Night of the assassins

With a repertoire of almost 190 films, Jess Franco is probably the most prolific Exploitation director of all-time. I've personally been a great fan of the Spanish Exploitation deity for years, and it has to be said that his films differ in quality immensely. While Franco was doubtlessly responsible for a vast amount of stinkers, his filmography also includes several downright brilliant films, such as "Miss Muerte", "The Awful Dr. Orloff", "Venus In Furs" or "The Nights Of Dracula". And what could be a bigger treat for a cult-cinema fan than a Franco flick inspired by none other than the great Edgar Allan Poe? While "La Noche De Los Asesinos" (aka. "Night Of The Skull"/"Night Of The Assassins"/"Suspiri", 1976) is not one of the absolute greatest films in Franco's repertoire, it is definitely one of his better ones, and a must-see for his fans. "Night Of The Skull" is a creepy and competent Gothic chiller that begins delightfully cheesy and turns out to much more convoluted and intelligent than one might think. A family has gathered in a Louisiana Castle to accept the inheritance of the British Lord Archibald Marian, who has been murdered in a horrible manner. While the family members are anxiously waiting for their inheritance, the killer, who has a weakness for bizarre murder methods, is still on the loose...

Franco accomplishes to create a creepy Gothic atmosphere, and he also borrows a lot from the Italian Giallo. This is not the only Franco film that bears many resemblances to 70s Gialli (his ultra-nasty 1981 slasher "Bloody Moon" also has many Giallo aspects), but the inspiration has never been as obvious as in this one. "Night Of The Skull" is also probably Franco's least sleaziest film. Uncommonly for Franco, the film features hardly any nudity (only Evelyne Scott shows some skin) and very little sleaze. Even Franco's future wife, Lina Romay, who is known for being naked for about 90 per cent of her film career, keeps her clothes on in this one. Apart from young Miss Romay, the film features a bunch of other Franco regulars, such as Alberto Dalbés, the creepy-looking Luis Barboo and Antonio Mayans, as well as the great William Berger. There have been greater Poe adaptations than this one, of course. Poe's work has been most brilliantly brought to screen by Roger Corman with his magnificent Poe-films starring Vincent Price, some of which ("Pit And The Pendulum", "The Haunted Palace", "The Masque Of The Red Death") rank among the greatest Horror films ever made. Sergio Martino tied in with the tradition of brilliant Poe-Inspired films with his Giallo masterpiece "Your Vice Is A Locked Room And Only I Have The Key" (1974). In case you want to see a true masterpiece inspired by Poe's writing, check out Martino's film or any of Corman's 7 films before this one. Overall, however, "Night Of The Skull" is a more than worthwhile film that features creepiness and delightful cheese in equal measures and provides several compelling twists that cult-cinema fans should enjoy. Highly recommended, especially to Jess Franco fans!

Night of the Assassins (1976) is my second dip into the murky pool of Jess Franco; a filmmaker noted for his lurid sleaze, vulgar exploitation and incredibly low-budget style. Unfortunately for me, the two films of Franco's that I have experienced thus far have been largely devoid of the sex and depravity that his work is so often noted for; instead, finding the director attempting more worthy subject matter with restraint and integrity. My first experience of Franco was with the film Devil's Island Lovers (1973); a low-key and ultimately unremarkable treatise on political corruption, dictatorship and the horrors of the death penalty. Although it is worth noting that that particular film exists under several alternative titles, such as The Lover's of Devils Island and Female Quarters - with each version featuring more gore, sex and sleaze, to the extent that Female Quarters is essentially a lesbian-themed women in prison film - the version that I saw was tastefully done, devoid of sex and placed the emphasis entirely on the characters and the narrative.

