So, let's get a look at several underrated and somewhat underseen Mexican horror films.
All of Them Witches-
This one wasn't really all that spectacular, mostly because it really doesn't do anything at all. While the concept of having bizarre visions may be horrific to those experiencing them, on film they play out so ordinary and boring that the film appears to be so slow as to be utterly lifeless and uninteresting. Eventually, it does get better towards the end when the zombified owner does get around to making an appearance and that leads to some fun in the apartment showdown, and the atmosphere does give off a nice suspenseful vibe, yet the fact remains that this one is just so dull and lifeless.
Even the Wind is Afraid-
This was an utterly enjoyable and engrossing Mexican horror effort, with one of the better and more entertaining ghost stories around that make for some incredibly enjoyable times around. Filled with lots of atmosphere in the gigantic facility, a perfectly captivating mystery and the right amount of tension-release, from cheesy dance numbers and slight lesbian undertones to the gang's night-time investigations and the interactions with the headmistress make for some somewhat slow-going but still decent-enough interludes from the haunting action, and while it's not a real go-for-the-throat style of haunting where it constantly reinforces it's there but contains enough set-pieces to make it consciously part of the film. The last half is a little too cheesy to mesh with the classic first-half, but it's still a great old-school ghost story and a highly entertaining one at that.
Helena's Cry-
While initially appearing to be some sort of thriller in the fact that it consists of nothing but here sitting around newspaper clippings or the internet struggling to find out what's going on (a fact hampered again by the lack of understanding the Spanish dialog) and that ends up leaving the middle section rather slow-going, but the scenes of her and her assistant out-and-about investigating are actually surprisingly good, with its focus on the ghost showing up at the most unexpected times and making for some rather fun chase sequences. It feels rather routine after a while, but it's a lot better once it gets going.
The Man in White-
This was a really disjointed horror/thriller that doesn't have a whole lot going for it at all. Despite an incredibly rousing opening about the Mexican Day of the Dead celebrations that are quite colorful and provide a unique look at the celebration, but after that isn't quite so exciting since the majority of the film deals with the chasing down of the lone witnesses to the detriment of all other happenings, so there's going to be a lot wrong with this. The first one is that the lack of victims means there's very little blood or gore, despite the initial murder sequence being one of the more bloody ones shown. There's also the fact that the film is incredibly one-note, detailing her merely escaping and hiding only to repeat the process ad nauseam until the movie's over which is quite boring after a while and really leaves this one without anything going on in the middle parts of the movie with the same set-up repeating over-and-over. It's got a couple good chases, but not a whole lot else.
Marina: On the Other Side of Time-
Frankly, this is one film I'm a little unsure about since it was the only one I saw without closed-captioning, which the others supplied so I think I missed a lot of what's going on in here, so the story above might be somewhat off from what's actually going on yet it's the best I can offer based on the limited amount of Spanish I've been picking up from watching these films. Even with the story problems, the age of the heroine and the action contained within make it out to be a kid's horror film and it clearly shows it, with the bad CGI for the ghosts not moving at all yet floating within the scene, the disembodied voices and lack of anything gory or bloody clearly have this one intended for the younger audiences, so with the lack of help from the story I really can't say much more about it. Several scenes, including a fine one in her bedroom where the ghosts materialize out of her toys to torment her, had the potential to be quite exciting, but again not a lot to say here.
The Raven's Mourn-
This was probably one of the most disappointing Mexican horror efforts since this one could've been one of the better ones but instead is pretty flawed. Most of this comes from the fact that there's hardly anything at all going on, from the fact that everyone seems to just stand around talking to everyone about what's going on, and not understanding the language at all, makes for endless scenes of people in a large Gothic mansion yakking away indescribably, which isn't a fun experience. Still, it could've been great from the fact that the ghost materializes into the scenes rather nicely and the opening sequence is a Gothic masterpiece that starts it up wonderfully, but it just doesn't do anything else with it.
The Return of the Monster-
Quite frankly, this here is one of the weirdest Mexican horrors so far, though for a lot of good reasons. The decision to make the witch an articulated skeleton, able to move around and interact with the characters in its scenes, gesturing and speaking aloud, is just unnerving and gives it a creepy quality that is really enjoyable and off-setting. Also, the rural setting of the main characters plays off the scientifically-advanced villains, as they manage to play with a telescreen prompter, mind-controlling rings worn on their fingers and transformation serums is another off-setting feature, especially since the movie takes place in a Western setting, complete with horses and slow-loading rifles. Despite the singing interludes that grew tedious and a rather fun and spirited finale that's ruined by the hero having no real involvement in the defeat of the group, this one was pretty enjoyable.
