Watch Black Pit of Dr. M For Free

Highly Overrated But Still Good

Admirable film.

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

The acting in this movie is really good.

I cannot claim to be an expert on Mexican Horror cinema so far, but I certainly intend to dig out more films of the kind of this gem. "Misterios De La Ultratumba" aka. "The Black Pit of Dr. M"/"Mysteries From Beyond The Grave" of 1959 is an immensely moody Mexican Horror film that provides both a morbid and fascinating story and a genuinely creepy atmosphere. Occultism, mad science and the resurrection of the dead have always been some of my favorite Horror topics, and "Misterios De Ultratumba" unites all these elements in a very memorable and deeply uncanny manner. The atmosphere of this eerie gem is intensified by a haunting score, great Gothic settings and morbid makeup.Dr. Mazali (Rafael Bertrand) and Dr. Aldama (Antonio Raxel) have made a pact that the first one of them to die shall come back and tell the other the secret of resurrection. After Aldama's death, Mazali, the head of a remote mental clinic, waits for the instructions of his dead colleague... This is only a very vague description of the plot, but I sure don't intend to give any part of this creepy gem's fascinating and wonderfully morbid plot away. The film, most of which is terrifically set in an old countryside insane asylum, maintains an intensely eerie Gothic atmosphere from the very beginning. The settings and visuals are great, old cemeteries and churches, heavy tombstones and foggy grounds provide the uncanny mood that my fellow fans of classic Horror should appreciate. The film provides morbidity, insanity and genuine scariness, all of which is intensified by the brilliantly intense and haunting score that boosts the creepiness each time it is heard. The performances are very decent, Rafael Bernard is good in the lead and Mapita Cortés is very nice to look at in the female lead as Dr. Almada's illegitimate daughter. This was the first film by Director Fernando Méndez I ever saw, but it certainly isn't going to be the last. Overall, "Misterios De Ultratumba" is an immensely creepy gem that no lover of atmospheric Horror should miss. Highly recommended!

Despite my satisfactory encounter with EL VAMPIRO (1957) a few years back, this is still just my second Mexican horror film of its vintage!Given a complex and fascinating plot to work with - which has only the briefest concession to camp and, uncharacteristically for a horror film, is teeming with male protagonists (five, while there are only a couple of females of any importance) - a balance is reached between its intended literariness and the trademarks of the genre: foggy atmosphere, evocative décor and a bombastic yet effective score. The presence of Dr. Aldama's ghost is quite subtly but effectively established; besides, both Dr. Masali's expressionistic execution scene and the surreal first encounter between the two young lovers are stylishly realized - while the vicious attack of the manic woman and Elmer's resurrection emerge, perhaps, as the film's horror highlights. Furthermore, we get vividly essayed portrayals by the suave Ramon Bertrand as Dr. Masali and Carlos Ancira as Elmer - the latter, a cross between Dwight Frye and Peter Lorre (and helped by some splendid make-up), could well give the classic monsters a run for their money!Though Masali and the young doctor (played by Gaston Santos) both vie for the girl's affection, there is very little rivalry between them let alone plots for revenge - as the film stresses Dr. Masali's single-mindedness in his search for knowledge regarding the afterlife. The asylum setting - and especially the imagery of outstretched hands through the bars of the cells - recalls BEDLAM (1946), while the hypnotic effect the music box has on the mad gypsy woman brings back memories of Bunuel's Mexican black comedy THE CRIMINAL LIFE OF ARCHIBALDO DE LA CRUZ (1955); also the scene where Masali/Elmer is discovered strumming on the violin is reminiscent of the Ape Man at the piano in RETURN OF THE APE MAN (1944)! There is one flaw with regards to the plot, however: it's inconceivable that, even if Masali was discovered locked in with the woman's corpse, no one suspected Elmer of having killed her for disfiguring him! Other amusing flubs include the scene in which the 'monster' - engulfed in flames - pauses to open a door before exiting a room screaming, the fact that the gypsy is able to effortlessly hurl a massive cupboard at the asylum orderlies confronting her, and the shot - accompanied by a histrionic single note on the soundtrack - early on where Dr. Aldama's coffin is opened prior to burial, almost as if to assure us that it is he...but, other than that, this particular sequence is comparable to the opening moments of James Whale's FRANKENSTEIN (1931)! The DVD transfer is imperfect but not intrusively so, apart from some persistent hum on the soundtrack. The supplements are extensively researched and highly interesting (in particular, the Audio Commentary); the still gallery suggests that it's possible that some asylum footage has gone missing as it features a hulking, chained-up character who isn't seen in the actual film! Also, given that THE BLACK PIT OF DR. M wasn't released in the U.S. by the notorious K. Gordon Murray, the information imparted about him here isn't really pertinent to this release - though I didn't mind having it in the least, being all new to me; in fact, the English-dubbed version is, for all intents and purposes, deemed lost - even if Casanegra attempted to make amends by presenting the full-length English translation via a copy of the script (in rather too miniscule a font to be easily legible!) prepared for U.S. consumption.As with the same director's EL VAMPIRO (which is upcoming on R1 as a 2-Disc Set accompanied by its sequel THE VAMPIRE'S COFFIN [1958]), then, this one emerges as a genuine classic of the horror genre and one that should be much better known. This viewing has kicked off my proposed Halloween marathon in a big way; I'm very much looking forward now to the rest of the Mexican titles which are coming up this week - but it has also made me yearn to check out the other films mentioned in the various supplements and which have yet to see the light of day on DVD...

