A fine movie with accurately depicted characters and with the support of dialogues that are never out of tune , adding a captivating atmosphere due to its disturbing incidents . The bossy father (José Calvo) of Urdaz family (Yelena Samarina, Fernando Cebrián , Óscar Monzón..) , as during the inaugural dinner he shows his wrath and crushes his children in a display of extreme cruelty and sadism . Then he receives a unsettling note with a death threat . The surprise is the next day, when he disappears. Later on ,happening a series of mysterious disappearances, both relatives and workers of the farm where they live. There are no traces of him . And fear and despair invades the old house at times... starting with the tyrannical father that everyone fears !.
A passable and absorbing film at times , with an intense intrigue that's reinforced by means of various kinds of shocks , chilling score although in some sequences it becomes too boisterous, and dark cinematography that almost produce a hypnotic effect on the viewer. The plot is typical and ordinary , a variant of the case of successive disappearances that take place in an environment that involves a small group of characters, and subsequently things go wrong . Dealing with strange disappearances and without a trace , as one by one, the Urdaz family is plagued by strange happenings , while glimpses of fine psychology are not lacking . The fear and bewilderment that take over the main roles are combined with a sensitive love story between a wealthy young -Oscar Monzón who has not managed to make a career- and a poor girl -Sara Lazana who had a long , successful career- , whose romance is opposed his family . Some weaknesses in the script is made up for the appropriate , suggestive atmosphere and Balcázar makes good use of the performers, all of them fascinating by the way, as are the characters they play . Balcazar skillfully developed the story and keeps the mystery alive until a denouement that manages to surprise and convince us , earning well-deserved applause. A decent film at the time , quite unknown and whose modest reputation is far below its quality .
The music by composer Adolfo Waitzman is very appropriate and inspired, and the photography by cameraman Juan Jurado is nice , giving the film a strong visual force with its lights and shades . Good cast of actors, well directed, with a lot of familar faces of the Sixties and Seventies such as José Calvo of For a fistful of Dollars, Yelena Samarina , Sara Lezana, Carlos Lemos , Fernando Cebrián , Manuel Guitián , Francisco Álvarez. Here excels the evocative cinematography in black and white shot on location in Comillas, San Vicente de la Barquera y Santillana del Mar with its Colegiata incluided .This was a very promising debut by Jaime Jesús Balcázar., though he falls short . It was shot in 1964 but premieredthree years later with little success. After "The Edge of Fear" Jaime Balcazar wrote/produced/directed irrelevant subsequent products . He was author of the outrageous script for ¨Superargo contra Diabolikus¨, and he managed to make some entertaining movies , though sometimes very mediocre . Juan Jose Balcazar alongside his brothers Francisco Balcazar and Alfonso Balcázar produced and directed a lot of Tortilla or Butifarra Western , most of them starred by Jorge Martin or George Martin , Luis Davila , Daniel Martin or Robert Woods ; such as 1972 The return of Clint , 1972 Judas... ¡Toma Monedas! , 1968 Sartana no Perdone or Sonora , 1967 With Death on Your Back, 1966 Dinamita Jim , 1965 Doc , Manos De Plata , 1965 Viva Carrancho , 1965 Five Thousand Dollars on One Ace . But J. J Balcazar also made other genres such as : Action as 1968 Crónica de un atraco , 1967 El hombre del puño de oro , 1967 El filo del miedo and Erotic as : Catherine Chérie , 1982 , Playa azul , 1979 Inés de Villalonga 1870 and 1970 El misterio de la vida and hisonly Musical : Españolear . Rating 5.5 /10 . Average though some brief moments fun . If you like traditional Spanish thrillers remains watchable. This movie is a good example that with a little budget but with expert skillness , appreciable results can be achieved in the crime genre.
