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Summary: Sexy european horror
Review: This film trancends horror. I am very impressed with Bava's ability to create mood.
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Summary: Enjoy it for what it is.
Review: Black Sabbath is a highly entertaining film that should simply be watched and enjoyed without going into all kinds of detail about Bava's sources, and how it was distributed, and the original screenplay, and on and on. It's a 60s horror film, y'know? It wasn't meant to be dissected like it's Citizen Kane. I do agree that the Italian version is the way to go, though; it's more complete. BTW, the first story, while very good, isn't horror. The other two most definitely are, and both offer some very creepy moments. A keeper
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Summary: MADAM ZAINA RULES
Review: Well it,s almost Halloween,and i broke out my vhs copy of the AIP re-cut of this film.I said let's go on amazon and see if the dvd is available yet.And what do i see?-the dvd version is not the A.I.P.I'm still interested in procuring the Italian version,but after reading all the really wonderfull reviews by fans of this film,i concur that it's a drag the American and Italian versions are not paired together in one package. Again,due to the large number of excellent (and very detailed) reviews-regarding plot,scenes,Bava,and the breakdowns of the three stories within,here are just a few impressions i have on the film. "The Drop of Water" has haunted me since childhood.And from what i have read by others here-it seems they feel the same way about it.Now on to Madam Zaina(pronounced zay-na).Half actress?,half dummie,ALL NIGHTMARE.She is without a doubt the scariest visage ever captured on celluloid(2nd is a tie between Chaney's Phantom and Reagan Mcneal{Linda Blair in The Exorcist}-3rd is the "floating on air" basement hag in the original "house on haunted hill"the same effect was used in this film with Madam Z-with roller skates-wheels- i think).Any way she is the gold medal crown,numero uno, A #1 Specter,Ghostie,Corpseie of all time.And when i hear the word Ghost,it's her face that i see in my mind first.I can just imagine Bava in pre -production meetings beseeching his artisans and make-up man to come up with a face for his dummie/actress star that would "emblazen" it's aspect for all times upon the visual cortices and collective unconsciousnesses of all those who beheld her(wow that was a mouthfull-hope i got all the spelling right).I have also wondered, what studio werehouse or private collection in Italy her "dummie"half resides in(if in fact she's still around at all, and was not given the "Rosebud"treatment.i.e.BURNED after production,or the "Mussolini" treatment i.e.hung upside down by the feet and pelted and beaten senseless-or just maybe she's still around ,and is available on ebay).I read one review, that referred to her as "magdalena.Is that her name in the italian version? No matter, to me, she'll always be, Madam Z.There is just somthing about "female" ghosts that male specters just don't hold a candle to.Bava was a genius with atmosphere,and (my god)lighting.also, sets and props.The scene where the maid makes her way down the hall to answer the door for the nurse as she arrives at Madam Z's Manor.A far away shot that reveals the hallway in all it's unkempt splendor-cats galore,dead rats on the floor,drapes, pillars,urns with dead flowers,and those lit up colors- deep purple hues,oranges and blues-Resident Evil game designer's were inspired for their game's interior's by this film i'm sure-flickering old fashioned light bulbs-the lamp with a mind of it's own-or madam Z at work?,And once in Madame's creepy room,the dolls all over the place.lying on open chest'o drawers, and floors.tarot cards on the round table,fire place shadows reflected on the closed curtains of that grusome bed, as Madam Z is first revealed(this is where she looks like an actress and not a dummy),when the nurse pulls the curtains open-puncuated by eerie Les Baxter Piano stabs(in the american version only).All this conspires to provide a major dose o'the WILLIES for the viewer.I can't imagine any other music to all of this then Les Baxter's wonderfull(woodwind-low string heavy)and creepy Stravinsky-Berg"tinged score(again only in the American vhs version-also available in the vhs file here at Amazon-get both-the AIP vhs and the Italian DVD).Quite a change from all the "beach" movies with Annette and Frankie,he would score soon after with his partner Al Simms. I hope the american version will be forthcoming in DVD format soon.A final comment about Karloff-i can't imagine the Italian dubbing of his line (in the vampire story-tossing Alibek's head to the camera-zoom in on his face with that dead icy glare)"HANG IT ON THE DOOR OF THE HOUSE FOR ALL TO SEE"!!!Head swinging on post outside as we hear Les Baxter's falling minor thirds.The "Drop Of Water" is the ultimate in ghothic horror cinema,the high water mark in creeps and scares,and even camp.The greatest achievement of it's kind in film history.
