The Blind Dead Collection (Limited Edition 5 DVD BOX), 1971-1975, 2005)

Height 14,5 cm, max. width 12 cm

US Blue Underground unrated Limited edition 2005 Box 5 DVD edition


 

1. La Noche del Terror Ciego (Tombs of the Blind Dead / La Noche de la Muerta Ciega / Crypt of the
Blind Dead / Night of the Blind Dead) 1971 Director and script: Amando de Ossorio

Atmospherical Spanish Horror Classic with eyeless living dead Crusader Templars in their rottening clothes, surely among
the most unique Bad Guys ever seen in film history. Big Kudos to Amando de Ossorio for coming up with this inspired idea.

A couple of youngsters, Virginia, Roger and Elizabeth are travelling on the (Portuguese ?) countryside and find Berzano, an
abandoned medieval village, and a dilapidated old monastery. At night the since the 13th century dead, executed, Templars
are rising from the graves and rides off in slow motion on their ghost horses in search for blood.

They are blind and have to locate their victims by sound, and much gore ensues. Cool make-up effects are provided by
José Luis Campos. Maria Silva can be seen in it and besides being in Jesús Franco's 1961 horror classic "Gritos en la Noche"
or "The Awful Dr. Orloff" she also played The Countess Elizabeth Bathory in 1973 "El Retorno de Walpurgis" or "Curse of
the Devil" by Carlos Aured. Lone Fleming plays Betty, and more about her in the sequel below.

Besides the unrated uncut version this DVD also includes the cut US version without gore, rape and the train massacre and
with another awful opening scene made by the US distributor, a trailer and a picture gallery.
The film is presented in anamorphic widescreen ratio 1.66:1, spanish and english audio mono with english subtitles, 97 minutes.
Region 1

2. El Ataque de los Muertos Sin Ojos (The Return of the Evil Dead) 1973 Director and script: Amando de Ossorio

Fine sequel with more action and it starts out with the villagers lynching the Templars for their evil deeds in the Middle Ages,
and then Today the inhabitants of the same village celebrates the anniversary of the massacre. But this Fiesta is disturbed when
the old rottening buggers are yet again rising from their graves, and pissed of they start to ockupy the village.
Survivors of the attack seek refuge in a church and holes up á la The Night of the Living Dead.

Aaaah, these glorious Spanish 1970's Golden Era trash film actresses, how i love them. In this film we get to see the great Esperanza
Roy
(born 1935) so fantastic as one of the deadly sisters in Eugenio Martin's 1973 Minor horror Masterpiece "Una vela para el Diablo".
We also get to see the Danish actress Lone Fleming (born 1945) as Amalia, and besides playing Betty in the first film, she also starred
in the great "Una vela para del Diablo" as the slutty Dutch tourist Helen, and she i.a. was in the lousy giallo "Sexy Cat".

Hot blonde Loreta Tovar (born 1952) had an epic year in 1973 when she, besides this film (as Monica) acted in i.a. also "Una vela para
del Diablo or "A Candle for the Devil" as May, killed for sunbathing topless, in Amando de Ossorio's fantastic trash masterpiece "Las
garras de Lorelei", in "El Gran amor del Conde Dracula or "Count Dracula's Great Love" and in Ceremonia Sangrienta by Jorge Grau


Besides the unrated uncut version this DVD also includes the cut 87 minutes US version without gore, the heart grabbing and the
village idiot sacrifice, a US trailer and a picture gallery and the Spanish original trailer 4 minutes
The film is presented in anamorphic widescreen ratio 1.66:1, spanish and english audio mono with english subtitles, 91 minutes.
Region 1

3. El Buque Maldito (The Ghost Galleon / Horor of the Zombies) 1973 Director and script: Amando de Ossorio

Some photo models are doing a job at the seaside and when they discover an abandoned Ghost Ship they unwisely board it and
finds it inhabited by a horde of decidedly unfriendly hooded zombies - The Blind Dead at Sea. Besides Spanish trash film regular
Jack Taylor we also have fine austrian actress Maria Perschy (1938-2004) in it. She can also be seen i.a. Javier Aquirre's 1973 "El
jorobado de la Morgue" or "The Hunchback of the Morgue", the 1975 Paul Naschy film "Exorcismo" by Juan Bosch, and in
Carlos Aured's 1974 Minor Giallo Masterpiece "The Blue Eyes of the Broken Doll" as Ivette, the sister in the wheelchair.

I found The Ghost Galleon to be the worst in the series and the ending burning of the ship effect was atrocious, embarrasing.

The film is presented in anamorphic widescreen ratio 1.85:1, spanish and english audio mono with english subtitles, 90 minutes.
Region 1. With trailers and TV and radio-spots. Some sources say that there's a 106 minutes version somewhere ?

4. La Noche de los Gaviotas (Night of the Seagulls) 1975 Direction, script, special effects: Amando de Ossorio

Another atmospherically shot film about the blind dead Templars, and now the 4th and last in the series where a doctor Stein
(Victor Petit) and his lovely wife (Maria Kosty) has moved to a small and unfriendly coastal village to open a medical practice.
But not only do the villagers each 7th year sacrifice one human per night for a week to the sea and the Blind Dead Templars,
the latter roams around in the usual slow-mo looking for victims to kill.
The film starts in the 14th century with a ritual sequence where a woman's heart is cut out by the Templars and sacrificed to some
forbidden God of theirs (to fill the gore quota) . The Doctor decides to save one of the human victims whereby the wrath of the
Templars is turned onto the village and the cabin of the Stein couple.

This film i actually watched before i saw the rest of the Blind Dead films in 2005 with this box from Blue Underground, as i once
in the 1990's had The Night of the Seagulls on a US VHS. When looking back on this excellent 2005 DVD collection today in early
december 2020 i feel that it's time to re-watch Ossorio's zombie Templars films as they surely are on blu-rays by now.
If i remember correct the last film in the series were the best acted one, well, i thought so anyway.

And, yes, in this film we have another one of the gorgeous Spanish golden era Trash Film cult actresses - Maria Kosty (born 1951)
in the role of Mrs. Stein, and she appeared i.a. in Juan Bosch's 1973 Eurocrime action "Los mil ojos del asesino" (read more about
this one in my Giallo & Eurocrime Page), in Bosch's 1975 "Exorcismo" or "Le notti di Satana" with Paul Naschy, and in Amando de
Ossorio's gloriously trashy but very funny 1974 "La noche de los Brujos" or "The Night of the Sorcerers".

The film is presented in anamorphic widescreen ratio 1.85:1, spanish and english audio mono with english subtitles, 89 minutes.
Region 1

5. Amando De Ossorio-Director (1918-2001) Extra DVD made in 2005

The Last Templar: Documentary about the script writer and director Amando de Ossorio (25 minutes), Narciso Ibanez Serrador (the
director of Minor Masterpiece 1969 "La Recidencia") introduces, Intervie with Ossorio (11 minutes), article from 2001 about Ossorio
and a 40 page text and picture Booklet: Knights of Terror. Disc with ratio 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen