THE VAMPIRES' NIGHT ORGY 1974

  

       A busload of disparate people including Dyanik Zurakowska from FRANKENSTEIN’S BLOODY TERROR and THE HANGING WOMAN are all on their way to an unnamed aristocrat for employment purposes when they're suddenly stranded in the remote Spanish countryside when their driver suffers a fatal heart attack. The group finds themselves at desolate looking throwback village that is strangely deserted (along with not appearing on any map) and taking shelter in an inn they discover another a stranded traveler in form of Jess Franco stock player and Blind Dead alumnus Jack Taylor (HORROR OF THE ZOMBIES and DR. JEKYLL AND THE WOLFMAN ) who’s car has broken down. The group settles down for the night and discover the occupants in the village the next morning with the nominal head of the town "The Major" (José Guardiola) who informs them that the entire village was absent because there were at a ceremony at the local cemetery (!). 
       The overseeing matriarch of the village referred to as "The Countess" is played by the very welcome presence of Helga Liné (HORROR EXPRESS & THE LORELEY'S GRASP). She takes pity on the stranded travelers offering them money along with everyone in the village also offering free room and board. Things begin to get a little grim however as the the countess asks one of the stranded passengers up to her estate to recite Shakespeare Soliloquy's (!). The young man eagerly accepts and a bit later even more eagerly jumps into bed with her. Suddenly bearing fangs the countess attacks him and then throws his body out the window down to a group of the now ravenous villagers. Eventually, most of the other passengers fall victim to vampire-like villagers with only Jack Taylor and Dyanik left alive at the end as they attempt to escape.

       Directed by Leon Klimovsky the film as with most Spanish horror from the period literally oozes Gothic atmosphere. One of the great things about Spanish horror (along with Italian) is that unlike the set bound horrors of Hammer if they needed a crumbling castle or ancient village they pretty mush just had to just to drive down the road a bit to find the real thing. Seemingly to almost to have grown out of the earth itself the village here is almost a character in the film and Klimovsky takes full use of of its crumbling moss grown walls and narrow streets. Klimovsky directed eight of Paul Naschy's films and although he's the director most associated with Naschy (and Spanish horror in general), I always preferred Calos Aured's work with Naschy. Kilmovsky films while workmanlike and serviceable seemed to lack a certain spark -  Naschy would later complain that he rushed through the productions. With that being said however ORGY is one of his stronger efforts as there's a genuine atmosphere of lurking doom with the constant grey overcast skies and the above mentioned village setting.
      There are a few instances of black humor (uncommon in Euro horror) sprinkled in the film as the stranded visitors are fed with contributions from various unlucky villagers whose appendages (which are the past off as roasts of various types) are hacked off by an axe wielding giant who intones "I'm here at the behest of the Countess" before chopping off an arm or a leg. There's also a gruesome bit of black humor with Dyanik finding a finger in her pot roast (left over from the donated arm for the evening meal) and the cook hastily summoned to the kitchen to get his finger hacked off to explain it away.

  

      VAMPIRES' NIGHT ORGY would appear to have a myriad of films that it draws inspiration from including H.G. Lewis's 2000 MANIACS (1964), the brilliant & unsettling MESSIAH OF EVIL (1973) and bizarrely MGM's musical BRIGADOON from 1954 (which could also be looked upon as a precursor to H.G. Lewis's above mentioned early splatter classic). It's also probably the closest a Euro horror ever came to a classic 1950's E.C. horror comic story plot-wise, as it even has a bit of cribbing from Joe Orlando's "Midnight Mess" from Tales from the Crypt #35 (which was used in 1973 Amicus anthology VAULT OF HORROR).
     The film leaves a bit of mystery to the proceedings as it doesn't stick hard and fast to the usual vampire rules as only Liné (who perhaps was the mysterious "aristocrat" that summoned the victims for "employment") appears to be a true vampire with the other villagers seeming to be something akin to zombie/possessed ghouls who that infect the unlucky visitors. There's a few terrific sequences including a young girl who's the child of one of the stranded bus passengers and who's lured to a cemetery by a mysterious local boy where they bury her doll which leads to a very creepy conclusion - and is followed up by her now possessed Mother searching for her. Another sequence on the seemingly deserted bus is reminiscent of a scene in Stephen King's 'Salems Lot.
      It's unusual to see Jack Taylor in the role of good guy hero, but being Jack Taylor he does engage in a some "peeping tom" fun in regards to Dyanik and a convenient handy hole in the wall. Helga Liné's participation in limited to about eight minutes of screen time in what is basically an extended cameo, but she is pretty unforgettable and makes for one heck of vampire.
     Code Red's dbl feature DVD pairs this with DR. JEKYLL AND THE WOLFMAN (which makes it a Jack Taylor dbl. feature) and contains the unclothed export version - which is the one to see if your a Helga Liné fan.

