El espejo de la bruja

The Witch's Mirror is a film that mixes numerous horror ideas into one incoherent, but brilliantly fun little film. The Witch's Mirror is directed by Chano Urueta, who also made the completely bizarre Brainiac in 1962. It's clear that Urueta has an eye for visuals and isn't too bothered about telling a story, as both The Witch's Mirror and Brainiac are heavy on the style without putting too much focus on the plot. This film has borrowed from numerous horror classics, from American films such as Mad Love to the French classic Eyes Without a Face. The plot focuses on witchcraft and sorcery, and more specifically; the act of mastering the use of a mirror. A witch named Sara enchants a mirror in order to protect Elena, her adopted daughter, from her nasty husband Eduardo. However, the enchantment doesn't work as planned, and when it fails; Elena is murdered, which leads the witch to try and get her revenge through a series of supernatural spells and sorcery.

The fact that the plot is incoherent obviously hinders the film, but there's so much going on that it's not a big problem. The Witch's Mirror isn't dull for a moment as there's always something going on to hold the audience's interest. The film includes themes of witchcraft and sorcery, as well as a big dose of mad science, as the film's doctor attempts to reconstruct his wife's deformed face. The special effects are superb considering the film is almost forty five years old, and they're also a marked improvement over the largely silly effects seen in Brainiac. The film is rather arty - more so even than The Curse of the Crying Woman, but that's not a negative comment as The Witch's Mirror features some truly beautiful sequences, which are well utilised and make the film more memorable. Overall, I can't see a good reason not to enjoy this film. It's not dull for a second, features some of the best art sequences in horror and does well at mixing a number of different horror ideas. It's not the best film from the recent batch of Casa Negra releases, but it's still well worth watching!

A great Horror entry made in Mexico at a time when their film industry was still robust and interesting. The theme of The Witch's Mirror can equally fall into the genre of supernatural just as much as horror. Either way it's a Macabre film, very well shot in black and white and director Chano Urueta makes excellent use of some great special effects for the time. Isabel Carona plays the witch who uses her magic mirror to cast revenge on Armando Calvo, who is really great as the sinister, twisted mad-scientist of sorts. Most of the film takes place in what appears to be a old Mexican castle although the outside of it is never shown but it's very Gothic and atmospheric with brooding shadows around every corner. The Witch's Mirror is definitely Classic Mexican Cinema and sadly many of these films produced from this era have gone un-noticed for far too long. If you plan on seeing it I recommend you make some popcorn, turn off the lights and enjoy this fun little picture from the days when Mexican cinema was still golden.

I vaguely remember seeing a few Mexican horror films on my local TV channel when I was growing up. The quality of the prints weren't great and, even to an 8 year old, the dubbing was atrocious. This one and a Russian (Soviet) film called THE DAY THE EARTH FROZE stuck with me because they both featured witches. I've always been fascinated by witches in films and books because of the magic powers they possessed. However it had been years since I had seen WITCH'S MIRROR when this Casanegra release came out in 2006. I bought it (along with BLACK PIT OF DR M and CURSE OF THE CRYING WOMAN), watched it, liked it, but didn't watch it again until just recently when I was astonished by everything I found in it. This movie is an old school horror buff's dream come true.

The look of MIRROR is a cross between the shadowy low budget world of the Val Lewton RKO films and the atmospheric Euro Gothic films of Mario Bava and early Jess Franco. Then there's the plot which borrows heavily from the classic French horror film EYES WITHOUT A FACE (LES YEUX SANS VISAGE) where a doctor tries to restore his daughter's disfigured face. In this movie it's the doctor's second wife who is disfigured by the avenging spirit of his first wife (whom he murdered) abetted by her Godmother who is the witch of the title. Throw in a little of FRANKENSTEIN and a lead performance that rivals anything Bela Lugosi did at Monogram and you have the makings of a B movie classic. In fact, MIRROR has everything in it but the kitchen sink

One of the many delights to be had in watching this film is seeing how it just plows right ahead moving from one bizarre plot point to another completely oblivious to its own absurdity. The whole thing only takes 75 minutes and boy does plenty happen in that short length of time. The first wife is statuesque, the second is more conventional, the doctor is insane, and the witch is calm and collected. There's never a dull moment although I found the ending to be disappointing (NO SPOILERS HERE) but you can see for yourself. Unfortunately the Casanegra label disappeared a few years back and now copies of them are increasingly rare and cost a pretty penny. Definitely worth seeking out...For more reviews visit The Capsule Critic.

In Mexico, Elena (Dina de Marco) is married and loves her husband, Dr. Eduardo Ramos (Armando Calvo). The housekeeper Sara (Isabela Corona), who is her godmother, is a powerful witch that has a magic mirror. When Sara predicts that Elena will be murdered by her husband, she cannot protect her goddaughter since the devils cannot change the future. Soon Eduardo gives poisoned milk to Elena and she dies. However, Sara promises revenge to Elena. Eduardo travels and when he returns home, he brings his new wife, Deborah (Rosita Arenas), to live with Sara and him. But Sara summons the devils from hell to set in course Elena's revenge, bringing her back through her mirror.

"El espejo de la bruja", a.k.a. "The Witch's Mirror", is a great black-and-white Mexican horror movie about a witch that uses her mirror to bring the spirit of her granddaughter to seek revenge against her husband. The storyline is simple, but the film is scary. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "O Espelho da Bruxa" ("The Witch's Mirror")

Witch's Mirror, The (1962)

*** (out of 4)

Mexican horror film from director Chano Urueta about a husband who murders his wife so that he can marry his mistress. Unfortuantly for him, he kills her in front of a witch's mirror, which allows her spirit to come back for revenge. The first thirty minutes of this film are great due to Urueta making the most of his small budget. The opening sequence is brilliant and there's some great atmosphere and art direction but things start to unravel in the final act. The first half of the film certainly isn't original but the second half seems like a mix between Eyes Without a Face and The Hands of Orlac.