All of Them Witches-
This one wasn't really all that spectacular, mostly because it really doesn't do anything at all. While the concept of having bizarre visions may be horrific to those experiencing them, on film they play out so ordinary and boring that the film appears to be so slow as to be utterly lifeless and uninteresting. Eventually, it does get better towards the end when the zombified owner does get around to making an appearance and that leads to some fun in the apartment showdown, and the atmosphere does give off a nice suspenseful vibe, yet the fact remains that this one is just so dull and lifeless.
Even the Wind is Afraid-
This was an utterly enjoyable and engrossing Mexican horror effort, with one of the better and more entertaining ghost stories around that make for some incredibly enjoyable times around. Filled with lots of atmosphere in the gigantic facility, a perfectly captivating mystery and the right amount of tension-release, from cheesy dance numbers and slight lesbian undertones to the gang's night-time investigations and the interactions with the headmistress make for some somewhat slow-going but still decent-enough interludes from the haunting action, and while it's not a real go-for-the-throat style of haunting where it constantly reinforces it's there but contains enough set-pieces to make it consciously part of the film. The last half is a little too cheesy to mesh with the classic first-half, but it's still a great old-school ghost story and a highly entertaining one at that.
Helena's Cry-
While initially appearing to be some sort of thriller in the fact that it consists of nothing but here sitting around newspaper clippings or the internet struggling to find out what's going on (a fact hampered again by the lack of understanding the Spanish dialog) and that ends up leaving the middle section rather slow-going, but the scenes of her and her assistant out-and-about investigating are actually surprisingly good, with its focus on the ghost showing up at the most unexpected times and making for some rather fun chase sequences. It feels rather routine after a while, but it's a lot better once it gets going.
The Man in White-
This was a really disjointed horror/thriller that doesn't have a whole lot going for it at all. Despite an incredibly rousing opening about the Mexican Day of the Dead celebrations that are quite colorful and provide a unique look at the celebration, but after that isn't quite so exciting since the majority of the film deals with the chasing down of the lone witnesses to the detriment of all other happenings, so there's going to be a lot wrong with this. The first one is that the lack of victims means there's very little blood or gore, despite the initial murder sequence being one of the more bloody ones shown. There's also the fact that the film is incredibly one-note, detailing her merely escaping and hiding only to repeat the process ad nauseam until the movie's over which is quite boring after a while and really leaves this one without anything going on in the middle parts of the movie with the same set-up repeating over-and-over. It's got a couple good chases, but not a whole lot else.
Marina: On the Other Side of Time-
Frankly, this is one film I'm a little unsure about since it was the only one I saw without closed-captioning, which the others supplied so I think I missed a lot of what's going on in here, so the story above might be somewhat off from what's actually going on yet it's the best I can offer based on the limited amount of Spanish I've been picking up from watching these films. Even with the story problems, the age of the heroine and the action contained within make it out to be a kid's horror film and it clearly shows it, with the bad CGI for the ghosts not moving at all yet floating within the scene, the disembodied voices and lack of anything gory or bloody clearly have this one intended for the younger audiences, so with the lack of help from the story I really can't say much more about it. Several scenes, including a fine one in her bedroom where the ghosts materialize out of her toys to torment her, had the potential to be quite exciting, but again not a lot to say here.
The Raven's Mourn-
This was probably one of the most disappointing Mexican horror efforts since this one could've been one of the better ones but instead is pretty flawed. Most of this comes from the fact that there's hardly anything at all going on, from the fact that everyone seems to just stand around talking to everyone about what's going on, and not understanding the language at all, makes for endless scenes of people in a large Gothic mansion yakking away indescribably, which isn't a fun experience. Still, it could've been great from the fact that the ghost materializes into the scenes rather nicely and the opening sequence is a Gothic masterpiece that starts it up wonderfully, but it just doesn't do anything else with it.
The Return of the Monster-
Quite frankly, this here is one of the weirdest Mexican horrors so far, though for a lot of good reasons. The decision to make the witch an articulated skeleton, able to move around and interact with the characters in its scenes, gesturing and speaking aloud, is just unnerving and gives it a creepy quality that is really enjoyable and off-setting. Also, the rural setting of the main characters plays off the scientifically-advanced villains, as they manage to play with a telescreen prompter, mind-controlling rings worn on their fingers and transformation serums is another off-setting feature, especially since the movie takes place in a Western setting, complete with horses and slow-loading rifles. Despite the singing interludes that grew tedious and a rather fun and spirited finale that's ruined by the hero having no real involvement in the defeat of the group, this one was pretty enjoyable.
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