a.k.a. La Noche de Walpurgis, The Werewolf Versus The Vampire Woman
Paul Naschy stars in a mix of the classic Wolf Man mythos, and the vibrant colours, blood and sex of the Hammer era.
AB UK R2 DVD.
The Film
The
1970s were great times for European cinema, it was the heyday of the
Spaghetti Western, the Giallo murder mystery, and Euro-cult-horror was
in full swing. With the decline of the General Franco rule in Spain,
there was a loosening of the censorship laws allowing more films
to be shot in the country, and a chance for the Spanish to catch up
with the Italian and German film markets. Werewolf Shadow was the big film that put Spanish horror on the map and made Paul Naschy famous.
Two
doctors are performing an autopsy on a dead man, shot by villages with
a silver bullet. Mocking the local superstitions, the doctor removes
the bullet, only for the man to come back to life and transform into a
werewolf, leaving both men brutally killed. Meanwhile, in Paris, Elvira
(Gaby Fuchs) andher friend Genevieve prepared to head up into the
northern countrtside to locate the tomb of Countess Wandessa
d'Arville de Nadasdy, a 15th Century Countess
who practiced the Black Arts and drank the blood of virgins. Running
out of fuel on their drive they are helped by Waldemar
Daninsky (Paul Naschy) who lives in a near-by remote house. He helps them find the tomb, but when Genevieve cuts herself on the sword, and bleeds into the Countess' body, she is restored to life and comes after the girls...
Werewolf Shadow
is an exploitation film pure and simple. The plot serves to get the
characters from point A to point B but won't hold up to much
investigation: what degree course are the girls studying that needs
them to find the grave of a proported witch? How do the villagers keep
finding the bodies of Waldemar's victims when they fear to tread in the
valley where he lives, and since it is such a long drive to the
village, why do the villagers keep walking down there? Why does Marcel
become so suspicious because a letter was sent from a remote village,
surely he knew that Elvira would be there? It also introduces
interesting sub-plots, like the plight of the villagers, very late on
in the film, without any previous information or follow-up. However,
the script does its job, and keeps the film moving at a good pace with
plenty of chances for blood and boobs and an acceptable climax. It
might not hold up to a lot of scrutiny, but few exploitation scripts
ever do.
On the plus side, the film looks and sounds great, often very similar to the other famous Spanish horror picture Tombs of the Blind Dead(1971)
shot in the same year, and sharing producer, composer and filming
locations, even the use of slow motion. To avoid censorship problems
the film was set in France, but the scenery and settings are pure
Spanish and very bright and colourful - many of the scenes were shot at
the El Cercón Monastery, familiar to Blind Dead fans. Director
Leon Klimovsky is a very workman-like director, but he makes good use
of slow-motion shots when the vampires are in shot, and the camerawork
is solid - the opening in the Parisian bar is very good. The
special effects look very good - Naschy is almost unrecognisable
under the heavy Wolfman make-up, and he gets a lot of blood to chew on.
Composer Antón García Abril gives a score very much like
that for the Blind Dead films - very minimalist and often surrealist
although with a rather upbeat theme song, a long way from the
orchestral scores Hammer and Universal films on which this saga was
based.
Paul
Naschy (a.k.a. Jancito Molina) gets the lead role here in his
self-penned film. Although not an A-list actor, he does bring a good
presence to the film and he looks very good as the werewolf. Gaby Fuchs
as Elvira is probably the best known to horror fans for her performance
in Mark of the Devil (1970), although she is pretty emotionless here. The rest of the cast are small-time Spanish actors, with a long list of
Euro-Westerns and horror films to their names, several of them turning
up again in Waldemar Daninsky's later adventures. Don't expect any standout performances, but they all look the part at least.
With Werewolf Shadow,
you get what you pay for; it is a 1970s exploitation film with plenty
of bloody werewolf action and attractive women. The plot might not be
up to much and the acting won't win any awards but the film looks
pretty good and has a great soundtrack. Compared to the more effective, but less entertaining Tombs of the Blind Dead (1971), Werewolf Shadow is generally fun to watch, and a
good place to enter the weird and wonderful world of Paul Naschy
films, this film is recommended.
In Brief
Its a sequel, do I need to see the first film?
No, the film contains only limited references to the previous films.
Anyone famous in it?
Paul Naschy - star of a great many cult/euro-horror films. Recently starred in Rojo Sangre (2004).
Directed by anyone interesting?
Leon Klimovsky - directed a large amount of euro-horror, little else.
Is it scary?
Not really.
Any gore?
Plenty of blood, but none of the anatomical gore from later Euro-horror films.
Any sex?
A couple of brief topless scenes, plenty of revealing costumes.
Who is it for?
Certainly of interest to
Euro-horror fans. Werewolf fans should also see this last stand of the
traditional looking movie-werewolf. A good starting place to explore the world of Paul Naschy.
Good soundtrack?
A light score that adds to the mysterious feel of the film.
The DVD
Visuals
Original Aspect Ratio - 1.85:1 widescreen. Anamorphically enhanced. Colour. The disc is strong visually, good colours, some grain and print damage in certain scenes. Note: The film was probably shot in 1.66:1 for European projection, so
there does seem to be some head-cropping in certain scenes.
Audio
English
language mono sound dub track. Two
scenes are in Spanish - these were originally cut from the film when
imported into American, and not covered by the original English dub
track.
Subtitles
English optional subtitles for the two Spanish language scenes. No other subtitles.
Runtime
Feature: 1hr 30m 50s (PAL)
Extras
The disc includes:
A lengthy theatrical trailer - letterboxed. Contains spoilers. (3m 04s)
A 'TV Spot' that appears to be a cinema trailer, under the title Werewolf versus the Vampire Woman is in poorer condition, and gives an odd impression of the film. (1m 01s)
'Interview with the Wolf Man' - a Spanish
language, subtitled interview with Paul Naschy. Illustrated with clips
from this film and Curse of the Devil
(1973) as well as various still photos. Covers much ground, and provides
extensive background to the film. Same extra as included on the Curse of the Devil Anchor Bay USA release. (14m 51s)
Naschy poster gallery - large gallery of film posters for other films starring Paul Naschy.
Biography - a quite detailed biography of Paul Naschy - standard AB style.
Pressbook - illustrations of stills from the film included in the pressbook for the movie.
Packing
Standard Amray case.
Region
Region 2 (UK and Europe) - PAL
Other regions?
Anchor Bay USA Region 1 NTSC - includes the same print and bonus features.
Cuts?
The film is believed to be fully uncut. The print has newly created English titles and credits.
Summary
A fun 1970s exploitation film, easy to watch and a good place to start for budding Paul Naschy fans.
Good presentation of this rare film. Interesting extra features, interview is very informative.
