El Fantasma Del Convento (1934)

My take: While I don’t know Spanish, this film had some good creepy shots and scenes. Even without knowing what they were saying, I enjoyed it.

One problem you run into when trying to watch all of the movies in a list: not all are available in the US. The Internet may make everything accessible, but there are no guarantees that you will find the movie you want in English, especially when that movie is a Mexican horror film from 1934.

Just one of many thoroughly creepy shots from El Fantasma Del Convento

So, I was forced to watch El Fantasma Den Convento in the original Spanish on youtube, without subtitles. Even my attempts to translate the subtitles using youtube’s translate feature failed. Although, if you want a laugh, I recommend translating the Portuguese subtitles into English. The garbled gibberish made the first few minutes into a comedy for me.

So how did I know what was going on? I cracked open the book Studies in Terror and read the synopsis. I also read the synopsis on Wikipedia. With the basic plot points down, I was able to follow the film relatively well.

The story is about a married couple and their friend who end up having to spend the night in a very creepy monastery. The trio are in a bit of a love triangle, and the ghosts of the convent play off those tensions.

I would certainly watch it again if I could find a version with English subtitles.The film is filled with eerie scenes shot in a real ruined monastery. The monastery was fascinating and foreboding. The monks were terrifyingly silent and reminiscent of zombies. And the howling winds coupled with pained groans behind closed doors sent chills down my spine.

Even so, I would only recommend this movie to those who like classic horror and know a good bit of Spanish. I might also recommend it to those of you who, like me, know no Spanish but like silent horror films.

Here is the movie on youtube, in Spanish with no English subtitles: