7/10
Mysterious and exciting horror film compellingly directed by Claudio Guerin who died during its shooting
9 June 2013
This mythical film "La Campana del Infierno" (The Bell Of Hell) is a psychological thriller more than a Spanish Fantaterror film. Brilliantly directed by Claudio Guerin , resulted to be a damned picture , specially when turned out to be his untimely swan song since he died by mysteriously fall or jumped to his death from the central bell tower constructed for the movie and being eventually completed by distinguished fellow Juan Antonio Bardem . This near-legendary Euro-Cult item deals with an insane inmate of an asylum (Renaud Verley) is released and returns home for vengeance on his aunt (Viveca Lindfors) and her three daughters (Maribel Martín, Nuria Gimeno, Christina Von Blanc) who had him declared crazy in order to take his inheritance . The young man punishes his aunt and three daughters , with bees and hooks . Who will escape the terror ? . The most shocking horror of all time is finally here ¡

Thrilling as well as elegant film that contains suspense , intrigue ,cutting-edge set pieces and some terror elements . In 1973 Guerin produced and directed this French-Spanish film titled Bell from Hell (La cloche de l'enfer in France), a horror story , highly valued in its period . Guerin in a penetrating style makes a highly appropriate and bright filmmaking , he invite us into an active participation of a cruel game in which the protagonist seeks a peculiar vendetta . A few elements well developed he manages to create a mysterious atmosphere , a mixture among magical dreamlike scene of three sisters entry through the fog, and, of course without giving up a certain amount of cruelty and eroticism ; adding a touch fantasy . Interesting , suspenseful story and screenplay well written by prolific Santiago Moncada . Atmospheric as well as evocative cinematography by Manuel Rojas , filmed on location in Noia, Padrón,Betanzos ,Coruña, Galicia, and Estudios Roma, Madrid, Spain (interiors) . Very good support cast such as Viveca Lindfors , Tito Garcia , Erasmo Pascual as a priest and the extraordinary participation of Alfredo Mayo as a lewd old man , among others. Strange as well as adequate musical score by Adolfo Waitzman .

This very hard to find motion picture was stunningly directed by Claudio Guerin , realizing a personal staging . He had previously directed shorts , documentaries and his first film titled ¨House of the Doves¨ with Carmen Sevilla and Ornella Muti . However his sad and mysterious death cut his promising career . As he died in an accident during the filming of his second movie . In Noya church had built a second bell tower attached to a passage of real wood . Preparing a complicated plan, Guerin wanted to jump from the catwalk to a cantilever of the church, but lost his balance and fell into the void from twenty meters high ; died before reaching the hospital . Distinguished director Juan Antonio Bardem completed filming the last sequence about 7 minutes .
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