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Face of the Screaming Werewolf (1964)


Can a movie, that actually consists scenes from two mexican monsterthrillers plus additional scenes from US for commersial interests, be successful? – Yes! This is a dreamlike and incoherently edited oddity that tells a story of a centralamerican mummy found at the excur- sions of a pyramid. Also there is a mad scientist who in his experiments with revivification, succeeds in waking the mummy. And there´s a thunderstorm! The mummy is transformed into a werewolf played by Lon Chaney jnr! Its wild, suspenseful, trancendental, poetic in its “silents” looks and pace and there is a musical number of exotica style too, with an Yma Sumaclike vocalist in a “flashback” Aztec ritual scene! I was overwhelmed of the total impact of this movie as seen through the eyes of someone who value uniqueness and improvised quality in lowbudgetfantasy that really works as avantgarde poetry. The images and atmosphere of Ancient Civilisation, Pyramids, detectiveworks, a scary rotten walking mummy, a terrifying werewolf,terrified womens faces and all these mysterios cuts between scenes from one film to another creates a nightmare with no other logic than the dream´s own. I recommend this for all who has a vivid imagination and for all of you who believe that insanity can be genial!