Santo vs. the Vampire Women (1962)

The Santo films, indeed the wrestling superhero genre as a whole, is unique to Mexico (I recently tried to sit through an Italian variant, Superargo, and wasn't impressed), and on that basis alone deserves more respect than it is usually accorded. Which is not to say they are good films, only that for Mexicans, most of whom do not have a lot of money to spend on frivolities, these films were important enough for them to keep the genre buoyant well into the '80s.For a a US viewer, however, the films are oddities, no denying that. I find them fascinating in small doses, but eventually their cultural reasoning eludes me. They are most entertaining when they are at their most gratuitously irrational, so long as the pacing is kept reasonably swift (and the films often lag). For my money, the best of the Santo films I have seen is Santo el enmascarado de plata y Blue Demon contra los monstruos, which is wildly exploitative and inane, but the clips I have seen of Misterio en las Bermudas, together with what I have read of it, suggest that it is truly an epic of its variety.In any event, here we have a fairly early representative of the genre, and I write this because I was able to see an English dub version, that appearing in the Mystery Theater 3000 series. I'm not a big fan of MT3K, the performers of which frequently think they are funnier than they actually are, but I admit they added some laughs to the experience (although I didn't need that song to a vanished continuing character at all). But it is the Santo film that really makes the viewing worth it.It should be noted that for some reason best known to Santo's management and audience, a large chunk of his filmography has him battling vampires - he even battles Count Dracula himself on at least three occasions. Perhaps that's just as well - when he battles simple gangsters, as in his first film Santo contra cerebro del mal, the going gets pretty slow."Vampire Women" is an odd film and a silly film. It is odd because the first half is pure vampire movie - it is full of atmosphere, weird rituals and menace, and the usual blood sucking, etc. Suddenly, literally out of nowhere, Santo appears, and the film becomes an excuse for the masked one to thrash some vampire - and werewolf - butt, in and out of the ring.It is silly because there is no coherence to how the myth of the vampire is used throughout the movie; one moment they can be seen in a mirror, then later not, the vampire becomes a werewolf then soon disappears in a fire-bolt at simply the sight of a cross on a church-steeple - The whole narrative seems terribly ad hoc - as if the script were written on the fly (and I suspect it was - although the first half has some money showing in its atmospherics, which are quite impressive, the second half looks pretty cheap).Fortunately, this is a fairly short movie, and the pacing is pretty good. It is also representative of both the wrestling superhero genre and the Mexican horror genre, so may be a good beginning point for those interested in either. Great movie making this is not - but even without the MT3K commentary, it's actually kind of fun.

When it comes right down to it, the "masked Mexican professional wrestler Vs. karate-chopping, wrestling, vampire/werewolf" movie genre has a fairly large void that this movie tries hard to fill. It's a very bad movie, of course, but the "so bad it's good" factor is huge on this one. I'm glad I didn't smoke pot before watching this because death by laughter would surely be the result.I won't even try to describe any of the scenes, but rest assured, each one stands on its own as a testament on how not to make a movie. This isn't Casablanca, people.Now, on to the merits of this film: 1. This is the very best Mexican wrestler Vs. vampire movie I've ever seen (although it should be noted, it's also the ONLY one, so I guess that makes it the worst too).2. It features some extremely good looking Mexican women, which is definitely NOT a bad thing. However, no explanation is given about how one of the vampire women, who was awakened after 200 years, came across her horn-rimmed glasses. (I detected the distinct odor of "Producer's Daughter".)3. I saw the English dubbed version and the dubbing wasn't that bad.All in all, it will depend on your mood whether or not to watch this. If you're up for some fine film making, take a pass. If you're up for some lifelike cartoons involving men in capes and masks doing a lot of fake fighting, dive right in.

I've only seen a handful of the Santo films, but Samson vs. the Vampire Women is so far my favorite. It's a cheese-filled extravaganza. The state of Wisconsin is jealous of the amount of cheese on display in this movie. What do you expect when you mix Santo, the masked Mexican wrestler, with a bevy of beautiful vampires? I don't know about you, but I expect pure, delicious cheese.Going through a plot summary or analyzing the positives and negatives seems a bit silly with a movie like Samson vs. the Vampire Women. Instead, I'll try to hit on some of the more fun, but bizarre, moments from the movie: 1. Even though he's called Samson by everyone in the movie and the title lists him as Samson, someone forgot to tell the crowd at the wrestling arena who seem overly exuberant in chanting "Santo!"2. Apparently, Santo has a closed circuit television camera mounted to the front of his impossibly small sports car.3. You simply must watch the dubbed version. The dubbing is so bad that it adds a whole other dimension to the movie.4. Mexican vampire women are the hottest.5. Santo has an uncanny knack of showing up just after the person he's protecting has been kidnapped. Why not just stay put and be there when the bad guys make their move? 6. Why does Professor Orlof ask the police for their help throughout the movie? They seem to be incapable of even the most routine of police activities.7. Don't feel bad about fast forwarding through the incredibly long and dull wrestling matches. It makes watching Santo that much more enjoyable.8. It's odd that Santo can do battle with three vampire goons and come out on top, yet when going one-on-one in a wrestling ring, he gets the snot beat out of him.There are more, but you get the idea. Watching Santo is best done with an open mind and the notion that nothing is to be taken seriously. If you do this, you're bound to have a good time with Samson vs. the Vampire Women.

A simple question...How do you make a B- vampire movie more interesting than other B- vampire movies?Answer...YOU THROW IN A MEXICAN WRESTLER!!! Woo hoo!To the creators of 'Samson vs. The Vampire Women', my hat goes off to you. Few people could turn a bad movie into a down-right deliciously horrible one so effortlessly. That is a talent in of itself.The acting, dialogue, and storyline are recognizably trite from scene one, but the premise is still fairly easy to follow. Vampires + reincarnated vampire sacrifice + spooky castle = a vampire movie. Then... suddenly out of nowhere... a mysterious masked wrestler pops up halfway through the film. Why, you ask?To stop the vampires, of course!This is Samson the wrestler, and it's his destiny to conquer evil. He wears a mask, sports a shiny cape with leotards, and drives around in a convertible! "But why a Mexican wrestler for the hero?" Well... because it's never been done before! That's why!I must admit, these laughably bad B- movies are really a guilty pleasure with me. You really learn to appreciate their sheer stupididty... so long as you don't take them seriously. In any case, I'd recommend this movie to anybody. You have to see it at least once to believe it.It begs the question, "Who felt that this story needed to be told?"1.3 out of 10!!!