Night of the Assassins follows a similar ideology to the film aforementioned, creating the odd notion of an exploitation film without the exploitation, but regardless, presenting Franco as a more competent and intelligent filmmaker than his reputation for more-lurid and sleazy pictures like Vampyros Lesbos (1970), Female Vampire (1973) and Barbed Wire Dolls (1975) would suggest. With this in mind, Franco presents us with a number of interesting characters, an appealing and linear story, some tasteful (though heavily over-dubbed) performances and an overall approach to the direction that is stylish, without becoming entirely laboured. As with Devil's Island Lovers, the budget was obviously at a bare minimum, but despite this, Franco and his crew are still able to inject some impressive style and unforgettable atmosphere into the film, as well as conveying a mostly authentic sense of period detail that is germane to the plot. In keeping with many other Euro exploitation films of this era, the story at hand has literary pretensions, with the initial set up of Night of the Assassins being based partially on the Edgar Wallace novel The Cat and the Canary; though in true exploitation style, the credits cite Edgar Allan Poe as the actual source, no doubt in an attempt to pull in audiences with the obvious macabre connotations that Poe's work would suggest.

Despite the opportunities presented by the story for Franco to wreak bloody mayhem, the presentation of the violence here seems entirely restrained. Whether or not there are other versions out there of this particular film - ala Devil's Island Lovers - is unknown; however, based on the version that I did see, the combination of subtle direction, intelligent plotting and that low-key atmosphere works incredibly well at drawing us deeper into the story and into this hotchpotch of idiosyncratic characters. The emphasis of the narrative is built largely upon the "whodunit" characteristics of detective fiction, with a large cast of characters gathering at a single location, only to be subsequently picked off, one by one, in a manner that recalls the ten little Indians, as the detective tries desperately to solve the central mystery before the last body is found. With this narrative device at work, the shadow of the Italian Giallo genre is also present, with Night of the Assassins recalling elements of Mario Bava's The Evil Eye (1963) and Blood and Black Lace (1964) and most prominently Dario Argento's The Bird with the Crystal Plumage (1970) and Four Flies on Grey Velvet (1971).

Although the film won't be to all tastes, I found it memorable and entertaining despite the obvious technical limitations and budgetary restraints. There are some solid performances, particularly from Alberto Dalbés as the enigmatic Major Brooks, Vincente Roca as the beleaguered Inspector Bore and a reserved turn from Franco's number one girl Lina Romay as the sort of heroine Rita Derian; a woman who may or may not be a suspect herself! Night of the Assassins certainly isn't a masterpiece, and I can understand how some viewers would find it lacking or without interest, but for me, it slips nicely into the sub-genre of the stalk and slash literary thriller, with Franco creating some fine set-pieces, a great atmosphere, memorable images and that iconic skull mask.

Horror mystey about the residents of a luxurious mansion where are being killed one by one executed by a masked serial killer . At the beginning is killed the house owner , Lord Archibald Marian : Angel Menendez . When the family arrives for the reading of Marian's will , his wife : Maribel Hidalgo, is also murdered . As a group of potential heirs gather in the old house to learn which of them will inherite a fortune. Later on, they learn that a flesh-rending maniac is loose , carrying out a criminal spree . As a result , his will is structured in such way as to set up a dogfight between his potential heirs as to who will collect his fortune . More and more murders go on and a policeman : Vicente Roca and a Scotland Yard inspector : Alberto Dalbes investigate the stranges cases and along the way find out dark secrets . For God's sake , stay in your rooms and lock the Doors !

This scary film titled "Night of Skull" or "Night of the assassins" or "Suspiri" or "La noche de los asesinos" results to be a peculiar Giallo with a lot of murders , being regularly directed by prolific filmmaker Jesús Franco in his usual style . This mysterious film contains suspense , intrigue , whodunit , spooky atmosphere and bloody mayhem , being the essential question to find out : Who's the killer ? . The main interest resides in guessing what kind of murder is executed by the masked killer wielding an iconic skull mask , as a man is buried alive , another is stabbed , a woman is strapped to the face of a rock and drowned by the tides , while two Policemen investigating and discovering dark secrets in the family's past . Being inspired by prestigious writers as Edgar Allan Poe and Edgard Wallace , though actually based on a play titled "The Cat and the Canary" by playwright John Willard previously adapted on big screen in 1927 by Paul Leni and in 1978 by Radley Metzger with Honor Blackman , Michael Callan, Edward Fox . The cast of this atmospheric period piece is formed by Franco regulars such as Alberto Dalbes , Antonio Mayans who was Franco's habitual collaborator , the giant Luis Barboo , and Lina Romay , Franco future wife and his muse, who this time keeps her clothes on, and , of course, common cameo by Jesús Franco as a notary . Adding other actors customary players in Italian/Spanish B films as William Berger , Evelyne Scott , Yelena Samarina , Angel Menendez and Dan Van Husen who played several Spaghetti/Paella Westerns

