Scott LeBrun Note: review and rating apply to the original 92 minute long Spanish version.More action-oriented and less atmospheric than "Tombs of the Blind Dead", this sequel opens up the scope a bit by having the relentless Knights Templar take on an entire town, as the nearby town of Bouzano is celebrating the long ago vanquishing of these fiends. But soon the eyeless zombies will be rising from their graves to attack the citizens and put a bloody end to the festivities.The central set piece, around the halfway point, is exhilarating. It features a fair bit of quick cuts and moving camera. Still, despite all of the violence, things never do get that gory, which will disappoint various horror fans in the audience. The plotting, also, is decidedly more conventional, with a bunch of disparate characters forced to hole up inside an old church in classic "Night of the Living Dead" style. And true to the nature of that films' story, the people here are at odds with each other.Studly Tony Kendall makes for a believable hero, while Fernando Sancho creates an effectively loathsome character with his portrayal of the worthless mayor, a man who thinks nothing of making a little girl serve as a distraction for his attempted getaway. They're joined by the enchanting Esperanza Roy as the mayor's wife Vivian, with whom Kendall's Jack Marlowe has a history, Frank Brana as the mayor's sidekick, Luis Barboo as one of the villainous knights, and two holdovers from the first film, Lone Fleming (playing Amalia) and Jose Thelman (playing Juan). Jose Canalejas is deliciously creepy as the "keeper" Murdo; he's got a great character face.The ending should have viewers all tensed up, wondering if our last survivors standing will be able to pull off their escape attempt.This is about on a par with "Tombs of the Blind Dead".Seven out of 10.

amesmonde Evil Knights Templar are put to death, eyes burnt out and burned on bonfires only to return 500 years later on the anniversary of their deaths to have their revenge. With moments reminiscent of Night of the Living Dead the rest of director Amando De Ossorio's  (follow up, remake or stand alone story of Tombs of the Blind Dead) is a slow burning, effective little Spanish horror.The characters and story of El ataque de los muertos sin ojos are developed arguably further than it's predecessor and while the pace is faster it's still very slow. Your patience is rewarded with creepy visuals, killer blade welding zombie knights, fitting music, all with the backdrop of an eerie small town. Although dated the idea of knights coming back from the dead is still appealing, there's plenty of hammer horror-esque bright blood on display and it has a seventies charm about it, flares, huge collars etc. The cast are more than adequate, notably unrecognisable José Canalejas  as Murdo the hunchback-like village outcast. The final act is satisfying enough and as the dawn arrives prior to the credits you'll feel relieved in a good or bad way dependant on your feelings of this atmospheric gem.

smccar77 "Reutrn of the Blind Dead," is a slightly higher budget remake of Tombs of the Blind Dead. Return maintains the intriguing premise and textural richness of the first, while also achieving a slightly faster pace and more accessible story. In all fairness, Return is a remake in spirit only. The story arch and conflict differs very much from the first film. In the earlier film, the director lavished time and extended shot composition to create a creepy mood. This second installment develops characters more and explores how some of the monsters may still be alive.This series has gained a cult following for a few reasons. First, the premise of long dead satanic knight zombies mixes history, occultism, and gory monsters. Such a mix is near perfection in the overly exploited zombie genre. Second, the stories are rather simple and straight forward. The director is clearly not attempting to create a nuanced and subtle piece of storytelling. Rather, the films are a notable for the visual and color textures. The zombies are a wonderful combination of desiccated flesh and bones wrapped in earth hardened tunics. In addition, these knights attack in force both on foot and on zombie horseback. The costuming and makeup effects are actually quite unsettling and some of the most original.While the zombies are very fun, the lack of attention to story and development do hurt the film. The dialogue is simplistic and clearly serves to keep the pacing up. Whenever a movie sacrifices realistic scripting, the production as a whole suffers from wooden performances and characters the audience cares little about. Return, having made the above scripting sacrifice, comes off as very clichéd, poorly acted, and at times outright stupid. An important note is that, even with these negative points, the film still maintains a sense of excitement, horror and fun. Return is a "b" zombie film and all of the staff know it. In a sense, this film deserves to be judged by more lenient "b" criteria. By evaluating this film on less strict criterion, Return is a success. The Editing is well done and maintains a good exciting pace. The acting is wooden, which inevitably leads to unintended humor and laughs. The zombies are the star and clearly have been developed lovingly. The score is a mix of cheesy music and stereotypically creepy sound effects. This film attacks its goal with both a high degree of technical skill and an even higher degree of pride. Will this film ever make a come back and receive awards? No, it will not. Will this film stand the test of time and be referenced for many years to come by horror enthusiasts? Yes, it most definitely will. All in all, this is a fun film that has a unique if campy perspective on zombies.On a personal note, I have really taken to this series. The premise, visual textures, creepy locations, and unplanned humor combine to make these films a pleasure to watch. These make great movie night fare when with horror buffs. In addition, this series provides a great many examples of the wonderful techniques used in earlier horror. A great many films of today are clearly influenced by the likes of the blind dead.

lost-in-limbo Writer / director Amando de Ossorio's garnished Gothic follow up to the original Spanish feature "Tombs of the Blind Dead" is to some extent an improvement with a much better pace, tautly constructed suspense (where those ominous chants throughout the score draw fear) and plenty of viciously hysterical bloodletting (stomach stabbing and blood dribbling) from the Templar knights. Still with that in mind, I wasn't terribly blown away by "Return of the Blind Dead" and the ending was a real letdown too.The formula (survivors held up in a church with the zombie templar knights waiting outside) had been bled dry and its repetitive nature to get a little tiresome. Only so much could happen and it shows, but it remained effectively atmospheric in its moody imagery (you can't tire of the haunting slow motion scenes of the templar knights on their horses) and surrounding decors. This time the focus is on the cursed townsfolk who are celebrating the 500th anniversary burning of the Eastern knights that practiced black magic, but soon the nightmare is relived when the knights return from beyond their graves for brutal revenge. There they knock on doors waiting to be invited in, until they realised they are unlocked so they make themselves welcomed to carry on the slaughter behind closed doors. Make-up FX still stands up rather well. The performances are respectable with the likes of Tony Kendall, Lone Fleming, Frank Brana and Fernando Sancho.