La horripilante bestia humana (1969)

Director:

René Cardona
(more)

Writers:

René Cardona Jr. (story)
René Cardona (story)

Release Date:

1972 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

Half Man, Half Beast, ALL HORROR!

Plot:

This cheap Mexican horror film is a remake of Cardona's Doctor of Doom (1962), spiced with nudity, medical footage...

Plot Keywords:

Wrestling | Gorilla | Nudity | Heart Transplant | Medical Footage

Cast

José Elías Moreno	...	Dr. Krallman
Carlos López Moctezuma	...	Goyo
Armando Silvestre	...	Lt. Arturo Martinez
Norma Lazareno	...	Lucy Ossorio
Agustín Martínez Solares	...	Julio Krallman (as Agustin Mtz. Solares)
Javier Rizo
Gerardo Zepeda		(as Gerardo Cepeda)
Noelia Noel	...	Elena Gomez
Gina Morett	...	Woman in shower
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Juan Fava	...	El Físico Nuclear (uncredited)
Nathanael León	...	Zoo security chief (uncredited)

Directed by
René Cardona
Jerald Intrator		(new footage for US version) (uncredited)

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
René Cardona Jr.		story and adaptation
René Cardona		story and adaptation

Produced by
Guillermo Calderón	....	executive producer (as Guillermo Calderon Stell)
Alfredo Salazar	....	producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
Antonio Díaz Conde

Cinematography by
Raúl Martínez Solares

Film Editing by
Jorge Bustos

Production Design by
Javier Torres Torija

Set Decoration by
Carlos Arjona		(as Carlos Arjona M.)

Makeup Department
María del Castillo	....	makeup artist (as Ma. del Castillo)

Production Management
Fidel Pizarro	....	production chief
Alfredo Salazar	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Manuel Alcayde	....	assistant director
Valerio Olivo	....	sub-director

Sound Department
Eduardo Arjona	....	dialogue recordist
James L. Fields	....	sound supervisor
José Li-ho	....	sound editor (as Jose Liho)
Galdino R. Samperio	....	sound re-recordist (as Galdino Samperio)

Editorial Department
Joaquín Ceballos	....	assistant editor

Production Companies

• Cinematográfica Calderón S.A.

Distributors

• Azteca Films Inc. (1969) (Mexico) (theatrical)
• Jerand Film Distributors (1972) (USA) (theatrical) (recut with added footage) (dubbed)
• Iver Film Services (IFS) (????) (UK) (theatrical)
• BCI Eclipse (????) (USA) (DVD)
• Deimos Entertainment (2006) (USA) (DVD) (on "Crypt of Terror, Vol. 1")
• Gorgon Video (????) (USA) (VHS)
• Something Weird Video (SWV) (1996) (USA) (VHS)
• Something Weird Video (SWV) (2002) (USA) (DVD) (special edition)

Other Companies

• Estudios Churubusco Azteca S.A.  studios and laboratories
• Iga  electronic and medical apparatus
• Siemens AG  electronic and medical apparatus

Also Known As:

Gomar: The Human Gorilla
Horror and Sex
Horror y sexo (racier version)
Night of the Bloody Apes (USA)

Runtime:

USA:83 min (dubbed version) | Mexico:81 min

Country:

Mexico

Language:

Spanish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:R | UK:(Banned) (1984-1999) | UK:18 (re-rating, uncut) | UK:X (original rating) (cut)

Filming Locations:

Chapultepec Park, Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico

Company:

Cinematográfica Calderón S.A.

Trivia:

Features footage of an actual human heart transplant operation in two separate scenes.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When the girl is attacked in the park, the fake "grass" is accidently pushed aside, revealing the hard studio floor beneath.

Quotes:

Dr. Arturo Martinez: Prepare the gorilla.

Movie Connections:

Edited into Mad Ron's Prevues from Hell (1987) (V)

They are Apes...They are Bloody...And Lady Wrestlers, too...

What can I say about this movie? If you are seeing it, you've already heard about it. If you've heard about it, you know what to expect. It is a gory, sleazy and silly movie...

And, I mean that in a good way. The actors don't seem to know that they are in a low budget movie. Some even seem unaware of the fact that they cannot act and TRY anyway. It is beautiful in its way.

The makeup and special effects are pretty bad. The ape-man looks as if someone slapped a mud pack on a professional wrestler. Later, cheesy looking fangs are added, possibly to show that his heart had been replaced again...possibly to show that the makeup man had a very short train of thought.

The biggest waste in this movie is the lady wrestler who is contemplating retirement after putting an opponent into a coma. She is on the periphery of the plot...a plot where, for example, in the Santos movies, wrestling could've played a large part. I was unhappy not to see her in action against the ape-man...

The actors are generally sincere. The doctor does an excellent job. The zaftig nudity of a lady wrestler is also a welcome change from the anorexia we are forced to consume in today's sleaze.

But this movie is BLOODY. Many scenes are simply stock footage taken from heart operations. But there are gougings, scalping's, detoothings and squishings. None of these injuries look particularly authentic; but, the thought of them might be offensive to some. Definitely, this is an adult movie...

For sheer fun, I gave this movie a seven. If you like sleaze and cheese, see it...