Libramedi Intense, gripping, stylish and poignant

Solidrariol Am I Missing Something?

Stephan Hammond It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

Myron Clemons A film of deceptively outspoken contemporary relevance, this is cinema at its most alert, alarming and alive.

Woodyanders The crew and passengers on board a luxury boat in the Caribbean sea experience bizarre phenomena when the ship ventures into the notorious Bermuda Triangle. Director/co-writer Rene Cardona Jr. assembles plenty of promising ingredients -- a creepy doll, the lost city of Atlantis, a ferocious bird attack, a sea quake, a fierce storm, predatory sharks, and so on -- but alas this movie fizzles when it ought to sizzle: The slack direction, talky script, sluggish pacing, drawn-out and meandering uneventful narrative, lousy dubbing, and padded 112 minute running time make this pedestrian affair a pretty tedious chore to endure. Fortunately, the nifty international cast keeps this picture watchable: John Huston as the crusty Edward, Andres Garcia as amiable first mate Alan, Hugo Stiglitz as the stalwart Captain Mark Briggs, Marina Vlady as the sunny Kim, Claudine Auger as the bitchy Stybil, Carlos East as bitter and spineless alcoholic doctor Peter, and Mario Arevalo as friendly crew member Tony. Moreover, the delectable Gloria Guida looks smoking hot in a red bikini, there are a few moments of effectively spooky atmosphere (several close-ups of the doll as a live baby are truly freaky and unsettling), and the bleak tone becomes more increasingly hopeless and upsetting as the story unfolds towards an uncompromising downbeat ending. Leon Sanchez's sharp cinematography boasts some impressive underwater photography. Stelvio Cipriani's moody'n'melancholy score hits the spine-tingling spot. A merely passable time-waster.

Chase_Witherspoon Rene Cardona, Jnr was arguably the most recognisable Latin exploitation film maker in the late seventies through mid eighties, and his brand was easily identifiable through his use of fading American character actors and gory special effects. Disappointingly, that brand is conspicuously absent here, with John Huston in a relatively brief supporting role, the only 'marquee' import, and little to none of the gory special effects usually synonymous with a Cardona picture.The plot concerns the usual spate of mysterious disappearances converging on the Bermuda Triangle, while research vessel inadvertently sails into a maelstrom of intrigue and bizarre occult activity that seems to centre on a creepy-looking doll that is found floating in the ocean. It soon possesses the youngest child and in turn manages to wreak havoc amongst the rest of the crew, until, mysteriously, just a handful of weary survivors remain.Perennial Cardona leading-men Stiglitz and Garcia make an amiable cinema coupling, and they continue their reliable presence here, with the once-sultry Marina Vlady and former bombshell Claudine Auger largely wasted in shallow supporting roles. Miguel Fuentes as a chiselled, Neanderthal looking mechanic is unintentionally hilarious at times, as he randomly emerges from the small engine room door to taunt the spooked passengers with doomsday prophecies, before returning to the ship's bowels to inhale more petrol fumes and envisage even more facile tales of terror for his next appearance.While not totally inept - some unsettling suspense, good sets, colour and sound in particular - the special effects are profoundly amateurish and the dialogue is at times, painfully puerile. The possessed doll on which the story centres however does convey a certain Argento 'esque feel which is plainly scary (watch for those unnerving close-ups of the doll's face - creepy). Not your typical Cardona-style picture, and probably more accessible as a result. Average, but worth a look.

PeterNeal Excellent vintage horror, borrowing tales & legends about the so-called Bermuda Triangle just to terrorize the viewers by various topics loosely relevant to the main plot. An unnerving score (courtesy of the talented, underrated Italian composer Stelvio Cipriani) comments nightmarish sequences about lots of strange supernatural phenomena, mysterious presences haunting the depths of the ocean, a ghost ship, and the creepy relation (often really disturbing) between a little girl and her evil killer doll. The story is neither solid nor coherent at all, as in Lucio Fulci's "The beyond" e.g., and the technical quality is quite poor, except for some underwater shootings by the good cinematographer Ramon Bravo, but these two aspects incredibly increase the tone of the whole movie's atmosphere. Written by Carlos Valdemar and directed by Renè Cardona Jr. (who later did the entertaining "Cyclone") this Italian/Mexican co-production scared me much more than "The shining"; I've seen it several times and I highly recommend it!

phibes012000 Reading the other comments I must say that I'm not surprised. I'd be a hypocrite if I didn't recognize one's right to like stinky films. I like some z grades myself, but this movie ain't one of 'em. I spend 15$ on this crap. John Huston is in it, but doesn't do much other that stand around and talk in that voice of his. its almost a relief when his character is eaten by sharks. The only reason I like Rene Cordona Jr.s films is the nudity and luridness: this film has neither, so I hated it. As for the Bermuda Triangle I know nothing new about it after watching this film, and I'm not afraid of it any more than before. To add insult to injury there's a black character that is dubbed in mushmouth. Truly horrible: a disappointment in exploitation and offensive to boot.