Strange and Fantastic Tales of the 20th Century is a look back at the weirdest, most memorable, and most off center movies of the 20th century. From head turning horror to oddball science fiction, this column examines the films that will leave a lasting impression for centuries to come.
What if some mischievous med students got hold of Michael Myers’ corpse? What if, in addition to that, they also got hold of a book of Satanic rituals? All this and more happens in this week’s strange and fantastic tale Cemetery of Terror, or as it is originally titled, Cementerio del Terror.
Ruben Galindo Jr directs this 1985 horror film about Halloween shenanigans gone wrong. It’s Halloween and a group of med school students want to go to a rock concert; however, their boyfriends convince them it would be way more rad if they go to a party in the woods. The ladies are on board until they realize the party is in an abandoned house and their boyfriends just brought them over for the kind of debauchery that can only occur in an 80’s slasher film. Desperate to liven up the party and keep the girls from leaving, they find a book of rituals. Naturally, the next step is to go to the morgue and steal the corpse of a madman that was recently gunned down by the police.
Just when you think you couldn’t be more engaged in Cementerio del Terror, the Miami Vice edition of Dr. Loomis shows up to warn the police that the corpse of Devlin needs to be guarded. Played by Hugo Stieglitz, Dr. Cardan wants to be taken seriously even though he’s wearing baggy pants and an oversized blazer over his barely clad chest. Just as Dr. Cardan predicted, Devlin is resurrected and unleashes all kinds of Halloween terror on the college students.
Cementerio del Terror is one of those films that feels like two movies in one. We have the slasher film mingled with a monster movie. In addition to the college kids, a group of middle schoolers roam the cemetery hoping to pass the courage test. The group of friends are already pretty brave. They masterfully outwit and outrun the hoard of zombies that emerge from the graves. This is where the fun and fear factor get turned up in the film.
Cementerio del Terror is fun, past-paced, and entertaining. Fans of novellas will recognize the familiar faces of Erika Buenfil and Eduardo Capetillo. Trick your date into going to a cemetery and watch Cementerio Del Terror.
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