Though not up to Rollin's ROSE OF IRON (1972) or THE LIVING DEAD GIRL (1981), this is still pretty good - forming with the latter and ZOMBIE LAKE (1980; which I haven't watched) a very loose trilogy.
Still, it's not strictly a zombie film (as the 'monsters' here aren't flesh-eaters and don't even rise from the dead!) - though it carries much the same kind of menace as LET SLEEPING CORPSES LIE (1974), also largely set in the countryside and displaying a concern for ecology in the modern world. As with many of Rollin's work, this is actually more of a hypnotic mood-piece with very little dialogue: languorous, often lyrical and undeniably haunting. In this respect, the dreamy cinematography (which is sometimes out-of-focus) and the simple yet agreeable score (despite the admittedly grim subject matter) emerge as indelible assets to its ultimate quality.
The film is quite gory and the ending downbeat, but Marie-Georges Pascal's bewildered heroine generates genuine audience sympathy - even if it's a fetching yet duplicitous Brigitte Lahaie (inexplicably unaffected by the plague which is ravaging the village) who steals the show with her brief but striking role!
Still, it's not strictly a zombie film (as the 'monsters' here aren't flesh-eaters and don't even rise from the dead!) - though it carries much the same kind of menace as LET SLEEPING CORPSES LIE (1974), also largely set in the countryside and displaying a concern for ecology in the modern world. As with many of Rollin's work, this is actually more of a hypnotic mood-piece with very little dialogue: languorous, often lyrical and undeniably haunting. In this respect, the dreamy cinematography (which is sometimes out-of-focus) and the simple yet agreeable score (despite the admittedly grim subject matter) emerge as indelible assets to its ultimate quality.
The film is quite gory and the ending downbeat, but Marie-Georges Pascal's bewildered heroine generates genuine audience sympathy - even if it's a fetching yet duplicitous Brigitte Lahaie (inexplicably unaffected by the plague which is ravaging the village) who steals the show with her brief but striking role!