5/10
The Murder Mansion
20 September 2008
Warning: Spoilers
Modestly entertaining spook-house chiller has a various group of motorists finding themselves crashed nearby a cemetery thanks to a thickening fog that has engulfed them. Near the unattended graveyard is a manor once home to a rumored-to-be witch who, along with her chauffeur, died in a car crash three decades earlier. Their spirits perhaps roam the grounds as a car, being driven by a man dressed in a chauffeur's uniform, almost runs over handsome motorcyclist Fred(Andrés Resino)who was attempting to flag the driver down. Fred is carrying a lovely hitchhiker, Laura(Lisa Leonardi), as they found themselves crashing near the graveyard. Before their unfortunate accident, wealthy heiress, Elsa(..beautiful red-head Analía Gadé), recently recovering from a nervous breakdown due to the death of her father(..who died of a heart-attack while having sex with a much younger woman), was driving to a village to meet clients, Mr & Mrs Tremont(Eduardo Fajardo & Yelena Samarina)but, also runs off the road and into an embankment near the graveyard, encountering two sinister beings shrouded in darkness, one in a chauffeur's hat and boots, with a female figure slightly behind him. Incredibly frightened, Elsa runs into Fred and Laura. The trio find the manor, discovering that the Tremonts inside, having been in a wreck with another motorist, a gun-toting, sports-car driving, alcoholic, skirt-chasing, weak-hearted Mr. Porter(Franco Fantasia)who came on to Laura a little strong when he had initially picked her up on the side of the road. This group finds that the manor has an owner, the mysterious, enigmatic Martha Clinton(Ida Galli;Case of the Scorpion's Tale, Seven Notes in Black), who carries a striking resemblance to her aunt(..her portrait hangs above the fireplace in the living room of the manor). Martha dotes on the folklore behind her ancestor, the claims of vampirism and witchcraft and how these things drove locals from the location elsewhere. Over the night, Elsa will be targeted by the eerie chauffeur and Aunt Clinton, as she slowly is driven mad, but why? Why would the spirits of Clinton and her chauffeur wish to drive Elsa crazy? Meanwhile Fred and Laura snoop around, wishing to understand more about their surroundings and the chauffeur who almost run him over.

Important sub-plot is introduced in the early going, regarding Elsa's very unhappy husband Ernest(Alberto Dalbés), who is having an affair with another woman. Ernest was once wealthy as well, but spent his money on women and drink. Ernest mentions to his devoted lover how he'd like to split from Elsa, but her financial support is hard to give up. This isn't just thrown in the movie for filler, and could very well tie into the future events of the movie. The cast is decent and the dubbing is bearable. The film flirts with the supernatural, but the overall story isn't that overwhelming. The whole film lives and breathes familiarity...you have seen it all before, over and over. Perhaps the film offers surprises for viewers who are not accustomed to these type of old dark house mysteries where something's afoot, but I believe most will find this merely an adequate time-waster, nothing special or mind-blowing. Could've been a lot worse, but I have a pretty good feeling most will forget about this movie soon after it's over. Elsa's story is emphasized more than everyone else's.
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