommended!

I almost feel the urge to spontaneously start a Mexican Wave in honor of this SUBLIME Gothic horror movie! When listing the most important classic horror titles and their countries of origin, people automatically think about Italy (with Mario Bava and his "Black Sunday"), Spain (with about a million Paul Naschy films) and naturally Britain (with the legendary Hammer and Amicus production studios). Mexico understandably always gets left out, but it truly deserves to be mentioned too, if it were only for THIS movie alone! "The Curse of the Crying Woman" is nearly flawless Goth-horror and features all the aspects that make the genre fans' mouths water. Filmed in beautiful black & white and bathing in an uncanny atmosphere, this movie is compelling from start to finish and several eerie images will haunt your thoughts even long afterwards. The story is simplistic, yet effectively creepy, the decors & set pieces are overwhelmingly sinister and the make-up effects are surprisingly convincing. No wonder this film often gets compared to Mario Bava's aforementioned milestone "Black Sunday". If you take the wise decision of purchasing "The Curse of the Crying Woman", you may expect to see endless dark forests, old mansions, ominous thunderstorms and – of course – a sardonic mythical storyline that tightly connects all these elements together. On the night of her 25th birthday, beautiful Amelia and her husband arrive at her aunts' Selma reputedly "cursed" house. Amelia has been looking forward to be reunited with her aunt since years, but she doesn't know that the sole reason of her invite is to serve as the final sacrifice to resurrect an ancient witch. Throughout the years, Selma became obsessed with the powers of Marina; an evil bitch that lures woods-travelers with her cries and kills them. Even if the young couple manages to avoid the curse, they still need to defeat Selma's horribly scarred servant and the mutated monster in the attic. The tension & atmosphere are masterfully built up, especially during the first 45 minutes. Director Raphael Baledón then seems to lose his tight grip on the story a bit around the hour, but he immediately rectifies himself again with an unforgettable climax. The sequence with the chiming bell alone is worth a standing ovation! Mesmerizing horror experience, recommended to fans of the genre all over the world.

* Special word of thanks to loyal IMDb-user G.B, for helping me to obtain this new personal favorite.

I just watched CasaNegra Entertainment's version of this film on DVD, fully restored and all I can is Wow, they did a great job with it. It's such a treat to see these old Mexican classic finally get the attention they deserve. Curse of the Crying Woman is often considered the the Mexican Black Sunday and it lives up to it in every way. Beautifully filmed entirely at night, creepy mist, candle lit dungeons and dead trees are everywhere. These type visual elements were one of the trademarks in many of great horror films from Meixco and definitely what helps make them unique.

The story involves a young woman who upon visiting her Aunt who lives in a creepy Hacienda mansion in the countryside, learns she is next in line to join a family of evil witches. The Mexican title suggests the film is based on the legend of Llorona which it is only loosely. Baledon takes the real legend and morphs it into his own screen play and the outcome is pure classic horror enjoyment. A must for any true lover of Gothic, Black and White horror movies.