jadavix This Naschy offering, in which the Spanish force of nature played three characters, is an odd spectacle. Anyone heading in for the z-word will probably be disappointed. Rather than the staggering, brain-devouring undead we all know and love (and will soon be quite sick of, I'd wager), the "zombies" in this film exist as puppets for an evil occultist. You can probably guess who plays him, and who also plays the devil in a later scene.The surprising choice of Naschy's was also to play an Indian mystic named Krishna. This is surprising not just to see the role of an Indian played by the Spanish Naschy, but also because the character itself is an odd fit for the movie. The origin of zombies is explored in the Voodoo religion that birthed them (and of course, dolls are harmed in the making of this movie), but why the Indian character, and reference to the Thuggee cult? Naschy was known to often mix genre staples, eg. werewolves against vampires, but I'm not sure what he was going for in invoking that particular barbarity.The film is, overall, more a giallo than a typical zombie flick, with a masked man dressed in black sneaking around killing to a psychedelic soundtrack. The garish colours and bold compositions of giallo are here, too. I say check it out... but don't expect Night of the Living Dead.

Uriah43 Although definitely a bit dated this film overall isn't a bad entry into the zombie genre. Focusing on voodoo, this movie is about a man who is obsessed with vengeance on certain families who have made him pay for wrongs committed by him earlier. So he turns to voodoo and exacts his revenge by killing certain members of these families and recreating them as zombies. Admittedly, the plot is somewhat slow to develop and the acting is barely adequate. Additionally, the fight sequences are laughable and the makeup and filming technique are clearly a product of its time (late-60's and early-70's) when it comes to this particular style of horror. But I have always enjoyed horror movies from this era and this is no exception. Likewise, the addition of some sexy ladies like Carmen Romero ("Elvire Irving") and Mirta Miller ("Kala") certainly didn't hurt this picture in any way. Now, that is not to say that everyone who enjoys zombie movies will like this film. Again, sometimes it helps to have been alive during this period in order to appreciate movies of this era. That said, this is a decent films for those who can make allowances for its obvious flaws and short-comings.

poe426 VENGEANCE OF THE ZOMBIES has a lot going for it: Paul Naschy, doing triple duty as a guru, the guru's doppelganger, and Satan himself (in FRONT of the camera; he also wrote it as well); a veritable plethora of unusual characters (besides the three played by Naschy); some interesting no-budget makeup fx; and some genuinely decent direction (again) by Leon Klimovsky. There are some genuinely creepy moments in this one (the appearance of one woman actually startled me) and Klimovsky once again uses slow motion to great effect. The only real problem I had with this one was the decapitation of the chicken: I tend to think of all animals as children and seeing an animal sacrificed on a celluloid altar just ain't justifiable in my book.

Witchfinder General 666 Opinions on León Klimovsky's "La Rebelión De Las Muertas" aka. "Vengeance of the Zombies" (1973) are obviously split. While some regard the film as utter crap, many of my fellow Paul Naschy fans seem to regard it as a particularly bizarre highlight in the Spanish Horror icon's filmography. As a more and more enthusiastic of Paul Naschy, I must say that my feelings on this one are somewhat mixed. On the one hand, "Vengeance of the Zombies" is probably even THE weirdest film I've ever seen Naschy in (and weirdness is a quality his films generally have), and therefore highly recommendable to all his fans. On the other hand, it is undeniable that the film tends to get very tedious in-between, which is rare with Naschy films. While Naschy films are not usually 'good' in a traditional sense, they are almost always vastly entertaining, and have a genuine, inimitable charm. Naschy often wrote the screenplays and stories for his films himself, as he did for this one. Director León Klimovsky is doubtlessly best known for a film that is probably also Naschy's most famous one, "La Noche De Walpurgis" aka. "Werewolf vs. Vampire Women" of 1971, with Naschy in his most famous role of Werewolf Waldemar Daninsky, whom he played thirteen times."Vengeance of the Zombies" has an entirely nonlinear structure and mostly makes little sense, but, in many parts the film is just a delight to watch. Naschy fans will be delighted that the master plays a triple-role in this one - as an Indian Guru, a Satanic Voodoo Master, and Satan himself. The film includes countless elements that my fellow cult-cinema fans will love: resurrection of the dead, Voodoo, Zombies, Satan, black masses, and even murders that were clearly inspired by the Italian Giallo. The gore effects are pretty nasty and well-made in this one. Yet the barely existent structure of the film often makes it hard to keep watching in-between the good parts. The film is about resurrecting the dead and using them as Zombie slaves for sinister goals, but it really doesn't make a lot of sense. Watching Naschy in three roles is awesome, although an Indian Guru is probably the least credible role imaginable for him. The female cast is beautiful to look at, especially Romy as the main protagonist, and the Argentinian beauty Mirta Miller, who plays the Guru's Indian girlfriend. The funky soundtrack seems terribly out of place for an occult Horror film like this one, but, then again it underlines the amusing 'camp' factor. "Vengeance of the Zombies" is a hard movie for me to rate. On the one hand it is impossible not to love it for its awesome absurdity. Then again, this is overall the only tedious Naschy film I have seen. Overall, I recommend this film to my fellow Paul Naschy fans; yet I definitely prefer seeing him in the roles of murderous hunchbacks, deranged graveyard personnel, werewolves or satanic medieval knights. My opinion on "Vengeance of the Zombies": 5.5/10