Director: John Gilling
Year: 1975
Country: Spain
Alternate Titles: La cruz del diablo
Genre: Supernatural
Plot:
Trying to get inspiration for his writings, a man visits Spain to learn more about an intriguing cult-like group known as the Knights Templar from the area, but when he discovers that the cult is trying to revive and spread their terror, they must save himself from their diabolical plans.
Review:
For the most part, this was an intriguing if somewhat problematic genre effort. Among the better elements found here comes from the strong setup that allows this to go into a somewhat unexpected storyline. With the initial starting point here, working with the idea that his writer’s block is broken by the discovery of the Templars and trying to use that to uncover more about them when he starts to suspect that his sister was killed after encountering them, there’s a wholly intriguing starting point involving the origin of the group and what they offer in the modern day. Seeing that they’re still around despite their history and how much of that is detailed here with the descriptions of the group’s activities, as well as flashbacks detailing these events, the folklore surrounding the particular cult here is quite impressive, and when added together with the Gothic atmosphere involving the dreams he has pointing to a specific sacrificial altar in the countryside that is the same place where his sister was found murdered or scenes of characters wandering around the castle grounds in flowing nightgowns with candelabras in howling wind, there’s a solid atmosphere throughout here.
From there, the film offers up some bits of action here and there that keep this going until it reaches the finale. The initial scenes of the Templars on horseback circling the frightened woman, tied to the titular cross, are wholly effective, chilling, and quite intriguing at making his quest for answers feel earned and worthwhile. There’s also the impressive series of visions here showing the zombified minions of the cult heading out into town to commit more murders of the citizenry, focusing on the imagery of the situation than anything else, as the creatures look quite intriguing. As the finale is where all the action is, from the series of reveals involving the truth about the real figure behind the visions he has and why he keeps seeing her in his dreams, the real villain in town trying to keep the Templars going through the years, and the haunting outcome, this gets quite fun overall. Featuring enough action where he has to rescue the woman from their clutches in a thrilling series of sword-fights and some brutal action involved in this section, it gets quite fun and has a lot to like overall.
There are some drawbacks to be had here that hold it down. The biggest problem with the film is a sluggish and uninvolving tempo that gives this a draining experience, which this kind of material shouldn’t have. The idea of the cult tormenting local villagers as a means of conducting sacrifices for their supreme being and targeting his sister, which brings him to the area to fulfill a dream prophecy he has about the sacred statue they have, is an intriguing one with a lot to like here. Instead, this manages to be far drearier and talkative than it should be, with seemingly endless scenes of him uncovering more about the cult, the different legends about their original operations, and the disturbing truth about what could be possible if the hero weren’t a hashish smoker. These all give the action so little screentime in the middle sections that it’s hard to remain invested if not engaged with the mystery, as we get little on-screen activity.
Overview: **.5/5
A solid, if sluggish, Spanish Gothic horror effort, this one gets likable enough when it gets down to the action, but that’s so few and far between due to its pacing that it stumbles from what it could’ve been. Those with an interest in this type of Eurohorror or who are fans of the creative crew will have a lot to like here, while those turned off by these factors should heed caution.
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