The Witches Mountain

Although not the best "B" horror flick to come out of the 70's, this is one of my favorites because it introduced me to Patty Shepard, who became my favorite star of this genre. Although it suffers from continuity problems, it retains a somewhat tense mood that makes this movie viewable. The story has an effective ending and has remained a favorite of mine throughout the years that it has aired on late night local T.V., although I have not seen it in some time. If you are not enamored of Patty Shepard, you may not think much of this import, but it will remain on my list of favorites.

After an angry break-up with his fiancee : Mónica Randall , a news photographer : Gaffari , takes an assignment by the Northern Spain traveling throughout Picos de Europa (Asturias) . Along the way he meets an attractive young : Patty Shepard on the beach , whom he accords to join at the suspenseful journey across the mountains by jeep . The couple stops at a ruined hotel run by a suspicious man: Victor Israel . By the way they hear rumours that there is a nearly mountain where inhabits a coven of haunted witches.

Thrilling and frightening pic with atmospheric sets , creepy happenings , blood-curling scenes, twists and turns. It is an acceptable movie with some terror moments striking without warning. A passable horror movie that makes you shiver and quiver , being made during the best period of the Spanish Fantaterror in early 70s , when Jacinto Molina or Paul Naschy created his unforgettable horror flicks. The picture displays an eerie and mysterious musical score by Fernando García Morcillo , with plenty of medieval , religious and choral sounds that cause real fright and extreme fear . However , cinematography results to be lousy and worn-out , being necessary a perfect remastering because of the film copy is faded . And the locations are fantastic and gorgeous : Desfiladero de la Hermida , Cantabria , Asturias , Picos de Europa and Lagos or Lagoon de Covadonga : Enol and Ercina .

The picture was regularly directed by Raúl Artigot , but he creates nice terror images and atmosphere enough . Raúl Artigot was a notorious cameraman who photographed a lot of films such as : Requiem para un campesino, Plaza del Diamante, La Chica del Pijama Amarillo, La Espuela , Manuela , Los Demonios, Semana del Asesino, El Buque Maldito . And wrote/directed a few films as Bajo en Nicotina, Cabo de Vara and this El Monte de las Brujas .Rating : 5.5/10 . The yarn will appeal to Spanish terror fans

"El monte de las brujas" (The witches' mountain) is a strange and compelling film. I've found it casually in ebay and ordered it. The transfer of the film, made from a VHS tape, is not good, and the film obviously suffered cuts, but even so I've quite enjoyed the film.

We are introduced to Carla (Monica Randall) arriving at a house. In the house, a hysterical little girl has stabbed some dolls and killed the cat. Carla tries to calm down the girl but all to no use. The little girl (so it seems) takes a snake out of somewhere. The snake slithers slowly through the girl's hair. Carla watches everything and crouches a little. Suddenly, Fire! The beginning credits of the film start to roll followed by a weird and loud chanting. What really happened is anybody's guess.

Next scene: Mario (John Gaffari), a photographer writing for a newspaper/magazine, arrives at home. When he turns the lights on, guess who's waiting for him? Carla. She wants to resume their relationship. He says no. Carla says to Mario that he'll regret his decision. Cut.

Mario starts off for Witches' Mountain. His assignment is to take good pictures of the area. On the way there, he meets a beautiful girl on a beach. She is sunbathing topless. He takes some pictures from her and invites her to go with him to Witches' Mountain. She's Delia (Patty Shepard). She accepts his invitation, and both of them head for Witches' Mountain in Mario's car. This is, very briefly told, the beginning of the film. From then on strange small things begin to happen to them (warnings?).

The more they approach Witches' Mountain, the more ominous things become, and when they arrive there.....

The film is very atmospheric. If you like off-the-beaten-track eurohorror, this film is a must. The beautiful mountainous scenery, the dreamy night scenes in the woods haunted by dark silhouettes and weird chantings, old ruined houses, fog....

"El monte de las brujas" transmits a feeling of total spontaneity. The cameras, the actors, the landscape, the wondrous soundtrack seem to belong together. John Gaffari, as Mario, and Patty Shepard as Delia, as well as all the other actors, are excellent. "The witches' mountain" is very creative and... trippy. But if you only like horror films with lots of scares and blood, then avoid this one at all costs.

Sometimes certain films get caught in an untenable position. They want to be classy and subtle but don't have the ability to be so. Yet, they avoid elements that would make them interesting or entertaining in an effort to attain a subtlety that is far beyond their means or capabilities. "The Witches Mountain" is such a film. It so strives to attain such an atmosphere that it all but ignores any element whether it be exploitative, strange, or horrific in an effort to achieve its desired goals.

And, yet, it doesn't have the ability to generate the suspense it needs to attain such a chilling atmosphere. The film was directed by Raul Artigot, a noted cinematographer making his directorial debut. He knows how to frame a scene, and the photography is quite beautiful. But, for some strange reason, he is unable to create what a low-budget film like this needs most in it's repertoire; the haunting visual imagery so necessary to leaving an indelible mark on the memory of the viewer. All of the best low-budget horror films have indelible images, that once you think about them, shivers run down your spine. From the flesh-eating scene in "Night of the Living Dead" to the menace of Michael Meyers relentlessly pursuing Jamie Lee Curtis in "Halloween", these images create a sense of fear and dread that lasts in your subconscious. They contribute to an atmosphere of suspense that is unrelenting. Which is exactly what this movie so drastically needs. It is unable to attain the ethereal or dream-like beauty that it so longs for, thus leaving the first hour of the film suspense- less and bereft of nearly all action, leading up to a denouement that is flat and uninvolving. And, while there are a couple of surreal moments towards the end, they are much too limited to have any real impact.

As for the production itself, the cast, headed by genre stalwarts Patty Shepard, John Gaffari, and Monica Randall, is fine. But the material( A young couple encounters a witches coven while traveling through the mountainside,) is incredibly weak. Only the reliable character actor Victor Israel( "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly", "Horror Express", "Goya's Ghost") is allowed to shine through as a sinister innkeeper with a hearing problem. His complex performance is one of the few bright spots in this movie. And while the photography is beautiful, the film is so poorly paced that you literally wonder if anything is going to happen. Even the musical score is a mixed bag. The instrumentals and singing do possess a lyrical, moody beauty that should have been embraced by the movie itself, but the chanting( which is meant to terrify us, I suppose) is grating on the nerves and almost too painful to listen to,

So, all in all, this movie doesn't add up to much. The film strives to be a modern Gothic horror story but cannot achieve it. It eschews all other elements in an attempt to create an emotional impact it otherwise lacks. But the only thing it creates is a tepidness that it never recovers from.

The film is like other reviewers have said: Odd, strange, mesmerizing, does not make a lot of sense, watchable, weird and captivating. It's one of those European films one would have to watch to understand what is meant by watchable yet does not make a lot of sense.

Great atmosphere, appropriate music, acting not too bad, some interesting scenes, and bizarrely entertaining with a questionable script. OR maybe it's just loosing something in the translation into the English language instead of being a questionable script? I'm not sure which it is.

Anyway, if you like the older Euro-Horror films and/or movies about witches you might find something entertaining about this film as others and myself did.

The movie is NOT bloody nor gory - it's a Gothic piece with lots of eerie imagery as eye-candy.

5/10