Terror and Black Lace (1986)

A secret rendezvous between lovers turns into a nightmare encounter with death when the beautiful young Isabel (Maribel Guardia - Miss Costa Rica 1978), wearing only black lingerie, is terrorized by a maniac with a hair fetish. Her luscious locks enticing the madman, Isabel is forced to run for her life. Terror y Encajes Negros - taking horror in the bedroom to new heights! Una cita secreta amantes se convierte en un aterrador encuentro con la muerte cuando la bella y joven Isabel (Maribel Guardia - Miss Costa Rica 1978), vestida solo en lencería negra, es atemorizada por un maniaco que tiene una obsesión con cabello. El cabello divino de Isabel atrae al lunático y la forzar a correr para salvar su vida. Terror y Encajes Negros - llevando al horror de la recámara a nuevas alturas!

Worthwhile drama misleadingly marketed as a horror film

Misleadingly marketed as a horror film, Terror y encajes negros ("Terror and Black Lace") is more melodrama than anything else. It's the story of Isabel (Maribel Guardia), a young woman suffocated by her jealous, controlling husband (played perfectly by Gonzalo Vega), who keeps her virtually imprisoned in their apartment. The first two-thirds of the film chronicles Isabel's struggle to break out of this extreme isolation. The story takes a turn in the final 30 minutes, when Isabel is terrorized by the psychotic Cesar (played by veteran character actor Claudio Obregón), after she witnesses him disposing of a dead body in her building. To the film's credit, though, Isabel's ordeal isn't just horror for horror's sake; it's skillfully woven back into the main story as a way of highlighting both Isabel's loneliness and her husband's irrational distrust. Guardia was nominated for an Ariel Award (Mexico's equivalent to the Oscars) for her performance. In Spanish with optional English subtitles, this film is well worth seeing.

Three and a half stars out of five. January 26, 2004

More reviews at Amazon.com ...