Lumaban ka, Satanas

I'll start by mentioning this is a Filipino-made horror-fantasy film. If you've ever seen a Filipino horror movie then you know you're in for a wild wacky horrorificly (is that a word?) entertaining time.

In this movie a paunchy mustachioed jeans jacket wearing Filipino human named Lando who uses the super powers of God is chosen by his dead uncle to battle the forces of evil. Before actually getting to battle Satan, he must first face the equally impressive mustachioed Prince of Magic who wears a bright red jumpsuit and cape (kinda like something Elvis might wear) and his minions and free the naked and chubby Filipino girls who were stolen from the village. This movie has so much imagination packed into 90 minutes you just have to like it in spite of the cheap-jack animated super powers everyone seems to have.

Also included in this wild flick are some pretty decent old school horror FX including a man (the dead uncle) who gets literally flattened by a huge boulder and is reduced to a still talking head connected a wet pile of flat intestines and gore. There is also an amazing ripping scene that will make you rewind more than once. (You'll know it when you see it) I'm sure most people after viewing this film would be like…"WTF!!?" but I've always got a kick out of it. I've had the BIG BOXED VHS version of this film in my collection for probably 15 years. Not sure if it's even available anymore which is a shame. If you want to be entertained, this flick is just the thing. I highly recommend it.

When the Devil's minions begin to terrorise his village and kidnap his daughter, a powerful magician's nephew decides to take action and discovers that he has inherited his uncle's gift of magic in this decidedly offbeat horror film from the Philippines. True to the title, the protagonist does eventually find himself fighting against Satan incarnate, but his minion battles are actually the highlight here as he has to fend off shape-shifting snakes, minions who kill by staring cross-eyed at their victims and the list goes on. Amusing as all this might sound, 'The Killing of Satan' remains a rather mixed bag overall. The first half-hour is actually pretty dry cut with only a single nightmare involving a boulder death standing out. The special effects are also incredibly cheesy and unrealistic to the point that the film is never all that scary and there are some irritating silly sound effects too, not mention many ridiculous costumes. There remains, however, something quite appealing about the filmmakers taking such an uncanny premise and running with it. The dialogue is not exactly first rate, however, the film is played straight (not as a comedy) and while never all that frightening, there are some genuinely unsettling moments to be had - plus where else can one find a film in which its hero defeats a snake by tying it into a knot and throwing it over a pile of rocks?

The Killing of Satan (AKA: Lumaban ka, Satanas) - 1983 (This Films Rates a C ) A crazy super low budget Filipino film where a mustachioed man named Lando fights to save his daughter from Satan. "You're yellow Satan!" But first he is unknowingly summoned by his dead uncle to battle The Prince of Magic and his evil posse. The prince has these rays from his hands that can incapacitate. The dead uncle guides Lando through his journey. Eventually learning of his true superhuman powers and learning he can heal plus withstand bullets. The film gets kind of weird from there. There are fake explosions, fake rockslides down a mountain, snake slapping and tying the body into a knot, shape shifters, phony yet entertaining combat scenes including fisticuffs and hand rays, the defeat of Satan and lots of snakes. The script and acting are not meant to be funny but are, mainly due to the extremely absurd dubbing. There are too many examples of this. Sometimes the storyline gets lost and often times it's just plain bad. The gore and effects are mild and not anything exciting. There are boobs. It is ok for what it is.

In THE KILLING OF SATAN, anti-hero, Lando (Ramon Revilla) sets out on a journey through Hell itself, after being resurrected from the dead. Lando is out to avenge the death of his uncle, and rescue his niece from the clutches of the perverse Prince of Magic.

This is an inventive and entertaining fantasy film, containing plenty of karate and punches that sound like a side of beef is being thwacked with a cricket bat! The final conflict is a hoodoo holocaust, complete with shape-shifting harem girls and Satan himself! This is tailor-made for fans of truly bizarre, supernatural cinema. There are also lots of effectively gushy moments to please any gorehounds.

A divine, crackpot masterwork of Filipino filmmaking...

ANIMAL CRUELTY ALERT: There are some snakes that are severely mistreated and actually killed at one point...

"The Killing Of Satan" is a bizarre foriegn film that is virtually incomprehensible. An ex-convict's wife and daughter are stolen by devils and thrown into hell. (Which according to this movie, is maybe 40 feet below the earth's surface.) Now he must save them. Along the way he faces such dangers as deadly styrofoam boulders, a little island kid who only makes cat noises, jumping snakes, and men in spandex outfits who can shoot laser beams. In the end he faces a very scrawny, ridiculous looking Satan. Overall this movie just might be worth seeing if you are in the mood for a very strange Spanish horror flick. (And who isnt?!)