HOME |  CULT MOVIES | COMPETITIONS | ADVERTISE |  CONTACT US |  ABOUT US
 
 
 
Newest Reviews
American Fiction
Poor Things
Thunderclap
Zeiram
Legend of the Bat
Party Line
Night Fright
Pacha, Le
Kimi
Assemble Insert
Venus Tear Diamond, The
Promare
Beauty's Evil Roses, The
Free Guy
Huck and Tom's Mississippi Adventure
Rejuvenator, The
Who Fears the Devil?
Guignolo, Le
Batman, The
Land of Many Perfumes
Cat vs. Rat
Tom & Jerry: The Movie
Naked Violence
Joyeuses Pacques
Strangeness, The
How I Became a Superhero
Golden Nun
Incident at Phantom Hill
Winterhawk
Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City
Maigret Sets a Trap
B.N.A.
Hell's Wind Staff, The
Topo Gigio and the Missile War
Battant, Le
Penguin Highway
Cazadore de Demonios
Snatchers
Imperial Swordsman
Foxtrap
   
 
Newest Articles
3 From Arrow Player: Sweet Sugar, Girls Nite Out and Manhattan Baby
Little Cat Feat: Stephen King's Cat's Eye on 4K UHD
La Violence: Dobermann at 25
Serious Comedy: The Wrong Arm of the Law on Blu-ray
DC Showcase: Constantine - The House of Mystery and More on Blu-ray
Monster Fun: Three Monster Tales of Sci-Fi Terror on Blu-ray
State of the 70s: Play for Today Volume 3 on Blu-ray
The Movie Damned: Cursed Films II on Shudder
The Dead of Night: In Cold Blood on Blu-ray
Suave and Sophisticated: The Persuaders! Take 50 on Blu-ray
Your Rules are Really Beginning to Annoy Me: Escape from L.A. on 4K UHD
A Woman's Viewfinder: The Camera is Ours on DVD
Chaplin's Silent Pursuit: Modern Times on Blu-ray
The Ecstasy of Cosmic Boredom: Dark Star on Arrow
A Frosty Reception: South and The Great White Silence on Blu-ray
You'll Never Guess Which is Sammo: Skinny Tiger and Fatty Dragon on Blu-ray
Two Christopher Miles Shorts: The Six-Sided Triangle/Rhythm 'n' Greens on Blu-ray
Not So Permissive: The Lovers! on Blu-ray
Uncomfortable Truths: Three Shorts by Andrea Arnold on MUBI
The Call of Nostalgia: Ghostbusters Afterlife on Blu-ray
Moon Night - Space 1999: Super Space Theater on Blu-ray
Super Sammo: Warriors Two and The Prodigal Son on Blu-ray
Sex vs Violence: In the Realm of the Senses on Blu-ray
What's So Funny About Brit Horror? Vampira and Bloodbath at the House of Death on Arrow
Keeping the Beatles Alive: Get Back
   
 
  Vacation of Terror Horror Holiday
Year: 1989
Director: René Cardona III
Stars: Pedro Fernández, Julio Aléman, Gabriela Hassel, Nuria Bages, Carlos East, René Cardona III, Julima Cardona, Ernesto Casillas, Regina De Seeman, Ernesto East, Carlos East Jr, José Manuel Fregoso, Gianella Hassel Kus, Andaluz Russell, Roberto Schlosser
Genre: HorrorBuy from Amazon
Rating:  5 (from 1 vote)
Review: A hundred years ago in an isolated part of Mexico, an evil witch was caught and to prevent her from implementing further curses, she was tied to a tree and burned. But before the fire was lit, she had one final spell to cast, telling the assembled throng that she would be back to have her revenge on humanity through the sorcery contained in a doll. The priest present uses a talisman to counter the effects of this bold claim, and all the witch's bric-a-brac is thrown into a well and sealed. So the problem is over, right? Tell that to the family who, in the present day, inherit the nearby country house...

Yes, there have been three René Cardonas in the Mexican movie industry, and they all have a leaning towards good old fashioned horror flicks. The grandson brought us Vacation of Terror, or Vacaciones de terror if you were from his native land, which was a typical low budget chiller, although a lot milder than some; it could almost be a kids' horror movie as there are no deaths save for the witch before the end credits roll. There is, on the other hand, a lot of mayhem, none of which is especially startling, but serves to pass the time amusingly.

Cardona number three also came up with the story, which bears a marked resemblance to Poltegeist only with a South of the Border twist, complete with a possessed doll messing with the mind of a little girl, and various effects that are helped along by occasionally visible wires. The head of the household is Fernando (Julio Aléman), a well nigh insanely good natured chap who reacts to the new house that they've arrived to spend the weekend in as if it were a palace that simply needs a quick run round with a duster to make it as good as new.

That would be a house which is covered in cobwebs, has no electricity, no telephone to comunicate with the outside world and not even a stove in the kitchen to make dinner on. Nevertheless, Fernando thinks this place is the bee's knees, and they all settle down for the night: that is him, his pregnant wife Lorena (Nuria Bages), their three children, Fernando's niece Paulina (Gabriela Hassel) and her comic relief boyfriend Julio (Pedro Fernández). The first example that all may not be well is when they sit down for a meal and the light is switched on!

OK, it may not sound like much, but they didn't think there was any electricity, remember. The next day one of the twins gets stuck up a tree, and the little girl falls into the well where she finds that doll from the introduction, spelling disaster for the holidaymakers because every so often - well, actually every couple of minutes - the doll's eyes move on their own, accompanied by the sound of someone running their hand over piano strings, and the weird shit begins in earnest. It's apparent that after a while Cardona and his team ran out of plot ideas and simply fell back on victimising Julio and Paulina for half an hour, but Vacation of Terror is too brisk to be boring, and while it's not exactly frightening, it does what it sets out to do with cheap and cheerful elan. Music by Eugenio Castillo.
Reviewer: Graeme Clark

 

This review has been viewed 5365 time(s).

As a member you could Rate this film

 
Review Comments (0)


Untitled 1

Login
  Username:
 
  Password:
 
   
 
Forgotten your details? Enter email address in Username box and click Reminder. Your details will be emailed to you.
   

Latest Poll
Which star probably has psychic powers?
Laurence Fishburne
Nicolas Cage
Anya Taylor-Joy
Patrick Stewart
Sissy Spacek
Michelle Yeoh
Aubrey Plaza
Tom Cruise
Beatrice Dalle
Michael Ironside
   
 
   

Recent Visitors
Mary Sibley
Enoch Sneed
Darren Jones
Mark Le Surf-hall
  Louise Hackett
Andrew Pragasam
Graeme Clark
  Desbris M
   

 

Last Updated: