Attack of the Blind Dead (1973)

It is an odd decision to have this film open up with scenes of how the Knights Templar became known as The Blind Dead, and then some way into the running time, have those scenes repeated as flashbacks as someone (in this case, 'village idiot' Murdo, played by José Canalejas) is relaying the story of their origin.However, this second film in the Blind Dead series sees Director Amando De Ossario once again making the titular creatures as revolting as cowled, decomposing skeletal zombies can be – although their withered, twig-like hands rarely look anything other than gnarled gardening forks held by the actors beneath the rotting robes and look particularly ineffective when trying to grab various victims. In fact, the cadaverous knights can be astonishingly inept here: usually their agonising slowness adds to their menace – here, a whole group of them completely fail to capture the terrified, screaming Monica (Loretta Tovar). It might be their most ineffectual scene and reduces their effect greatly. Later on, however, a horde of the Knights Templar storming the village present a far more persuasive presentation of their powers.This is another enjoyable instalment in the series. Each entry manages to be more than 'just another episode', however, due to Ossario's inspiring passion for the subject, and 'Return of the Evil Dead' is a substantial project in its own right. It perhaps lacks the atmospheric chill of 'Ghost Galleon' and 'Night of the Seagulls', but the Knights' relentless, statuesque vigil throughout the night awaiting the emergence of the last few survivors makes for a morbidly enthralling scenario.

The second in director Amando de Ossorio's "Blind Dead" series sees a horde of fifteenth-century Knight Templars rise from the dead to take revenge on the town that poked their eyes out and burned them alive centuries before... I saw Amando's first entry, TOMBS OF THE BLIND DEAD, on WOR-TV's "Fright Night" (Saturdays at 1am) as a teenager back in the '70s and even then I knew these films were most likely edited but I never expected the gore I got last night. My letterboxed DVD of RETURN (nice print, too) was English-dubbed but a couple of parts were subtitles only and it's interesting to see just what was excised for US television (and possibly drive-in release) at the time. The flashback where a Knight Templar sacrifices a woman by tearing her heart out and eating it would never fly on the tube back then and neither would the bare breasts. Speaking of WOR-TV in the "Me Decade", I also saw the ghost of SCTV- the fat mayor and the town hunchback reminded me of John Candy & Eugene Levy in "Dr. Tongue's 3D House Of Stewardesses" and another character was a lot like Levy's Ricardo Montalban impression. That said, the robed, rotting Templars galloping slo-mo in the misty moonlight was genuinely eerie. Undead fun, for sure.

If you enjoyed "Tombs of the Blind Dead," chances are, you will not be disappointed with DeOssorio's second entry into the Blind Dead Series, "Return of the Evil Dead." The plot is a little more ridiculous than "Tombs of the Blind Dead" though. It's a lot sleazier and more nostalgic of the 70's. I really liked it, but it lacks the atmospheric pleasures of the first entry. It's not as old school. There is more gore in "Return of the Evil Dead" too, which I dig. It reminded me more of "Burial Ground" and you can totally see where that movie came from.The Blue Underground version is masterfully re-done, the sound and picture are great, and the packaging is attractive.6 out of 10, kids.

The dreaded Templar knights rise from their graves, on their undead horseback, during the night of a festival commemorating their execution at the hands of the villagers of Bouzano, as present-day citizens dance, drink, be merry & watch an amazing fireworks display, thanks in part to the local village idiot Murdo(José Canalejas)who actually sacrifices a young woman whose blood revives them. Jack(Tony Kendall)is hired by Mayor Beirao(Ramón Lillo)to put on a fireworks display for the festival, thanks to some help from a former lover(and now the Mayor's fiancé)Vivian(Esperanza Roy)who put in a good word for him by falsifying references on his resume. When Jack and Vivian meet for the first time, sparks return and they are soon contemplating a brand new relationship despite her current proposed plans to marry the Mayor for his wealth and bourgeoisie prestige. The Mayor's right hand lieutenant Dacosta(Frank Braña)also carries a secret torch for Vivian having watched over her every need since becoming the boss man's squeeze. Moncha(Loli Tovar)is almost killed by the Templar knights when they raid her home..they do finish off her beau who paid her a sexual visit while papa was at the festival. Duncan(Fernando Sancho;another paid lackey for the Mayor to do his bidding), his wife & daughter are all attending the festival. These characters will somehow escape a massacre when the Templar undead soldiers storm the festival, within an enclosed plaza, causing a frenzied panic where the villagers try endlessly to find a way out. Jack is able to free the gateway by exploding some leftover firecrackers into the bodies of two guardian knights freeing those citizens who were able to flee from the slashing long strokes of the Templar swords. As certain Templar soldiers on horseback bunched villagers into a bundle, faces met the hacking blades. Dropping like flies, Jack bands some courageous men together, with wooden pitchforks, to battle with the knights on their horseback with far better weaponry. But, those citizens who are indeed able to rush out from the plaza gateway will not get very far..trying to flee we see that the Templar knights have struck them down in a long-shot of dead bodies lying in mass over the country-side. Jack, Duncan(..his wife and daughter), Vivian, Dacosta, Moncha & Beirao, however, are able to hold up in a nearby Bouzano parish as the Templar knights await them outside. Jack, as leader, will try to find a way to see the group through the horrors that possibly lie in wait as others plan their own escape routes, especially the mayor(this guy is a real piece of work, I'll tell you, he even tries to use a little girl as a distraction to escape)who only wishes to escape without one care in the world for the others in the church. Murdo, the very one responsible for the terrors taking place, is found hiding in the parish..he has a plan to guide Moncha through a secret tunnel, not letting any of the others in on it. Will the group make it out of the parish alive? Or, will the Templar knights eventually wait for them to merely fall apart at the seams?To be honest, I myself found this second film of the series to be far superior to "Tombs of the Blind Dead". I think this film is more focused and scarier with a better cast of characters. I even felt the Templar knights are scarier in this sequel than the original..their slow walk isn't a major problem in this sequel because there are so many of them. I couldn't help but compare the Templar knight zombies to those seaweed ghouls of John Carpenter's THE FOG in how they seem to be everywhere with little room for the characters to escape. If one thinks about it, the church sequences in this "sequel" and THE FOG resemble somewhat as well..characters trying to remain level-headed in quite a terrifying situation, holing up in a church while undead monsters seeking revenge for what happened to them in the past await outside. This sequel has lots of bloodshed..swords are always plunging into stomachs, chests, or slashing across faces. The Templar knights are pretty much the same as they were in the original film, but no less effective. I think their better utilized in this sequel/remake because of the set-pieces set up in the film...the massacre in the plaza and the hold-up at the parish. Director Ossorio certainly has a flair for shooting those creepy Templar knights as their rotted skulls peek out from those dusty cloaks. They rise from their graves essentially the same way they do in the previous "Tombs of the Blind Dead"..but, as before, this sequence is quite eerie and effective. If you can tolerate the melodrama between Jack, Vivian, the Mayor & Dacosta, there's so much to enjoy. I just think this is a good little Gothic zombie flick. Easily the film's most graphic scene comes when we see the Templar knights in human form as one of them removes the heart from the chest of a poor female sacrifice eating it! Good beheading in this flick as well.