Synopsis:
"After losing her mother at an early
age and being raised at a boarding school, Christina Reiner
is notified of her father's death and summoned to Monserrat
Mansion for the reading of his will. Other members of her
strange, accursed family are found there awaiting the imminent
demise of Cristina's ailing stepmother. When Death finally
visits the castle in the person of an elegantly attired Queen
of Darkness, Christina is approached by the ghost of her father,
who advises her to flee the castle and her cold-skinned, bloodthirsty
relatives. But is it already too late? Has she already lost
touch with reality? Learn the answers, if you dare, in this
legendary cult classic from Jess
Franco-uncut in America for the first time! "
- from DVD
Pacific
My oppinion:
This was truly a pleasant experience. This
could just as well have been a Jean Rollin movie, if you look
past the extreme use of zoom, which has become sort of a Franco
trademark.. The mood, atmosphere and style of this movie are
very similar to Rollin's movies. Apart from the heavy zooming,
the only other negative thing I can think of is the dubbing,
which was pretty terrible at some points. Now to the good
stuff. First of all, the lead actress really is a very nice
looking girl, and she and the rest of the cast does a pretty
good job. The characters portrayed are also really cool, and
there are several great characters that we only get to see
for a short while. Particularly fun was Jess
Franco himself, which had an unusually big role
that is really fun! I especially enjoyed the scene where he
was fiddling with a chicken's head. Howard
Vernon is also good as always. The
score, done by Bruno Nicolai
is also good, and helps create that special atmosphere.
Well, bottom line is, this is a great little flick and it
shows that a high budget is not needed to make a good and
effective horror movie! Sure, Franco has made a lot of crap
in his days, but this is proof of the big talent he's got!
Highly recommended!
My rating:  
Want more info on this movie?:
IMDB
Buy "Virgin Among the Living Dead,
A" uncut at: DVDPacific
or VideoUniverse
Or the Japanese extended version at:
Xploitedcinema
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