Night of the Werewolf (film)

El Retorno del Hombre Lobo (The Return of the Wolfman) is a 1980 Spanish horror film that is the ninth in a 12-film series about the werewolf Count Waldemar Daninsky, played by Paul Naschy. In the United States, the film was released theatrically and on VHS as The Craving in 1985, and more recently on DVD as Night of the Werewolf. Shout Factory also released it on Blu-ray as part of their "Paul Naschy Collection set.

El Retorno del Hombre Lobo
Directed by	Jacinto Molina
Written by	Paul Naschy
Produced by	Modesto Pérez Redondo Julia Saly Enrique Molina
Starring	Paul Naschy Silvia Aguilar Azucena Hernández Julia Saly
Cinematography	Alejandro Ulloa
Edited by	Pedro del Rey
Music by	CAM Espana Library
Distributed by	Federico de la Cruz Martín (Spain, theatrical), Film Concept Group (USA, theatrical)
Release dates	April 1981 (Spain) 1985 (U.S.)
Running time	92 min
Countries	Spain Japan
Language	Spanish

The film had a much larger budget than previous Naschy werewolf productions. Angel Luis de Diego handled the werewolf makeup and special effects. The film was released in Spain in April 1981, and was later shown at the 1982 Fantasporto Festival.

Naschy followed this up with a tenth werewolf film, La Bestia y la Espada Magica (The Beast and the Magic Sword).

Synopsis

In 15th Century Hungary, the werewolf Waldemar Daninsky is sentenced to be executed along with his satanic mistress Elizabeth Bathory and her coven of witches. Since it is nearly impossible to truly kill him, he is left in a kind of living death, with a silver dagger through his heart and an iron mask affixed to his face to keep him from biting. Centuries later, the dagger is removed from his chest by two graverobbers and Daninsky returns to life, and allows a group of travelling college girls to stay at his castle.

One of the girls locates the tomb of the Countess Bathory and is hypnotically forced by the Countess to perform a bloody ritual that brings the Countess back to life. Daninsky falls in love with one of the girls named Karen, and when he realizes the Countess has been revived and is vampirizing the denizens of the area, he turns against his former mistress and her vampire slaves to save Karen.

The end of the film features a classic battle in the crypt between Daninsky and Bathory, and he winds up biting the vampire's throat out. Now out of control, he goes on to bite Karen, but as she dies, she manages to stab Daninsky through the heart again with the silver dagger, thus ending the curse on the man she loves.

Cast

• Paul Naschy as Waldemar Daninsky, a young Polish lycanthrope nobleman who was executed in the 16th century for working with Elizabeth Bathory before he is accidentally revived decades later in the 1980s and became Mircaya's master, met Erika, Karen and Barbara and became Karen's lover, saving her from the revived Elizabeth Bathory and the now mad and evil Erika. Naschy won 2 awards for this movie and was nominated for 1 as well, he also said in interviews that this movie was his favourite entry out of all the movies in the Waldemar Daninsky/Hombre Lobo franchise because of it being the Waldemar Daninsky flick to have the biggest budget and how it was a remake of his 1971 flick La Noche de Walpurgis.
• Julia Saly as Elizabeth Bathory, an evil countess who was executed in the 16th century for the numerous gruesome crimes she did and is also revived after Waldemar in the 1980s by Erika, causing trouble for both Waldemar and Karen.
• Silvia Aguilar as Erika, Karen and Barbara's friend, a student of the Professor and later Bathory's henchwoman who is interested by the latter and is the one to purposefully revive her by killing Barbara and the Professor and later becoming her henchwoman, facing off against Waldemar and Karen.
• Azucena Hernández as Karen, Erika and Barbara's friend, a student of the Professor and later Waldemar's lover who accompanies her 2 friends on a journey to find Bathory's tomb and later falls in love with Waldemar and faces off against Elizabeth and Erika.
• Beatriz Elorrieta as Mircaya, Waldemar's loyal servant after he is revived who knows all about him, his lycanthropy and it's cure and teaches it to Karen, she is killed later on in the movie by Erika under the influence of Elizabeth Bathory.
• Pilar Alcon as Barbara, Karen and Erika's friend and a student of the Professor who journeys with Erika and Karen to find Bathory's tomb and is later killed by Erika and used to revive Bathory.
• Ramon Centenero as The Professor, Karen, Erika and Barbara's paraplegic teacher who knows all about Bathory and Daninsky and is killed by Erika earlier in the movie when he tries to stop her from going on the trip.
• Ricardo Palacios as Veres, 1 of the 2 grave robbers who accidentally revives Waldemar and is killed by him.
• Rafael Hernandez as Yoyo, the other grave robber who accidentally revives Waldemar and is killed by him.
• Pepe Ruiz as Bandit, 1 of the 4 bandits who assault and try to steal from Karen, Barbara and Erika and are killed by Waldemar.
• Tito Garcia as Bandit, another 1 of the 4 bandits who assault and try to steal from Karen, Barbara and Erika and are killed by Waldemar.

* David Rocha as Young Bandit, the youngest of the 4 bandits who assault and try to steal from Karen, Barbara and Erika and are killed by Waldemar.

• Luis Barboo as Sandy - Bandit, the 4th member of the group of bandits who assault and try to steal from Karen, Barbara and Erika and are killed by Waldemar.
• Alexia Loreto as Woman Killed In Stall Beside Her Boyfriend, a victim of Waldemar in werewolf form killed alongside her boyfriend.

External links

• Night of the Werewolf at IMDb
• Night of the Werewolf at AllMovie