Muñecos infernales
The Curse of the Doll People
When some stupid foreigners steal a religious object in Haiti, divine retribution is swift. A paean to the menacing beauty of deep, dark shadows, of rooms veiled in gloom. A cautionary tale with an anti-colonial subtext. A true classic of Mexican horror that remains profoundly disturbing and eminently entertaining!
Never ever steal a religious object, especially not from a culture you don’t understand! But that’s exactly what some guys here do in Haiti, for which they are cursed by a Voodoo priest, and tracked down by his henchmen: four dolls brought to life.
Death is imminent when they appear out of the shadows… Is there a way to stop this small army of divine retribution? Abraham Merritt’s novel Burn, Witch, Burn! (1932) serves as the inspiration for a horror yarn featuring little people. Benito Alazraki, one of Mexican cinema’s finest stylists during its classical period, turns this cautionary tale into a haute scarefest, a paean to the menacing beauty of deep, dark shadows, of rooms veiled in gloom and umbra. A true classic of Mexican horror as it has managed to remain profound and disturbing after six and a half decades!
– Olaf Möller
Film details
- Country of production
- Mexico
- Year
- 1961
- Festival edition
- IFFR 2026
- Length
- 85'
- Medium/Format
- DCP
- Language
- Spanish
- Premiere status
- No premiere
- Principal cast
- Elvira Quintana, Ramón Gay, Roberto G. Rivera
- Director
- Benito Alazraki
- Producer
- Guillermo Calderón
- Screenplay
- Alfredo Salazar, Abraham Merritt
- Cinematography
- Enrique Wallace
- Editing
- Alfredo Rosas Priego
- Production design
- Manuel Fontanals
- Sound design
- Reynaldo P. Portillo
- Music
- Antonio Díaz Conde
- Production company
- Cinematografica Calderon
- Sales / World rights holder
- Permanencia Voluntaria
Shows of "Muñecos infernales"
-
Cinerama 5
This screening consists of the following films:
- one minute movies: The Wolf Ma’am
- Muñecos infernales
In-personEnglish subtitled -
Cinerama 5
This screening consists of the following films:
- one minute movies: The Wolf Ma’am
- Muñecos infernales
In-personEnglish subtitled