Santo vs. the Riders of Terror – Indicator Series (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: Mexico, 1970
Director: René Cardona
Writers: René Cardona, Jesús Murcielago Velázquez
Cast: Santo, Armando Silvestre, Julio Aldama, Mary Montiel, Gregorio Casal, Ivonne Govea, Carlos Agostí, Carlos Suárez, Nathanael León

Release Date: March 25th, 2024 (UK), March 26th, 2024 (USA)
Approximate Running Times: 77 Minutes 50 Seconds (Santo vs. the Riders of Terror), 84 Minutes 30 Seconds (Lepers and Sex)
Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC (Both Versions)
Rating: 18 (UK), NR (USA)
Sound: LPCM Mono Spanish (Both Versions)
Subtitles: English (Both Versions)
Region Coding: Region Free
Retail Price: £19.99 (UK), $39.99 (USA)

"When a group of lepers escape from their asylum, they fall under the influence of a band of outlaws who are terrorizing a small western town. The desperate sheriff calls for El Santo to defeat the bandits, defend the townsfolk, and help the exploited lepers." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4.5/5 (Both Versions)

Here’s the information provided about the transfer, "Santo vs. the Riders of Terror and Lepers and Sex were restored in 4K by Permanencia Voluntaria and Cinema Preservation Alliance from a combination of original camera negatives and master positive elements."

Santo vs. the Riders of Terror comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 46.2 GB

Feature: 20.3 GB (Santo vs. the Riders of Terror), 22.2 GB (Lepers and Sex)

The source for both versions looks excellent, when compared to VCI’s release this new transfer blows it away. Flesh tones look correct, colors are nicely saturated, image clarity, black levels, and compression are solid, and the image always looks organic.

Audio: 4.5/5 (LPCM Mono Spanish - Santo vs. the Riders of Terror, LPCM Mono Spanish - Lepers and Sex)

Each version comes with one audio option, a LPCM mono mix in Spanish with removable English subtitles. Both audio tracks sound clean, clear, balanced, and robust when they should.

Extras:

Extras for this release include an image gallery (55 images - stills/lobby cards/posters/other promotional art), a theatrical trailer (4 minutes 3 seconds, Dolby Digital mono Spanish with removable English subtitles), alternate French titles (1 minute 43 seconds, Dolby Digital mono), an interview with Armando Hernandez, writer, programmer and creator of the Trash-Mex website titled Cardona Bonanza (8 minutes 13 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with lucha libre specialist and filmmaker the Killer Film titled Western a la mexicana (11 minutes 42 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Spanish with removable English subtitles), an with actor Armando Silvestre titled The New Sheriff in Town (12 minutes 14 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Spanish with removable English subtitles), an audio commentary with film historian and Mexican cinema specialist David Wilt, and an 80-page booklet with cast & crew information, an essay titled Wrestlers, Sexo, and Censorship written by Colin Gunckel, an archival essay titled El Santo, Semiotics, and National Allegory written by Doyle Greene, an archival article titled The Real El Santo Arrived Yesterday in Bogota, an archival essay titled El Santo vs the Cineteca Nacional De Mexico written by Olivia Cosentino and Brian Price, an archival interview with actress Viviana García Besné by Colin Gunckel, and information about the restorations.

Summary:

In a career that spanned six decades and 147 feature films, he directed nine Santo films. His notable films are The Living Idol, La Llorona (1960), Doctor of Doom, Night of the Bloody Apes, The Bat Woman and The Panther Women.

The narrative revolves around a group of criminals who exploit escaped lepers by masquerading as lepers.

Santo knows no boundaries; he has appeared in just about every situation and film genre. That said, seeing Santo in the Old West feels odd, even by Santo film standards. The most impressive aspect of Santo vs. the Riders of Terror is how they manage to work wrestling matches into a film set in the old west.

Though billed as the main attraction, Santo does not appear until around the 23-minute mark. And though he does his best to convincingly portray a cowboy, Santo, performance-wise, is the weakest link. When it comes to the rest of the cast, they are great, especially the actors portraying the lepers.

Content-wise, Santo vs. the Riders of Terror has all of the elements one would expect from a western. With some Santo elements thrown in for good measure, unfortunately, the sum of these two parts never really gels.

When viewed as a western Santo vs. the Riders of Terror, it is a very good film, but when viewed as a Santo film, it is one of his weaker films. Fortunately, the good outweighs the bad. Ultimately, Santo vs. the Riders of Terror is a melting pot film that has something for everyone.

The main difference between these two versions is that Lepers and Sex add moments of nudity and erotica. That said, though these moments do not hurt, they do not enhance the narrative. Also, both versions have opening credits that are not part of VCI’s Blu-ray release.

After watching VCI’s horrendous release, I was not originally impressed with Santo vs. the Riders of Terror. That said, this new release is a perfect example of how a quality release that takes full advantage of the Blu-ray format can enhance one's appreciation for a film. Santo vs. the Riders of Terror gets a definitive release from Powerhouse Films, highly recommended.

Note: Limited edition of 8,000 numbered units for the UK and US.

Written by Michael Den Boer