Hasta el viento tiene miedo

After hearing from neighbors and friends about a Mexican movie that sure will scare you, and also that the story was happening in a school, i was waiting for Televisa to show this movie, without any luck i had to wait about 7 years to find this movie on DVD and finally Watch, i would say the wait was worth it , sure is a 60's movie and the image, picture and sound is not that great, but the way the history is deliver will make you watch until the end. The film despite having a simple script, captivates and put the viewer in the story, and has been blamed for taking out dreams to two generations that followed and saw on television more than films. With an exceptional cast and successful, the film is full of subtle horror, fine and perhaps therefore highly effective, unlike anything he had done before.

While not as prolific as the USA, UK and Italy; Mexico is responsible for many great horror films; with the sixties in particular being something of a goldmine for the horror fan. Carlos Enrique Taboada's Hasta el viento tiene miedo has a great reputation amongst those who have seen it; and after having finally tracked the film down myself, I have to say that its reputation is completely deserved! The title translates into English as 'Even the Wind is Afraid' and as you would expect from a film with such a title; this is a macabre treat! Like the classics The House That Screamed and Suspiria, this film focuses on an all-girl boarding house. After a group of girls sneak into a restricted part of the school and are caught; their punishment (doled out by the head teacher nicknamed 'The Witch') is that they have to stay behind during the summer break! Naturally the girls are not too pleased, and things take a turn for the worse when a long dead student is sighted during the heavy winds, and seems to be after a student named Claudia...

The story is very much of the slow burn variety and while we do get plenty of horror; the film focuses more on building the characters, their relationships and the central situation. The horror is brought forward more through atmosphere and while the locations used are not as Gothic as those seen in similar Italian films; the film does deliver a great air of creepiness and the way that the wind is used provides one of the main highlights. The acting is very good, with adult performers Marga López and Maricruz Olivier delivering the standout performances as the two teachers. The younger performers are all very nice looking and while the acting is sometimes a bit cheesy; it doesn't harm the film too much. The plot does move slowly but it's always interesting and the film builds tension as we get closer to the end, with the film taking a rather unexpected twist half way through. It all boils down to an engaging and original (for the time) climax and overall; Hasta el viento tiene miedo may not be one of the best known horror films ever made, but it will certainly be of interest to horror fans. Recommended!

I think there will never be a movie like this.. why? because it was made a masterpiece without any special effects at all. The wind sound is scary as itself, and the voice saying "Claaaaaaaudia" is the best!

Carlos Taboada had very clear the effect that this sub-rated film would have through the time.. he didn't use something with lights or shadows... the simple and peaceful image of Andrea standing in the middle of the woods chills you out, or Diego, saying that when the wind is like that... he knows she's around.

What I don't know exactly about this film is that my husband says there are two endings... one that shows the feet in the window, and the other that it doesn't. Is that true?

in three words.. It's awesome!

This movie is a very good one, you have to check out Mr.Taboada´s directing,It´s ageless and even if its mexican oldstyle movie making, you can still feel the scary vibes he was aiming for. The movie centers around a group of girls that because of disobeying some orders stay stranded in their college all summer long, one of them starts having some weird dreams and theres a ghost rounding that college with a dark past. There´s a strip tease scene that can show some lesbian shadows on the girls, you have to see it yourself, spine tingling and horror at it´s best on this 70´s horror story.

It'd seem to be a cliche -haunted school, scared girls in uniforms... but 'Hasta el viento tiene miedo' is more than that. With some good actresses, but more than that, a smart script and a clever direction, it has unexpected moments and really scaring scenes. Highly recommended!