La tumba de la isla maldita

Crypt of the Living Dead was filmed in colour, but my copy—part of a dirt-cheap Mill Creek box-set of vampire movies—was presented in black and white (despite the packaging stating otherwise); amazingly, the lack of colour might actually work in the film's favour, lending a touch of much needed Gothic atmosphere to an otherwise rather tedious tale of vampirism in a remote island community.

The film sees archaeologist Chris Bolton (Andrew Prine) visiting the island to claim the body of his father, who was crushed to death under a stone sarcophagus while investigating an ancient burial site; when Chris attempts to lift the marble tomb, he accidentally releases 700-year-old vampire Hannah (Barbara Steele lookalike Teresa Gimpera) who begins to feed on the locals, aided in her task by a wild-man in a furry waistcoat and a member of the village who seeks immortality.

Slow moving and devoid of action for much of the time, the film will definitely prove hard going for many, but director Julio Salvador achieves just about enough effectively haunting moments to make it a worthwhile watch for vampire movie completists: the local fishermen's hostility towards Chris's arrival on the island immediately provokes an unsettling 'Wicker Man' vibe; Hannah's ability to turn into a cloud of mist or a wolf makes her all the more menacing; and the finalé manages to pick up the pace a tad (albeit a little late, perhaps) providing a few reasonable chills in the process.

4.5 out of 10, rounded up to 5 for IMDb.

"The Crypt of the Living Dead" is an odd, but run of the mill horror movie that will hold your interest but not leave anything memorable in it's wake. The acting is OK but the dialogue is pretty bad. There is an interesting assortment of strange characters but they are not shown in depth. A lot of the script just isn't realistic. What the characters do, how the act and react to circumstances just don't have the right feel to it. They had a chance of having some mystery in this film but two of the villains are revealed right at the start of the movie. The third, the vampire herself, is a given. For those looking for the horror aspect, there are some scary scenes and the locations have a Gothic feel. This movie was shot in Turkey and whatever spot they found, I have to give them credit. They found a good location. When all is said and done though, it's an OK movie but nothing special.

Quite ridiculous yet somewhat engaging story about a young archaeologist, played with one dimension by Andrew Prine, coming to Vampire Island to see/investigate the death of his father. Somehow a huge crypt carrying the remains of a 700 year-old vampire woman has fallen on him and his son must convince the locals that vampires are absurd superstitions. Of course what might have been a mystery is destroyed in the opening sequence as we see who has killed the father, just leaving the not-too-hard-to-figure why out. The film doesn't have much of a budget but the bleak desolation of the island is convincing, the vampire queen is impressive(and beautiful), and some of the shots are very atmospheric. Prine is bland and Spanish horror queen Patty Shepard displays some histrionics. She looks subtle when compared to some of the so-called "quiet" locals who fear the return of the killing palindrome. Frank Brana, playing the crusty, old, sagacious blind sailor steals his scenes with no shame being not just a slice of ham but a whole butt roast! Listen to his dialog, it is so bad that it is so fun and easily for me at least the best part of this film. "She is smart...700 years smart" and other quotes about Hannah sticking her fangs into necks and the power of superstitions cascade from his lips in an almost monosyllabic manner which only accentuates his strange looks as he might be a cross between Bela Lugosi's Ygor in Son of Frankenstein and Carmen Ghia from The Producers(okay, I know it's an obscure reference). Nobody else in the film comes too close to being just plain eye-catching. Teresa Gimpera as Hannah comes close; however, for different reasons. She looks great after so long and can still turn into fog and a wolf with the best of them. Her death scene is something to behold unintentionally. While Crypt of the Living Dead is indeed a bad film, it is a very watchable one once things get going.

Crypt of the living Dead seemed like a pretty decent vampire film to me. As I was reading the other commentaries which were fairly negative, I suddenly realized that my version of this film (which came from a Mill Creek entertainment box set-Chilling Classics) is in black and white whereas the film was actually made in color (at least according to IMDb). I have often thought that certain types of films (gothic horror, film noirs etc) are better in BW anyway. Settings can seem more ephemeral and eerie. Gore and blood looks more other-worldly. I do realize that watching a color film in BW is suboptimal in the sense that you are not viewing all aspects that the director intended (similar to watching colorized films, I suppose).

Nevertheless, I would suggest to viewers of this film that they at least try viewing it the way I have. It was a rather interesting experience. Perhaps Mill Creek also thought this film was better viewed this way.

Atmospheric, eerie little Spanish thriller starring Andrew Prine as a man who travels to a remote island off Turkey after his archaeologist father dies in an apparent accident after discovering an ancient tomb. Writer (Damon) and his sister (Shepard) who have also recently inhabited the island try to facilitate Prine's attempts to raise the heavy sarcophagus that covers his father's remains to affect a proper burial. But the locals are reluctant to assist, fearing that the crypt's occupant - Hannah (Gimpera) - will be resurrected to raise hell on the island.

Surprisingly effective, though it appears to be un-liked judging from other reviews, I found the English translation conversion by Ray Danton to be a genuinely scary and compelling tale beautifully shot in black & white, with a talented cast. Prine has the right pitch as the polite outsider who can't be convinced that his actions will awaken a dormant vampire, his attentions straying to the plight of Shepard, concerned for the welfare of her brother. Both the exotic Shepard and durable Damon are assured in their roles, enhancing the production and its overall quality. For her part, Gimpera as Hannah is a beguiling beauty, even if only appearing prominently toward the end of the picture and without any intelligible dialogue. Film buffs should also applaud Danton's assembly of B-movie talent - Edward Walsh and John Alderman in minor roles (Walsh has a great scene after an encounter with Hannah), while prolific Spanish actor Frank Brana has a key supporting role as the blind foreteller of doom.

The lighting and sound is exceptionally refined and the film overall is stylish; the beach and cliff-top scenery bathed in black & white is visually stunning, though admittedly some of the night scenes are obscure in the darkness. I read that Danton shot additional English-language footage which was conjoined with Julio Salvador's Spanish version; with no visible seams, it's a rare example of where footage grafts actually enhance the overall result. Builds the suspense gradually (potentially irksome for viewers with a need for constant gratification), the rousing finale is a tense encounter that elevates the pulse, while a curtain-dropping post script is a satisfying epitaph. Worth the effort.