Hasta el viento tiene miedo (1968)

Director:

Carlos Enrique Taboada

Writer:

Carlos Enrique Taboada (screenplay)

Release Date:

30 May 1968 (Mexico)

Genre:

Drama | Fantasy | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

Plot Keywords:

Principal | Window | Fear | Hanging | Boarding School

Cast

Marga López	...	Bernarda
Maricruz Olivier	...	Lucía
Alicia Bonet	...	Claudia
Norma Lazareno	...	Kitty
Renata Seydel	...	Ivette
Elizabeth Dupeyrón	...	Josefina
Rita Sabre Marroquín	...	Liliana
Irma Castillón	...	Marina
Rafael Llamas	...	Diego
Sadi Dupeyrón	...	Armando (as Saidi Dupeyron)
Pamela Susan Hall	...	Andrea, the ghost
Enrique García Álvarez	...	Doctor Oliver (as Enrique Garcia)
Lourdes Baledón	...	Verónica

Runtime:

88 min

Country:

Mexico

Language:

Spanish

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA High Fidelity)

Filming Locations:

Churubusco Studios, Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico

Company:

Tauro Films

Quotes:

Bernarda: I would not be surprised if all of a sudden Claudia got a fondness for heliotropes.
Lucía: Well, now that you mention it... I was afraid to show you this... Claudia had this with her today.
[shows Bernarda a bunch of heliotropes]

Movie Connections:

Version of El espinazo del diablo (2001)

Soundtrack:

Blues Jazz

Deliciously creepy Mexican horror flick!

While not as prolific as the USA, UK and Italy; Mexico is responsible for many great horror films; with the sixties in particular being something of a goldmine for the horror fan. Carlos Enrique Taboada's Hasta el viento tiene miedo has a great reputation amongst those who have seen it; and after having finally tracked the film down myself, I have to say that its reputation is completely deserved! The title translates into English as 'Even the Wind is Afraid' and as you would expect from a film with such a title; this is a macabre treat! Like the classics The House That Screamed and Suspiria, this film focuses on an all-girl boarding house. After a group of girls sneak into a restricted part of the school and are caught; their punishment (doled out by the head teacher nicknamed 'The Witch') is that they have to stay behind during the summer break! Naturally the girls are not too pleased, and things take a turn for the worse when a long dead student is sighted during the heavy winds, and seems to be after a student named Claudia...

The story is very much of the slow burn variety and while we do get plenty of horror; the film focuses more on building the characters, their relationships and the central situation. The horror is brought forward more through atmosphere and while the locations used are not as Gothic as those seen in similar Italian films; the film does deliver a great air of creepiness and the way that the wind is used provides one of the main highlights. The acting is very good, with adult performers Marga López and Maricruz Olivier delivering the standout performances as the two teachers. The younger performers are all very nice looking and while the acting is sometimes a bit cheesy; it doesn't harm the film too much. The plot does move slowly but it's always interesting and the film builds tension as we get closer to the end, with the film taking a rather unexpected twist half way through. It all boils down to an engaging and original (for the time) climax and overall; Hasta el viento tiene miedo may not be one of the best known horror films ever made, but it will certainly be of interest to horror fans. Recommended!