The Diabolical Dr. Z

Reviewer: David Hudson
Rating (out of 5): ***½

Anyone looking for just the right way to kick off the Halloween season can hardly go wrong with The Diabolical Doctor Z (1966), a delightful black and white brew of Expressionist lighting and camera work, a B-movie storyline and just a dash of 60s-era European art film pretension. And that story? Well, it was a dark and stormy night... No, really. From there, it's all winding staircases in secluded castles and foggy streets, mind control, murder and revenge.

Jess (Jes�s) Franco is one of the most remarkable characters in cinema history. Pushing 74, the Spaniard is still writing, directing, shooting, editing and composing scores for an ouevre that may soon reach a total of 200 films, a smorgasbord of low budget sci-fi, horror and sex. The year before Diabolical, Franco served as second unit director on Orson Welles's Chimes at Midnight, but for his many fans around the world, there's little need for him to flash that artistic badge. Yes, in his youth, Franco was a serious student of music, law, theater and film, but there's only one real reason he goes on making movies by the handful, releasing them again and again under different titles and taking on countless pseudonyms (often nabbed from the jazz musicians that have influenced his justifiably beloved scores) to cover the fact that he's had a hand in every element of their production: Fun. He simply has a blast doing it and it shows.

While many favor The Awful Dr. Orloff (1962), Diabolical reveals a Franco a bit more experienced and eager to experiment, still at the height of the first, accomplished phase in a career that would see him diving headlong into the erotic romper room opened up in Europe in the 70s, then exploring the possibilities of video in the 80s. If you're new to Franco, Diabolical is a fine first footing before setting out on a very long, very weird journey.