Wonderful Movie

Awesome Movie

After playing with our expectations, this turns out to be a very different sort of film.

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

Archaeologist Chris Bolton (a typically excellent and engaging performance by the always reliable Andrew Prine) comes across a vampire burial ground while working on a scientific dig in turkey and unleashes lethal vampire queen Hannah (the beauteous and bewitching Teresa Gimpera) from her tomb. Meanwhile, Bolton romances local school teacher Mary (an appealing portrayal by striking brunette Patty Shepard).Directors Julio Salvador and Ray Danton keep the enjoyable story moving along at a steady pace, make good use of the scenic Turkish locations, do a bang-up job of crafting a supremely spooky'n'dreamy ooga-booga atmosphere, deliver a few nice bits of gore, and pull out the stirring stops for the lively and exciting climax. The solid acting from the capable cast keeps this picture on track: Mark Damon makes a likable impression as the helpful Peter, Ihsan Gedik has a ball as a ferocious wild man, Frank Bana does well as a sage blind doomsayer, and Edward Walsh cuts a suitably imposing figure as the gruff Ali. Juan Gelpi's elegant cinematography provides a wealth of stunning visuals. Phillip Lambro's shivery score hits the spine-tingling spot. A fun fright flick.

As I am a big Paul Naschy fan, I have seen Patty Shepard in The Werewolf Versus the Vampire Woman. Of course, you can't help but have seen star Andrew Prine, as he has appeared almost 200 times on TV and movies. Teresa Gimpera, who plays Hannah, was in the excellent Spirit of the Beehive.Sound effects and music were definitely irritating at times, and certainly lessens whatever enjoyment you might find in the movie.There really wasn't a lot to recommend. The story is pretty common for the genre. Despite warnings, they let the vampire out of the cave and spend the rest of the movie chasing her. Blood and gore were minimal, and there was no nudity to distract.

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.

For the most part, Crypt of the Living Dead or Young Hannah: Queen of the Vampires or Vampire Women is a throughly retched movie. All you really need to know about the story is that 700 year old Hannah is released from her tomb on an almost uninhabited island. She bites a few locals and is then dispatched herself. There are so many negative things to say about this film that I'll just mention a few that really bothered me.One, Hannah has got to be the slowest vampire in the history of movie vampires. I've heard complaints about the slow moving Bela Lugosi in Dracula. Bela is like Carl Lewis compared with Hannah.Two, the characters do not act in a logical manner. I'm not talking about logic as you and I know it, but these people don't even act according to "horror movie logic". For example, a big deal is made about the effect of dog's bane(sp) on Hannah. In one scene, it is used to get Hannah to release the movie's hero. Once free of her clutches, he immediately goes after her. But, does he bother to take the dog's bane that was just used to save his life - NO.Third, nothing really happens in the movie. I'm not talking about a slow story. Instead, I'm talking about no story. There is a great long section of the film (the first hour or so) where, literally, nothing happens. It's not till the slow moving Hannah is awakened to prey upon the illogical victims on the island that anything seems to happen.