DR. JEKYLL AND THE WOLFMAN 1971

aka DOCTOR JEKYLL Y EL HOMBRE LOBO

    Directed by León Kilmovsky, this was Paul Nacshy's sixth outing as Waldemar Daninsky the Polish nobleman seemingly forever cursed as "El Hombre Lobo". As seen by the title the film attempts a monster team-up (Naschy was a huge fan of the 1940's Universal "monster rally" pictures HOUSE OF FRANKENSTEIN and HOUSE OF DRACULA) and although the two title monsters don't do battle, it is fun to watch Naschy try another classics horror figure on for size. Although there are certain parts of this one that structurally don't work too well, as at times it seems like two movies mashed together and the plot takes a bit too long to get moving, this has always been one of my favorite Naschy films. It feature a great score by Antón García Abril (with some familiar cues from his Blind Dead scores), a great over the top "Mr. Hyde" from Naschy, the presence of the very beautiful Shirley Corrigan (from THE GODFATHER SQUAD and THE DEVIL'S NIGHTMARE) and once the plot does kick in it does move along briskly while taking some rather bizarre left turns with a bit of "Mr. Hyde" S&M thrown into the mix in its 85 minute running time.

   Starting out in contemporary London newlyweds Justine (Shirley Corrigan) and Imre (José Marco from WEREWOLF VS. THE VAMPIRE WOMAN) head off on a honeymoon to Imre's homeland of Transylvania, before of which they have a get together of friends where we're briefly introduced to Dr. Henry Jekyll (Jess Franco regular Jack Taylor and from THE GHOST GALLEON), a relative of the famous "Mr. Hyde" Dr. Jekyll. Upon arriving in Transylvania (where as in most horror movies - no matter what the year is, time stands still at 1880 in Transylvania) they are warned against visiting Imre's ancestral graveyard as its in the vicinity of the "black castle".

   Upon arriving at the graveyard their startled by a leper hunchback and then set upon by a gang of thieves (a favorite plot point of Naschy) whereupon Imre is killed and Justine facing an impending rape is saved by Waldemar Daninsky (Nacshy) who proceeds to do the usual Naschy ass kicking job on the attackers, giving one a killer bear hug to and smashing another one's head with a rock while the third flees. Taking Justine back to his castle to recover she there meets his housekepper/nurse Uswika Bathroy (!) played by Naschy regular Elsa Zabala (VENGEANCE OF THE ZOMBIES, CURSE OF THE DEVIL and Jess Franco's 99 WOMEN) and discovers Daninsky's wolfman tendencies. Justine suggests that they go to London as perhaps Dr. Jekyll can help cure Daninsky, however they first must deal with the revenge seeking survivor of the trio of thieves who gets the local villagers riled by decapitating Uswika (who they believed to be a witch) and killing the hunchback leper (who was a confederate of Daninsky), all of which causes them to break out the 'ol torches and pitchforks.

You can't have a Spanish horror film without

 the negligee clad heroine and a candelabra

   Once arriving in London Dr. Jekyll proposes an experiment whereby Daninsky is injected with Jekyll's ancestors formula during the full moon which somehow balances everything out (which although explained by Jekyll is never really made clear to exactly how it works). Unfortunately Jekyll's assistant Sandra (Mirta Miller from COUNT DRACULA'S GREAT LOVE) becomes jealous of his attention to Justine and injects Daninsky with the Hyde drug during an inopportune time frame causing him to go into full Hyde mode and begin stalking through London, with Sandra joining in with him on some S&M tortures involving Jennifer.
   Naschy's Hyde with his bulging eyes. pasty face and leering drooling expression is one of his greatest creations outside of his famous wolfman and even goes old school as he stalks about London in a cape & evening suit, top hat and walking stick. The highlight being his transformation from Hyde persona back to "normal" and then into a wolfman all within the space of a few minutes in crowded 70's London discotheque.

   Even though the inclusion of two monsters makes for a somewhat cluttered plot the story takes a rather long time to kick into gear, with almost 40 minutes going by until things get moving. Klimovsky who directed eight of Naschy's films (along with movies in virtually every genre) is always credited with helming some of best of "Señor Lobos" best work but while although they may have had the better plots his direction always seems a bit flat and rushed (Naschy himself in his autobiography would say that Klimovsky rushed through takes). DR. JEKYLL AND THE WOLFMAN is rather unique that it does give some more meatier roles to the female participates, in particular Mirta Miller in her role as Hyde's willing partner. This is availible on a nifty double feature disc from Code Red teamed with Kimovsky's THE VAMPIRES' NIGHT ORGY (with Helga Liné ! - and which will be the subject of a future post).