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Summary: Chills aplenty
Review: Italian director Mario Bava (1914-1980) is one of the giants of the horror film genre. Bava's big break into the field came with his 1960 black and white classic "Black Sunday" starring Barbara Steele. This was only the beginning, as Bava churned out a series of gruesome shockers over the next seventeen years; his films always promised great style mixed with scenes of murder and mayhem. Perhaps Mario's biggest contribution to the horror genre was his 1972 picture "Twitch of the Death Nerve," also known as "Bay of Blood." It doesn't take too long to realize "Friday the 13th" shamelessly cribbed from this slasher bloodbath. At least two of the murders in the film appear almost unchanged in the first installment of the Jason Voorhees franchise. That's right-- Mario Bava gave birth to the modern slasher film. But he also dabbled in non-horror films with projects like "Four Times That Night" and the immensely entertaining peplum classic "Hercules in the Haunted World" starring Reg Park as the muscle bound hero. After watching many of his films, I have to express further admiration for this amazing director; he could make an entertaining motion picture no matter what the subject."I trevolti della paura," known on these shores as "Black Sabbath," is a great contribution to horror cinema. In 1963, Bava filmed three short stories and packaged them under one title with Boris Karloff introducing each segment. The first tale, "The Telephone," is a claustrophobic tale of horror that takes place in the apartment of Rosy (Michele Mercier). Strange and horrifying phone calls begin streaming into the apartment at the same time Rosy's ex-husband Frank leaves prison. Alarmed that her hubby will try to hurt her, she dials up her pal Mary (Lidia Alfonsi), asking her friend to come over and comfort her. There's an interesting subtext to Mary and Rosy's phone call that the American version apparently cut out of the picture before releasing it that this Image Entertainment DVD restores. Watch to see what it is. Anyway, Mary arrives and, when Rosy falls asleep, writes something down on a piece of paper for her friend to read later. When Rosy wakes up, she learns a few painful truths about both her friend and her ex-husband. The second story, "The Wurdulak," stars Boris Karloff as Gorca, the patriarch of a well to do Russian family in the eighteenth century. Wurdulaks, what we would call vampires, plague the countryside. Gorca sets out to slay one of them, a fellow named Alibeq, but leaves strict instructions to his family to destroy him, Gorca, if he returns any later than the stroke of midnight five days hence. Gorca reasons that he will be a vampire himself if he has not returned by that time, and his family agrees. Predictably, Gorca returns late and acts very, VERY weird. The family knows something is wrong but agonizes about doing what they know they must do. Their hesitancy has unfortunate results for several members of the family. This story is the best one on the disc; check out the scene where Karloff thunders around on a horse. Very creepy! The final tale of woe, called "The Drop of Water," finds Nurse Helen Corey (Jacqueline Pierreux) receiving a weird phone call late at night. It seems an old medium died and her servant is too scared to move the body. Corey agrees to help the superstitious assistant but makes the mistake of stealing a valuable ring off the corpse. What follows is classic chills and thrills as a fly follows Corey around wherever she goes, continually alighting on the ring on her finger. The nurse tries to hide in her house where the sound of dripping water drives her to the point of insanity. Again, no reason to spoil the film for you, but wait until you see what happens to Nurse Corey as the tale winds to a close. Note to self: never steal anything from a deceased psychic. All I can say here is that Mario Bava has done it again. While I still think "Black Sunday" is a better film, "Black Sabbath" nicely delivers the shocks. Getting Karloff to do double duty as the narrator and the star of one of the segments was a nice touch, too. Including this great actor in the project gives "Black Sabbath" a sort of homage feel, a nod to the earlier horror movies of the 1930s and 1940s. It's no mistake that Karloff's segment is the best one of the three. The weakest is "The Telephone," although even this tale works quite well in the suspense department. In "The Wurdulak," you know what's going to happen, but not so in "The Telephone." Plus, Michele Mercier is extremely easy on the eyes. I couldn't help but think of the seminal "Black Christmas" and "When a Stranger Calls" after watching "The Telephone." I wonder if Bob Clark and Fred Walton took Bava's creation as the inspiration for their own, later films. As for "The Drop of Water," well, it's a scary film that doubtless inspired its own imitators years later. Horror fans would be remiss to pass up this delightful collection. They're not gory in any way, just as "Black Sunday" wasn't gory, but they are nicely done pieces well worth watching. A big thanks goes out to Image Entertainment for releasing the film in its original format. I am slowly working my way through all of Mario Bava's film, and "Black Sabbath" was a huge step towards completing my journey. After watching the movie, check out the production notes assembled by Bava historian Tim Lucas, the trailer, and the Bava biography. If you like horror, you will definitely want to give this one a few hours of your time.
