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Horror Cult Classic

A disfigured girl's transformation through experimental science spirals into horror under Spanish skies.

FACE OF TERROR

1962 · 1h 23m · NR · Horror / Science Fiction / Thriller · IMDB TMDB

A scientist develops a serum that can eradicate scar tissue. He tries it on a girl with a horribly disfigured face. It succeeds, but then he discovers the girl is an escaped mental patient from a local asylum.

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Vault Note

Beauty may be fleeting, but a mad scientist’s handiwork is forever.

Programmer's Pick

Face of Terror serves up a potent cocktail of mad science and mistaken identity, set against the backdrop of early '60s Spanish genre cinema. Fernando Rey's Dr. Taylor is equal parts benevolent and blind to consequence, while the film's serum-fueled beautification takes a predictably dire turn when asylum walls can't hold back the past.

— SassyFlix Programmer
Quick Answer
What is Face of Terror about?

Face of Terror is a 1962 Spanish horror, science fiction, and thriller film directed by Isidoro M. Ferry and William J. Hole Jr. about a wheelchair-bound doctor whose experimental serum restores a disfigured girl's beauty, only for her troubled past to resurface.

Details & Specs
Directors
Isidoro M. Ferry, William J. Hole Jr.
Writer
Monroe Manning
Release
1962
Runtime
1h 23m
Country
Spain
Language
English, Spanish
Also Known As
Face of Terror, La cara del terror (original title)

Synopsis

A kindly wheelchair-bound physician, Doctor Charles Taylor (Fernando Rey) is developing a serum able to repair scar tissue, but he has not been able to conduct a real test. He comes across a young girl with a horribly disfigured face. The effects of the serum are better than the scientist expected, and the girl is transformed to a thing of beauty again - Norma (Lisa Gaye). He presents her to some friends, exhibiting his success, and she befriends a handsome Playboy (Virgilio Teixeira). 

Unfortunately for Lisa, her restored beauty is not permanent. Unfortunately to Dr. Taylor, Norma happens to be an escaped mental patient from a local asylum, and she can't cope when the serum effects wears off, and her face returns to its hideous condition. Enraged at this setback, Norma goes to the laboratory armed with the shard of a broken bottle, screaming at the doctor, "I'll kill you!" The man can do little to defend himself but to drive the wheelchair back from her, and interposing some objects that Norma swipes away with her left hand. In the nick of time, Alma (Conchita Cuetos), the doctor's assistant, enters the laboratory and tries to calm down the agitated patient. 

Her efforts are fruitless, as the unbalanced girl throws the bottle at Alma's head. She misses, but now she turns her anger against the beautiful assistant, and attacks her, screaming repeatedly, "I hate you!" The women, both wearing sleeveless, light dresses, proceed to grapple on their feet before falling down onto the floor - covered in glass shards - where they wrestle before standing up and resuming their battle on their feet. Alma is knocked down again when Norma hits her with the large metal support for the lamps of an operating table. The fight ends when the Doctor lures Norma away from her battered opponent, by offering her a container of the valuable serum. 

Lisa's fixation on the container proves disastrous. The doctor shouts at Alma to run away and, on purpose, he let's the container fall and break on the floor. Norma again turns her rage against him, and throws a heavy object to his head, with such power that he falls sideways, overturning the wheelchair. Then, she collapses by his body, as Alma stands and walks haggardly through the room.

Why Cult

Mad Scientist Serum

The plot centers on a physician's experimental serum that can repair scar tissue, with drastic, unforeseen consequences.

Spanish Horror-Thriller

A genre blend hailing from Spain, combining horror, science fiction, and thriller elements in a 1962 package.

Fernando Rey in Lead

Fernando Rey stars as the well-intentioned Dr. Charles Taylor, lending gravitas to the film's scientific chills.

Questions from the Vault

What is Face of Terror about? +

Face of Terror follows Dr. Charles Taylor, a wheelchair-bound physician who develops a serum to repair scar tissue and tests it on a disfigured girl, only to discover she is an escaped mental patient and her restored beauty is temporary.

When was Face of Terror released? +

Face of Terror was released in 1962.

Who directed Face of Terror? +

Face of Terror was directed by Isidoro M. Ferry and William J. Hole Jr.

How long is Face of Terror? +

Face of Terror has a runtime of 83 minutes.

What genre is Face of Terror? +

Face of Terror is a horror, science fiction, and thriller film.

Where can I watch Face of Terror? +

Face of Terror is available to watch on SassyFlix.