While the atmospheric cinematography by Javier Zofio , being really necessary a perfect remastering , due to the images are very dark . Being shot on location in Orihuela , Alicante , Comunidad Valenciana . Adding adequate musical score by the Italian Carlo Savina that results to be intriguing and suspenseful. This Gothic flick was middlingly directed by Jess Franco , though it hasn't usual sleaze and depravity , Uncle Jess' regular marks . This hack director was an expert on exploitation movies , making all kinds of genres , such as : Terror : Miss Muerte, Gritos en la noche, Count Dracula, Vampyres Lesbos, Dracula versus Frankenstein , Jack the ripper , Los Demonios, Mansion of the Living dead and Orloff saga that includes : Secret Dr Orloff , Sinister Dr Orloff , Orloff's Invisible Monster , Faceless . Erotic : Justine , Eugenie of Sade , Venus in Furs, Female Vampire , Devil's island lovers . Adventure : Un Capitan de 15 Años , Lucky the intrepid , Fumanchu and kiss of death, Castle of Fumanchu . WIP subgenre : 99 women, Barbed Wire Dolls. Cannibal subgenre: Sexo Cannibal, Mondo Cannibale and Giallo : Bloody Moon , La noche de los asesinos , among others .

The label "thoroughly average" is borrowed from the Aurum Horror Encyclopaedia and, for once, describes the movie very well.

That does not imply that the movie is without interest. There are nice decors and several interesting scenes, e.g., a man is buried alive with only his hands, which are tied to the back, sticking out of the ground like a cry for help or a women is tied to the rocks and left to the tides. Of course, the movie features also Franco's usual dilettantism such as badly focussed shots.

All in all, it is worth a try. No suspense or blood, though. So, watch it only if your are fully awake.

The already quoted horror encyclopaedia contains a plot summary which differs slightly from what I have seen. This could mean that, as so often, there exist several different versions of the movie.

La noche de los asesinos, or Night of the Skull as it's known in English, is a 1974 giallo film directed by the prolific and controversial Jesús Franco. With a filmography ranging from erotic horror to exploitation, Franco is known for pushing boundaries, and this film is no exception.

The movie starts with a warning: "For God's sake, stay in your rooms and lock the doors!" This foreboding message sets the tone for what's to come-a suspenseful, bloody, and mysterious ride. The story unfolds with a series of murders, each more gruesome than the last, as the audience is left wondering: Who is this killer, and what is their motive?

Franco's signature style is on full display here, with a generous helping of his beloved elements: suspense, intrigue, and bloody mayhem. However, this film differs from his erotic horror classics. While it has hints of sleaze and features frequent collaborator Lina Romay, the film surprisingly lacks the gratuitous nudity and overt sexual themes that Franco is known for. Instead, it focuses on building a tense and eerie atmosphere.

The performances in La noche de los asesinos are a standout aspect. The actors, including Romay, deliver above-par portrayals, with the first murder sequence being a highlight. The look of the killer is effectively unnerving, and the ending delivers a surprise that, while unexpected, ties the story together.

However, the film is not without its drawbacks. The storyline, while engaging, may feel familiar to fans of the genre, and some viewers may find themselves predicting certain twists. Additionally, those expecting Franco's usual explicit content may be disappointed by the relatively restrained nature of this film in comparison.

In conclusion, La noche de los asesinos is a well-crafted thriller that showcases Franco's ability to create a suspenseful and intriguing narrative. While it may not reach the heights of his most acclaimed works, it is a solid addition to the giallo genre and a must-watch for fans of suspense and mystery.