Juan Ibañez Movies

The inhabitants of a small, remote island have been practicing voodoo rites and worshipping an evil priest named Damballah for years, but the local law officials generally turn a blind eye to this death cult's bizarre activities. Captain Labesch (Rafael Bertrand) arrives from the mainland, determined to crack down on the island's lawlessness and clean up the ineffectual, hard-drinking police force. He appeals for assistance from wealthy plantation tycoon Carl Van Molder (Boris Karloff), who owns nearly half of the island and wields a great deal of influence over the population. Van Molder has made the study of parapsychology his life's work and believes in the secret powers of the mind. He warns Labesch not to interfere with this forgotten island's ancient ways. Also visiting is Van Molder's niece, Annabella (Julissa), a temperance crusader who wants her uncle to help fund the International Anti-Saloon League. She falls in love with handsome police lieutenant Andrew Wilhelm (Carlos East), despite his fondness for rum. Meanwhile, beautiful native girls are being transformed into zombies, and a sinister snake dancer named Kalea (Tongolele) leads them to attack and devour any meddling policemen who get too close to their unholy rituals. When Annabella is kidnapped and prepared to be the cult's latest human sacrifice, Labesch and Wilhelm have to infiltrate their ranks to save her, and they finally learn the secret identity of the all-powerful Damballah. ~ Fred Beldin, Rovi

A brilliant geologist sends a team to search the depths of the earth in an effort to learn the origin of some strange signals they've been picking up on their equipment. They discover a rock formation with an interior life that can communicate telepathically. They bring the mass to the surface and determine that the entity is "pure crystallized intelligence," and they believe many of the secrets of existence can be answered by studying the stone. However, the only message the mysterious rock is forthcoming with is what kind of food it needs, namely a particular chemical that can only be produced by the bodies of people in the throes of terror. To this end, Dr. Mantel (Boris Karloff) devises something called the Fear Chamber, where kidnapped prostitutes are frightened out of their wits with spiders, snakes, and faked Satanic rituals in order to obtain this precious chemical. Though the scientist and his assistants take pains not to physically harm their subjects, the weird living rock begins growing tentacles and soon learns how to capture its prey and extract the fluids itself, leading to the death of a lady burglar. The scientists realize what a deadly force they've unleashed on the surface world, though efforts to destroy the creature are complicated by its ability to control human minds and generate its own electricity. ~ Fred Beldin, Rovi

One of four low-budget Mexican horror productions to star an ailing Boris Karloff in a supporting (but top-billed) role, this odd little number features the horror legend as the dying forebear of an eccentric family, whose heirs descend like vultures on his palatial home when they learn of his impending demise... which apparently occurs shortly after their arrival. Little do they realize that their plucky patriarch has laid some elaborate traps for them, employing his collection of life-size automatons. The cast wanders about through dimly-lit sets for what seems like an eternity before being slain by the wind-up robots in a variety of gory ways, but the violent, bloody climax comes far too late to rescue viewers from the endless drudgery. ~ Cavett Binion, Rovi