Satan's Blood (1978)

Dir: Carlos Puerto

(aka Don't Panic!)

This atmospheric and low-key piece from the 70s starts with a young couple, Andres and Ana, being accosted in the street by a pair of swinger-looking types named Bruno and Berta. Bruno insists that he and Andres went to school together but Andres has no recollection of this. In order to see a photograph that Bruno swears he has from back then, Andres and Ana drive out with them to an isolated house in the country and terrible, terrible things ensue. On one hand, Satan's Blood is original, creepy and actually rather harrowing in parts and the limited but uninhibited cast work well with their roles. On the other, it seems to purposely abandon logic, plausibility or any kind of explanation for the horror in favour of an abstract, nightmarish approach. The film plays like one long anxiety dream and, sadly, that's not an altogether good experience. Rather than being tense, it's just somewhat stressful for the most part. I praise it for its mood and the fact that I probably won't forget it in a hurry but I can't say I genuinely liked it. **