El asesino de muñecas

The Killer of Dolls (1975) - original title: El asesino de muñecas, is one of the all time most bizarre movies I've ever seen! It seems to have elements of the Italian Giallo genre but with a very Spanish twist (it was made during Franco's regime.) Basically it's a study in abnormal psychology.

I found it so over the top bizarre and strange that although I'm sure it was intended to be a serious horror film it at times is so outrageously bizarre that it is absurdly humorous. And I see that as a good thing! It's a very, very weird move that does not always go where you expect it to go and may shock some viewers. They could never get away with making this movie today! The 1970s were even more weird than the psychedelic late 1960s.

One of the themes of this movie is the odd "friendship" between the protagonist Paul (...you know...the guy who likes to dress up as a doll and works in a doll factory then steals the dolls to dissect and 'kill' them...) and a neighborhood boy of around 9 named Robert (played by Rafael 'Indio' González Jr.) Paul bonds with the chubby looking boy Robert who comes to the park daily with his Grandfather. Robert enjoys smashing dolls and setting things on fire. Paul connects with the bratty kid's anarchy and rage.

There seems to be a strange undercurrent of homoerotic lust in Paul for Robert (and Robert is blissfully unaware of anything...always so cheerful, naive and guileless.) But this is not your ordinary horror movie...don't expect a happy ending. In fact it left me wondering...whatever became of Robert? Strange, weird, bizzare, absurdly over the top, sometimes disturbing movie. Keep an open mind and just go with it. If you hate weird movies you won't like it. But I liked it because it is indeed so beyond weird that it is entertaining.