~Spoiler~
Brian Yuzna's Filmax production company produces hit or miss movies. Romasanta is one of his hits. Paco Plaza is at the reins and he's leading Julian Sands and Elsa Pataky in a romantic fairy tale that is inspired by true events. The story is quite intriguing. Manuel Blanco Romasanta was a traveling vendor in Spain of 1852 who confessed to the murders of 15 people. He used their body fat to create soap that he sold in various towns. He avoided the death penalty by proclaiming he suffered from a rare disease: Lycanthropy. That's correct, he claimed he was a werewolf. Was he really a so-called wolf man? Or just an insane killer of women? Paco never firmly pushes for one or the other. Even though there are some spectacular wolf attacks and even a reverse transformation (a real highlight), it may all be in the deranged mind of Romasanta. Besides the underrated Sands and the gorgeous Pataky, the other cast members are quite good here. John Sharian (a dead ringer for Brando), Gary Piquer, and David Gant were all perfectly cast. Unfortunately for the film, it was dumped on DVD here in the states. It was also given a title change and the worst and most craptastic cover artwork of all time. Lion's Gate has a knack for hiding low budget dreck in a slick package. It seems they wanted to see if they could do the opposite; disguise a classy, Gothic drama as "Werewolf Hunter." So if you see the title, and are expecting something "in the tradition of The Howling" you will be sorely disappointed.
Brian Yuzna's Filmax production company produces hit or miss movies. Romasanta is one of his hits. Paco Plaza is at the reins and he's leading Julian Sands and Elsa Pataky in a romantic fairy tale that is inspired by true events. The story is quite intriguing. Manuel Blanco Romasanta was a traveling vendor in Spain of 1852 who confessed to the murders of 15 people. He used their body fat to create soap that he sold in various towns. He avoided the death penalty by proclaiming he suffered from a rare disease: Lycanthropy. That's correct, he claimed he was a werewolf. Was he really a so-called wolf man? Or just an insane killer of women? Paco never firmly pushes for one or the other. Even though there are some spectacular wolf attacks and even a reverse transformation (a real highlight), it may all be in the deranged mind of Romasanta. Besides the underrated Sands and the gorgeous Pataky, the other cast members are quite good here. John Sharian (a dead ringer for Brando), Gary Piquer, and David Gant were all perfectly cast. Unfortunately for the film, it was dumped on DVD here in the states. It was also given a title change and the worst and most craptastic cover artwork of all time. Lion's Gate has a knack for hiding low budget dreck in a slick package. It seems they wanted to see if they could do the opposite; disguise a classy, Gothic drama as "Werewolf Hunter." So if you see the title, and are expecting something "in the tradition of The Howling" you will be sorely disappointed.