By 1972, Spain's king of horror Paul Naschy (aka Jacinto Molina) was starring in and scripting vehicles that were becoming more and more offbeat, and I mean that as a compliment. HORROR RISES FROM THE TOMB was the first of many films that Naschy did with first-time director Carlos Aured (one-time assistant to Leon Klimovsky) for the newly formed Profilmes, a company Naschy would be associated with for years. Naschy's outrageous script allowed him to toss in a number of elements that seemed to be culled from other movies, but they still help this outing succeed in over-the-top fashion!

Starting off with a pre-credit sequence in Medieval France, Warlock Alaric de Marnac (Naschy) and his wickedly seductive cohort Mabille de Lancre (Helga Line) are accused of a number of nasty things, including drinking blood an feasting on human flesh. He is beheaded and she is hung naked upside down while shouting and promising revenge (Naschy also plays the brother/accuser as a knight with a disfigured eye). Centuries later (early 1970s) a descendant of Alaric named Hugo (Naschy) and pal Maurice (Vic Winner), also a descendant of a man who sent the evil duo to their death, are experiencing very strange occurrences having to do with the curse put upon their bloodline. After a wild séance, they decide to put their minds at ease by taking their gals and driving to the old family château to search for the buried bodies of Alaric and Mabille.

On their way there, a run-in with some highway robbers causes their car to crash, but Hugo is cool enough to buy a new one with the wad of cash stuffed in the pocket of his jacket. Once at the chateau, Hugo and Maurice are able to dig up a chest containing the immortal head of Alaric, but the damn thing has the power to force the locals and the houseguests into doing his bidding, eventually reattaching himself with his body and reviving his beloved Mabille. The deadly duo go on a satanic spree much to the dismay of the remaining cast.

HORROR RISES FROM THE TOMB is an entertaining late-night mishmash made up of the kind of thrills that make Paul Naschy's films what they are. In its strongest version (seen here), it's packed pretty well with gore, sexuality and nudity – chiefly from the lovely Helga Line, one of the most underrating celluloid scream sirens, and sexy Emma Cohen (as Naschy's romantic interest) who was never too shy to shed her threads in front of the cameras. Nothing groundbreaking genre-wise (a sacred religious emblem is used to fight off the evil doers, a visit from the walking dead is strictly inspired by George Romero, etc.), but this has Naschy (in multiple roles, no less!) at his best, bloody gut-extracting effects that pre-date Tom Savini's by years, and more beautiful woman on display (in various states of undress) than you could possibly ask for.

After fans had to settle for an unauthorized disc of HORROR RISES FROM THE TOMB from Crash Cinema, it’s so rewarding to have an official release here from BCI, which is a gem of a presentation in every way. The film is offered here in its preferred non-clothed version (meaning nudity on hand) in its original 1.85:1 hard-matted aspect ratio with anamorphic enhancement. Going back to the original elements, the film has been transferred in High Definition and looks absolutely terrific, with strong colors, sharp levels of detail, and no print blemishes to speak of. The titles are in English, and the familiar English-dubbed track (which appears to be synced perfectly) is present in mono, as well as the Spanish language track in mono with optional English subtitles.