A crazed doctor performs gruesome experiments in his search for a youth serum.A crazed doctor performs gruesome experiments in his search for a youth serum.A crazed doctor performs gruesome experiments in his search for a youth serum.
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Miguel Ángel Álvarez
- Sir Fredrick Halback
- (as Miguel Angel Alvarez)
Andrés García
- Dr. Alfonso Bennett
- (as Andres Garcia)
Gloria Munguía
- Melina Jackson
- (as Gloria Munguia)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Featured review
1967's "Jekyll and Hyde: Pact with the Devil" (Pacto Diabolico) began shooting June 26, kicking off a quartet of quickie John Carradine vehicles for producer Luis Enrique Vergara, essentially the same deal that Boris Karloff would sign early next year, similarly completed over a four month period (sadly none of these efforts would ever be dubbed into English). He had previously contributed his services to the Basil Rathbone feature "Autopsy of a Ghost" (Autopsia de un Fantasma) as well as a television project, ANTHOLOGY OF FEAR (Antologio del Miedo), in a segment titled "Chewing Gum" (Los Chicles), both for veteran director Ismael Rodriguez, remembered for "Daniel Boone, Trail Blazer" and "The Beast of Hollow Mountain." It is apparent that Carradine is the only performer speaking his lines in English though he is dubbed in a Spanish language voice not his own, introducing himself in each film before the credits roll. This is a very poor debut indeed, his screen time as Dr. Halback limited to under 19 minutes, opening with the removal of a woman's eyes to complete an experiment inspired by his late friend Henry Jekyll, assisted by Dr. Alfonso Bennett (Andres Garcia). His beautiful ward, whom he appears to be in love with, happens to be Jekyll's daughter DiNora (Regina Torne), and when he announces to his butler Doyle (Guillermo Zetina) that his 'nephew' is coming, expectations run high, yet here is where Carradine basically exits the picture with only two brief appearances much later on, the new incarnation played by Miguel Angel Alvarez, posing as 'Sir Fredrick Halback.' Attempts to impress DiNora are shattered by a reminder that Dr. Bennett is her fiancee, so he decides instead to seduce a striptease ballerina (Isela Vega), forced to take matters into both hands after they turn all hairy, somehow securing the girl's eyes for another dose of serum. Only one more victim becomes a sightless corpse, Jekyll's infamous notes leading DiNora to the truth, Halback restored to his old self, stopping short of killing the woman he loves to secure his own demise. Apart from greying hair and mustache the only makeup worn by Carradine is a pair of hairy gloves, his alter ego eventually looking like a minstrel performer in blackface, little to offer in regard to horror in a 19th century period setting, a constant chirping and bubbling in the lab. Andres Garcia would do one film with Karloff, "House of Evil," as would glamorous Isela Vega in "Fear Chamber," wasted here in a nothing part that at least offers a spot of toplessness. Author Tom Weaver believed that this was 'the least lousy' of the Carradine quintet, but this viewer admits great difficulty staying awake even before the star's vanishing act. Director Jaime Salvador and screenwriter Ramon Obon Jr. Were also at the helm for the next vehicle, "Madame Death" a definite improvement, retaining Regina Torne, Isela Vega, and Miguel Angel Alvarez.
- kevinolzak
- Jun 5, 2022
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- Jekyll & Hyde: Satanic Pact
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