The Sadistic Baron von Klaus

The Sadistic Baron von Klaus
French film poster
Directed by	Jesús Franco
Screenplay by	Jesús Franco Juan Cobos Gonzalo Sebastian de Erice Pío Ballesteros[1]
Story by	René Sebille Jesús Franco[1]
Produced by	José Lopez Brea[1]
Cinematography	Godofredo Pacheco[1]
Edited by	Ángel Serrano[1]
Music by	Daniel J. White Jesús Franco[1]
Production companies	Cooperativa Cinematográfica Albatros Eurociné
Distributed by	Hispamex Films (Madrid)
Release dates	13 September 1963 (1963-09-13) (France) October 1963 (1963-10) (Jaén, Spain)
Countries	Spain France

The Sadistic Baron von Klaus (Spanish: La mano de un hombre muerto, lit. 'The Hand of a Dead Man') is a 1963 film directed by Jesús Franco. Set in the village in the mountains of Austria, a series of murders of young women are plaguing a village. The murders recall the actions of fifty years earlier of Baron von Klaus. Karl Steiner, a reporter from out of town joins Inspector Borowsky in investigating.

The film originally had a story by René Sebille, but was re-written by Franco and two film critics from the Spanish film magazine Film Ideal. The film began shooting in Northern Spain in late 1962, and was completed in early 1963. The film is a Spanish and French co-production between Cooperativa Cinematografica in Madrid and Eurocine in Paris.^[1]

The film was the first production where composer Daniel J. White worked with Franco, leading to many productions together in the future. The film received negative reviews from Cine en 7 dias and Cahiers du Cinéma.