BloodyMoon

Bloody Moon (1981)

Okay so the when I heard that Jess Franco, the man responsible for some of the sleaziest movies I’ve ever seen, made a slasher movie I had to see it. If any subgenre of horror (other than maybe a vampire flick) were set up for Franco’s sensibilities it would be the slasher genre. After watching the movie I have to say it doesn’t disappoint.

So the movie opens with a disfigured man killing a woman after she rejects him. It then moves years into the future with the man being picked up by his sister after he is released from the mental hospital. They warn her not to take him somewhere he will be stressed or tempted, so she immediately takes him home, where there is a language school run for beautiful young women! You know what happens next. The girls start to get killed off and only one of them, Angela, knows what is going on. But whom can she trust? Is it actually as simple as it looks or is someone else after the girls and if it is someone else then why? By the end of the movie all these questions are answered and a good time has been had. What else can you ask for in a movie?

This is far from my first go around with a Jess Franco directed movie. Most of the time I’m impressed by the visuals and disappointed by the story. But I have to tell you that Bloody Moon is one of the best Franco movies I’ve ever seen. The story is solid and while there are lapses in logic (the girl allowing a stranger to tie her down in the stone mill!) they are minor and allow for some great kills to be set up. I was really impressed by how well the movie wraps up and ties everything together at the end. And while I had part of it figured out, the rest caught me by surprise. Now this is a Jess Franco movie so in addition to the normal solid slasher story there is a subplot that involves incest between a brother and sister (really creepy scene) as well as the scary mentally handicapped guys that sneaks around staring into the girl’s windows. This give the movie it’s unique Franco feel and I loved it. The strong script is handled pretty well by the solid, but unspectacular cast. The highlight of the cast is Olivia Pascal in the lead role of Angela. She is the strongest actress in the cast and is asked to carry much of the movie. Luckily she is up to it.

The special effects aren’t great, but are decent. There are a few memorable kills, including a decapitation by industrial stone saw and the answer to the question, small boy vs. Mercedes who wins? Plus keep an eye out for one of the most brutal stabbings I’ve ever seen on films. Now I do have to say that the makeup effects on the disfigured man, which I think were supposed to be scary, didn’t thrill me. It was clearly an appliance and annoyed me every time they showed it in a close-up, which was way too often. As I mentioned earlier I’ve always been a fan of what Franco did with the camera. Here again in Bloody Moon the camera is always moving and finding that odd angle, or zooms in unexpectedly. This makes for a very interesting visual experience when watching the movie.

Before I finish up the review I wanted to talk about a special feature on the DVD. IT is a short (less than 20 minute) interview with director Jess Franco about making Bloody Moon. I already liked the movie before watching the interview, but after hearing all the nonsense that he went thru with is producers I liked it even more. It is amazing that he managed to get the movie made at all with the line of crap they were feeding him. Oh and if you haven’t ever seen a Franco interview I recommend you check them out. He is always worth listening to.

If you are a fan of slasher movies you really can’t go wrong with this one. It is a bit goofy at times, especially the dialogue. I’m glad I have it in my collection. This movie is available from Severin. Check out there website for more information about it and their other movies at http://www.severin-films.com/

3 out of 4

reviewed by John Shatzer