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Bad Acting and worse Bad Screenplay

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

A clunky actioner with a handful of cool moments.

Paul Naschy (born Jacinto Molina Alvarez) was a fixture in Spanish Horror-as far as actor's go, he was that countries Karloff. So when he died in late 2009, he left behind a vast array of work that has maintained a cult following-"Night of the Werewolf", "Blue Eyes of a Broken Doll", "Count Dracula's Great Love"-to name a few. While I mentioned his passing in my review of "Premutos", looking back, I should have written a review of one of his movies instead of that movie. So without further ado, here's a look at the Italian-Spanish production "The Hanging Woman", in which he played a hunchback.Serge Chekov (Stelvio Riso) is a swinging 70's kinda guy whose come to Scotland to gain an inheritance. In between sexing up the ladies, he runs into the hanging corpse of a lady. Soon, events revolving around a satanic coven, mad science, murder, zombies roaming the graveyard, and Igor (Naschy), who also happens to be a necrophiliac.Though Naschy only has a supporting role, "The Hanging Woman" is still quite a treat of 70's style Gothic Horror. In fact, much of the film is quite reminiscent of the 70's era Hammer output, with its emphasis on fog drenched atmosphere, Gothic locales and low key exploitation elements such as nudity and some minor gore. The movie itself is quite capably directed by capably directed by José Luis Merino, who offers a nice mix of eerie moments with ones that range from tasteless (Chekov's treatment of women, Igor's um...kinks) with ones that just outright daffy (the reason the dead are walking could have come from one of those old 1940's quickies.) That's part of what makes the whole thing so much fun-sure, it feels a bit familiar at times, but the familiarity helps the movie instead of hindering it. Also worthy of mention is the undertone of black humor that permeates the proceedings. While the movie would never be mistaken for a comedy, scenes involving characters such as a horny witch are clearly done with tongue planted firmly in cheek.Which brings me back to Naschy. While I mentioned he doesn't have a huge role, fans of his should still love this. Here, he manages to bring all kids of baggage with Igor-insecurity at one moment, to moments that bring forth revulsion the next-with ease. It's easy to see why folks such as myself hold him to such esteem, as he was able to take such characters and make them his own. Such a role and performance is a testament to his talents as an actor.If there are any problems, it would be that apart from the more eccentric characters (particularly Igor), nobody here is all that interesting. Chekov is just your typical chauvinistic jerk who doesn't have many redeeming qualities, whilst Doris (Dianik Zurakowska) is yet another damsel in distress character. A bit more thought into some of the characters would have helped.That out of the way, fans of Paul Naschy and European Horror fare will certainly find a lot to enjoy here. If that's your cup of tea, then check it out.

I would imagine that many, as I, watched this film because of Paul Naschy. He has a supporting part as a gravedigger. For Naschy completists, it is essential. For others, it probably would deserve a pass as it it unremarkable.It opens with a Gothic sound and tone, and the washed out color contributes to the feel. Just what is happening is not very clear.There is plenty of nudity, but there is also some gory nudity, especially where Igor (Naschy) is concerned.The ending features zombies, and a walking Naschy with a knife in his chest, and a mad doctor.Naschy was great, as was Stelvio Rosi and Dyanik Zurakowska.

Frankly, I'm still trying to figure out why I got pleasure from a horror film as effortless and unhurried as this one. If I have to be objective for a second, I would probably say that "La orgía de los muertos" actually didn't have much to offer to begin with. A nice variety of clichés and a predictable ending, are some of the magnificent qualities about this film. Let's just get this straight: the reason why I'm not praising this film, is not because I'm against clichés or predictable endings. I don't think a movie is great, only when it has a plot twist or unpredicted states of affairs. I believe that in order to be decent, a horror film needs to be either entertaining, gory or at least mildly eerie. However, I'm not sure "La orgia de los muertos", provides much of these three virtues. For the contrary, it's a very sluggish movie, with no gore and almost no eerie situations. Perhaps we could say that the story gets interesting and mildly freaky during the last minutes, but that's all. If we were talking about a different film, I would almost certainly say that it doesn't reunite enough elements to be considered a decent horror flick. Nevertheless, there's something about this film that makes enjoyable and it has to do with the fact that it is awfully stylish and nice to look at. The striking and yet ominous European landscapes, the 19th-century wardrobe and the graveyard, create a perfect Gothic background that unquestionably belongs to the horror type. The atmosphere is somehow dark, but still enchanting in a way. The highland village exposes two facades, which makes the scenery so ambiguous and mysterious. This may be a film that could be considered worn out by some people, but it's still captivating and charming in a spooky way. I could only spot one or two unintentionally funny situations and dialogs, which is a great flattering remark, in this case. Let's just keep in mind that this is a low budget film with actors who didn't even speak Spanish, or at least not all of them, and the film was supposed to be in that language. One of the scenes that really made me burst into laughter, was the one where Stelvio Rosi gets in a fist fight with Jacinto Molina…that was just plain hilarious. Without anything else to add, I can only say that despite of the flaws I mentioned, I believe "La orgia de los muertos" is a film that could be easily enjoyed by Gothic horror fans. Especially the ones who don't need a really complex plot and can appreciate a charming esthetic like the one in this film.

I'm always suspicious of films with many titles. I invariably find myself musing as to why the film can be found under so many guises. Could it be that the film is absolutely awful, so its makers and distributors have re-named it and re-marketed it again and again in the hope of eventually finding an appreciative audience? This is such a film - a Euro horror zombie flick which has more alternative titles than cast members! The version I saw was entitled "Beyond The Living Dead", and most of the cast members were given nondescript pseudonyms on the credits. For instance, hero Stelvio Rosi was billed as Stanley Cooper, and principle female player Dyanik Zurakowska was billed as Vickie Nesbitt. It's not a particularly good film, but to whole-heartedly savage it would be a touch harsh as there are just a few interesting elements which drag it up above "awful" to somewhere in the "slightly-below-average" category.Serge Checkhov (Stelvio Rosi) arrives in an East European town (Skopje in Macedonia is hinted at) for the reading of his uncle's will. He soon discovers that he is to inherit his uncle's mansion, much to the annoyance of his cruel and ambitious aunt Nadia (Maria Pia Conte). Something creepy seems to be going on in town at the same time - his cousin is found hanged from a tree in the cemetery; necrophiliac grave-digger Igor (Paul Naschy) starts to act more outlandishly than usual; Aunt Nadia seduces and copulates with young Serge; a doctor residing in the house starts to show off his experiments to reanimate dead animals; and uncle's corpse occasionally goes missing as if it's got up and begun walking of its own accord. Gradually, Serge investigates and uncovers a plot that Baron Frankenstein himself would've been mighty proud of.Mainly the film is underwhelming. The solution to the mystery is revealed in a phony, heavy-handed scene which resembles the unmasking of the villain in a Scooby Doo cartoon. Sometimes the characters say and do such dumb things that you want to scream in despair. The performances are generally amateurish, and the film is thin on real terror. However, as I've indicated already, it escapes total damnation for a couple of reasons. Firstly, Naschy as the necrophiliac grave digger is hilarious and disturbing (at the same time) in all his scenes. Secondly, the location work is quite impressive. And thirdly, for some reason that I've never been able to figure out, the preposterous story is actually engrossing in a totally inexplicable way. Beyond The Living Dead - or whatever title you know it by - is undoubtedly a bad film, but at least it's ENTERTAININGLY bad.