Handsome hunter Sigurd (Tony Kendall) is hired to protect the students at a girls-only boarding school after a series of vicious slayings in the area, presumed to be the work of a wild animal. Some locals speak of the Loreley, a mythical siren who rises from the river, transforming into a hideous beast to feast on human hearts; as Sigur carries out his duties, encountering a mysterious woman in the marshes, he too begins to suspect that there is some truth to the legend of the Loreley.
A couple of years ago, I holidayed in the Rhine valley, where I visited the Nibelungen Museum, which is dedicated to the epic German poem 'Nibelungenlied', a fascinating work that not only served as the inspiration for Wagner's Ring Cycle, but also for this highly entertaining movie by director Amando de Ossorio (best known for his Blind Dead movies).
It's taken me a while to track down a copy of The Loreley's Grasp, but it was well worth the wait, de Ossorio delivering almost everything that I look for in a Euro-horror...
1) Attractive women: I don't recall seeing an excess of beauties in the German towns I visited, but every woman in this film is a knockout: the pretty girls of the school prance around in bikinis and flaunt themselves to Sigurd; teacher Elke is played by stunner Silvia Tortosa; and ravishing redhead Helga Liné is Loreley, who is waited on by several sexy water-nymphs.
2) Bags of atmosphere: the ethereal Rhine location provides much of the mood, but a haunting soundtrack and dreamlike cinematography also go a long way to making this an effectively eerie flick.
3) Gore: the attacks in this film are brutal and graphic, the monster ripping at the victims with its claws and teeth. Flesh is torn, blood is splashed, and hearts are plucked. One poor woman has her breast graphically slashed open, while a professor gets his face melted by acid.
4) A rubbery monster: the creature is hilariously bad, an unconvincing 'man in a rubber suit' creation with scaly hands, bulging eyes and a toothy mouth. De Ossorio wisely keeps it hidden in the shadows for much of the time, although its Marigold Glove hands are seen quite clearly.
5) Terrible '70s fashion: hero Sigur's wardrobe consists of loud patterned shirts (open to the navel), and as tight as possible trousers with matching jackets.
6) Cheesy visual effects: the transformation from beautiful woman to scaly beast is lousy, but the film is all the more enjoyable for it.
Admittedly, the final act stretches plausibility to breaking point, with Sigurd donning scuba equipment to explore the river, only to find Loreley's hidden lair within minutes, while a bomb casually chucked into the water finds its target with deadly accuracy, but it doesn't stop the film from being a whole lot of fun and definitely worth keeping an eye out for.
7.5/10, rounded up to 8 for IMDb.
A couple of years ago, I holidayed in the Rhine valley, where I visited the Nibelungen Museum, which is dedicated to the epic German poem 'Nibelungenlied', a fascinating work that not only served as the inspiration for Wagner's Ring Cycle, but also for this highly entertaining movie by director Amando de Ossorio (best known for his Blind Dead movies).
It's taken me a while to track down a copy of The Loreley's Grasp, but it was well worth the wait, de Ossorio delivering almost everything that I look for in a Euro-horror...
1) Attractive women: I don't recall seeing an excess of beauties in the German towns I visited, but every woman in this film is a knockout: the pretty girls of the school prance around in bikinis and flaunt themselves to Sigurd; teacher Elke is played by stunner Silvia Tortosa; and ravishing redhead Helga Liné is Loreley, who is waited on by several sexy water-nymphs.
2) Bags of atmosphere: the ethereal Rhine location provides much of the mood, but a haunting soundtrack and dreamlike cinematography also go a long way to making this an effectively eerie flick.
3) Gore: the attacks in this film are brutal and graphic, the monster ripping at the victims with its claws and teeth. Flesh is torn, blood is splashed, and hearts are plucked. One poor woman has her breast graphically slashed open, while a professor gets his face melted by acid.
4) A rubbery monster: the creature is hilariously bad, an unconvincing 'man in a rubber suit' creation with scaly hands, bulging eyes and a toothy mouth. De Ossorio wisely keeps it hidden in the shadows for much of the time, although its Marigold Glove hands are seen quite clearly.
5) Terrible '70s fashion: hero Sigur's wardrobe consists of loud patterned shirts (open to the navel), and as tight as possible trousers with matching jackets.
6) Cheesy visual effects: the transformation from beautiful woman to scaly beast is lousy, but the film is all the more enjoyable for it.
Admittedly, the final act stretches plausibility to breaking point, with Sigurd donning scuba equipment to explore the river, only to find Loreley's hidden lair within minutes, while a bomb casually chucked into the water finds its target with deadly accuracy, but it doesn't stop the film from being a whole lot of fun and definitely worth keeping an eye out for.
7.5/10, rounded up to 8 for IMDb.