The Horrible Sexy Vampire – Mondo Macabro (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: Spain, 1971
Director: José Luis Madrid
Writer: José Luis Madrid
Cast: Barta Barri, Anastasio Campoy, Susan Carvasal, Victor Davis, Kurt Esteban, Luis Induni, Antonio Jiménez Escribano, Patricia Loran, José Marco, Luis Marugan, Antonio Ramis, Ada Tauler, Mary Trovar

Release Date: October 11th, 2022
Approximate running time: 90 Minutes 14 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC
Rating: NR
Sound: DTS-HD Mono Spanish, DTS-HD Mono English
Subtitles: English
Region Coding: Region Free
Retail Price: $29.99

"A series of murders is being committed. Both men and women are victims of a mystery assassin. The police think it is the work of a serial killer. The coroner is not sure it is so simple. He has been studying the case and has discovered that for nearly a hundred years in the same district people, have been killed in the same way and according to a very distinct time pattern.

To the astonishment of the investigating officer, the coroner says he believes the killings to be the work of a supernatural creature – a vampire. Soon a stranger arrives in the area, claiming to be the sole descendent of the long dead baron who was believed to be a vampire. He accompanies the police into the burial vaults of the ancient castle, where a dreadful sight awaits them." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4.25/5

Here’s the information provided about this release's transfer, “Brand new 4k transfer from 35mm materials, digitally restored.”

The Horrible Sexy Vampire comes on a 25 GB single layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 22.4 GB

Feature: 19.2 GB

The source used for this transfer looks great. Colors look very good, the image looks crisp, black levels fare well, and the image retains an organic look.

Audio: 4/5 (DTS-HD Mono Spanish), 3.75/5 (DTS-HD Mono English)

This release comes with two audio options: a DTS-HD mono mix in Spanish and a DTS-HD mono mix in English. The Spanish language track sounds clean, clear, and balanced. The English language track has some minimal background hiss, the dialog comes through clearly, and everything sounds balanced. Included with this release are removable English subtitles for the Spanish language track.

Extras:

Extras for this release include a Mondo Macabro preview reel, a theatrical trailer (3 minutes 9 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), animated press book and publicity stills, and an audio commentary with David Flint and Adrian J. Smith.

Summary:

Though Spanish cinema in the early part of the 1970’s was still under the thumb of a dictator named General Franco. There was some wild cinema that came out of Spain during this era. Films were shot in two versions; one for Spanish audiences that adhered to censorship guidelines at the time, and a second version for audiences outside of Spain that typically featured a lot of nudity and more graphic on-screen carnage.

This brings us to The Horrible Sexy Vampire, a film that is truly an oddity, even by 1970’s exploitation cinema standards. Though The Horrible Sexy Vampire has all the elements that are synonymous with 1970’s exploitation cinema, the result is a film that relies heavily on these elements and skims when it comes to everything else.

Before any characters are introduced, there is a pre-credits sequence where a couple who have just arrived at a hotel take turns in the shower. This sequence ends with an unseen killer who plays a large role in the story at hand. After this scene, there is a mild attempt at exposition, followed by a series of killings and many moments where women are bathing or in various stages of undress. Needless to say, there is an ample amount of nudity in The Horrible Sexy Vampire.

From a production standpoint, it quickly becomes clear that The Horrible Sexy Vampire is working on an anemic budget. An absurd premise—a vampire who can only drink women’s blood—is further hindered by a meandering narrative that leads to an anticlimactic finale. Also, when it comes to performances, do not expect too much, since the cast are not given much to work with. Ultimately, The Horrible Sexy Vampire is a different kind of vampire film that at least lives up to its name; it is horrible and there are sexy women.

The Horrible Sexy Vampire gets a first-rate release from Mondo Macabro that comes with a strong audio/video presentation and an informative audio commentary.

Written by Michael Den Boer