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Summary: Are You Serious?
Review: With out a doubt, the best horror film ever made. Bava's Black Sabbath, is without question the most complete horror experience ever filmed. With atmosphere like I've never seen, this trilogy starts off with a classic giallo, and progresses to sheer terror by the last installment. Words alone cannot describe "The Drop of Water", a dark, eerie, and ultimately terrifying experince. If the face of death does not make you cringe, nothing will ever affect you! Do yourself a favor and buy this film(the Italian version), shut the lights off and let the terror begin.
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Summary: classic horror; though tame by today's standard.
Review: This trilogy of terror stars and is narrated by the late Boris Karloff. It would be tame by today's standards; some younger people might say "lame", but this was pre-"Jason" (Friday the 13th), pre-"Freddy" (Nightmare On Elm Street) and relied more on "suspense" than gore. Interesting for those who like "suspense".
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Summary: Visually atmospheric and scary Bava film
Review: "Vampires look perfectly normal... except they have a strange habit of drinking blood, especially the blood of those they love." So says Boris Karloff, who appears in front of a set with reddish rocks and a sky that has blue swirling patterns. Presumably, his Italian dialogue was dubbed in, and well so, I might add. These three brief tales of terror and the supernatural are based on stories by Anton Chekhov, Guy de Maupassant, and Count Aleksei Tolstoy. The first, Il Telefono, is about Rosy, played by the lovely Michelle Mercier, who is being repeatedly threatened over the phone by her ex-lover, who intends to kill her. He seems to know her every move, as he identifies what she's wearing and what she did inbetween calls. Frantic, she calls for her friend Mary, with whom she had a falling out, to come over. This one's more a suspense one, with elements of Hitchcock. I Wurdalak is based on Tolstoy's most famous short story, "The Family of Vourdalak" (1847). In the dark evening out on the moors, Count Vladimir d'Urfe comes across a headless body with an ornate dagger in its back. He comes to a household whose members are awaiting the return of their father with dread. According to them, the father went out hunting for a Turkish mass murderer, Alibeq, who happened to be a wurdalak, i.e. a vampire. Vladimir falls in love with one of the sisters, the icy blonde Sdenska. Then, the creepy aged father, played by none other than Karloff himself, returns, and after that, things start happening. Eerie, down to the lightning and thunder, creaking lanterns and steps, and a dramatic, perhaps a bit overly so, score, this isn't at all bad. La Goccia D'Acqua (The Drop Of Water) is probably the best of the three, as it is conventional horror. A trained nurse is dragged out of her house in the late evening by a housekeeper whose mistress, an aged countess dabbling in fortune-telling, has died. The disgruntled nurse, who is sent to dress the corpse in a burial gown, then sees a ring on the corpse's finger and steals it. Once back at her house, she slowly goes mad--think of how a dripping sink can make one go around the bend. The Countess's corpse is one of the scariest I've seen in movies, not bad for 1963. Karloff then comes back in his costume from the second story and signs off, -- this really deserves a groan -- "Dream about me. We'll become friends." COR-ny! Yet, Bava really works at gaining a haunting, suspenseful atmosphere in each of the stories.
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