This is in regard to the review below of the movie "The Black Pit Of Dr. M". You are correct when you said the movie went by another name. Years ago it used to show on "CHILLER THEATER" and it played under the name of "The Black Pit Of Dr. X" with English subtitles, it was also shown from time to time with English dubbing. This movie has just been released on DVD and you have a choice at the start of the movie, either English OR Spanish. But if it changes anything at all I have yet to find it. Still no English dubbing unless I've hit something wrong on the DVD (I tried it several times). Instead I ended up watching it in Spanish with English subtitles (which was alright with me since my Spanish is a little rusty). The movie has held up extremely well over the years and is as frightening today as it was the first time I saw it. The only small drawback may be the Soap Opera music played during the so called love scenes. There are tons and tons of what seem to be supernatural atmosphere and this movie will scare the pants off you. Enjoy!

Another Mexican horror winner! Until just recently, I doubt I could have named more than a half dozen Mexican horror films that didn't feature a masked wrestler. As I'm quickly discovering, Mexican horror has much more to offer – especially for fans of Gothic horror. Films like The Black Pit of Dr. M appear to be heavily influenced by the classic Gothic Universal films of the 1930s. They have the same thick atmosphere, similar looking sets, a familiar grand but foreboding score, and common plot themes. In fact, if the actors weren't speaking Spanish and you could replace the main actor with Boris Karloff, you would essentially have a 1930s American horror film.The Black Pit of Dr. M is the story of a couple of doctors who have made what is in essence a death pact. The one who dies first will do whatever he can to comeback to let the another know what the afterlife is like. But Dr. Mazali isn't content with knowing what happens after death, he wants to experience it. His recently departed friend, Dr. Aldama, informs Dr. Mazali that it might be possible him to experience the afterlife, yet return to the living. But is Dr. Mazali willing to pay a heavy price to cheat death? If I have one complaint with The Black Pit of Dr. M it would be with the predictable nature of some of the plot points toward the end of the movie. Maybe I've seen too many similar movies or maybe the movie really is predictable, but a few more plot twists in the films finale would have made this one even better. As it is, The Black Pit of Dr. M is a wonderfully entertaining movie even with this weakness. Fans of Gothic horror are sure to enjoy this one.Casa Negra's new DVD is amazing given the obscure nature of the movie. I sincerely doubt that The Black Pit of Dr. M ever looked better. The DVD includes a warning about some brassy moments in the film's soundtrack, and while I noticed it, the audio weaknesses never distracted or took away from the film's enjoyment. The extras are nice and include a very informative commentary with IVTV founder Frank Coleman. Overall, it's another solid job by Casa Negra.