An extremely strange film in that it is ten times better than it had any right to be. The script and story is usual b-movie rubbish, and the acting is adequate at best (the dubbing is of course terrible), however some genuine talent behind the camera make this watchable throughout. Eschewing the usual b-movie tricks like ludicrous music, fast zooms and an indulgence of s**t acting to advance the story, the director concentrates instead on extended set pieces (in one case a strange lute playing sequence) which he stages extremely well. It reminded me of the French horror movies of Rollin, where extended scenes, slow, languid camera work and a healthy dollop of sex play a large part.
Obviously this is still a b-movie, and when the plot has to kick in at the end it is predictably terrible. They do have a dig at their own crap effects with someone mistaking the monster for a man in a mask, but it's not clear if this was deliberate or just a case of bad scriptwriting. Not good by any stretch of the imagination, but significantly better than the average, usually unwatchable, exploitation film.
Obviously this is still a b-movie, and when the plot has to kick in at the end it is predictably terrible. They do have a dig at their own crap effects with someone mistaking the monster for a man in a mask, but it's not clear if this was deliberate or just a case of bad scriptwriting. Not good by any stretch of the imagination, but significantly better than the average, usually unwatchable, exploitation film.