onsdag 25 januari 2012

The Beast and the magic sword aka La bestia y la espada mágica (1983)


No matter what you think of this movie, no matter how much you may hate Paul Naschy, you must agree that we very rarely see ninjas and werewolves in the same movie! For that reason La bestia y la espada mágica aka The Beast and the magic sword is a masterpiece! This was the last Waldemar Daninskymovie (there were a few more low budget crappy flicks that utilized the character but they dont really count. Because I say so.), produced partly with Japanese money (the same deal also gave us the fun Human Beasts) and mostly set in Nippon as well (the concept is great, it's just a bit strange to watch samurai lords speaking spanish). This time Daninsky goes to Japan to find a cure for his lycanthropy, fighting ninjas, samurais and an evil witch intent on getting hold of his powers for her own use. Every woman in the vicinity falls in love with him, as usual and you know fairly soon who will be the one to kill him in the end. It's rather fun to see the Daninskymythology being rewritten in every movie, though mostly just in setting. And the movie has ninjas! And werewolves. Did I mention topless ninjas? Too bad there is no werewolf vs ninjascene, that could possibly have been the coolest scene in the entire universe.

If you have seen one Waldemar Daninsky movie you know what to expect, Naschy/Molina does not deviate from the formula one bit, instead deriving its strength from the novel setting of Japan and its myths and legends. The werewolf makeup even gets an upgrade, though I am still divided if I actually like it or not. Naschy also seems to have gotten a bit of extra cash since the movie looks quite good and makes great use of some excellent locations. If you have seen any of the earlier Daninskymovies you know exactly what to expect and it is all good fun. Good, yummy, furry, topless fun.

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