With Halloween just around the corner I had no choice but to
write about a horror film this week. After all it is the season. Fortunately
VCI is releasing their version of the Mario Bava classic BLOOD AND BLACK LACE.
I was concerned about what their version would be like since Arrow Video
released the film earlier this year in an amazing edition. It turns out they’ve
done an admirable job with a 2K restoration of the film from original film
materials. The look of the film is comparable to the one Arrow put out but
without a side by side view it would be difficult to say which is better.
The film opens with the murder of Isabell, a model who works
in an haute couture fashion house on her way home on a dark and stormy night.
Her body shows up the next day in a studio closet. As the police begin to
investigate the number of suspects grows rather than dwindle. It seems most of
the other models had some reason or another to fear Isabella. The owner, the
studio’s manager, friends and other co-workers as well.
A diary that Isabella kept is also discovered but before it
can be taken to the police it is stolen. The woman, another model, who stole
the diary is tortured and also found murdered. Each time we see the murderer
he/she is clothed in a black coat, black gloves and a full face mask. The
identity of the murderer as well as who will survive are not revealed until the
end of the film. Yes, the story can seem fairly simple. But the twists and
turns presented in the backstage issues among the cast make it as much a
melodrama as a near perfect giallo film.
For those who don’t know what giallo is it is a genre of
Italian film named so because they presented whodunits, murder mysteries that
were similar to the style of writing found in books published in that country
that were published with a bold yellow border, giallo meaning yellow in
Italian. Those books which featured the writings of Edgar Wallace, Sir Arthur
Conan Doyle, Agatha Christie and more were quite popular. The films were mostly
whodunits as well but had several items that became running themes, among them
a killer whose face is not seen who wore black gloves. The amount of violence
was also fairly extreme for the time and was a noted feature.
So what makes this one stand out? The director of the film
was Mario Bava, a noted Italian director who came from a cinematographer
background. For Bava the look of the film was as important as the story being
told if not more so. It shows in this film. The colors used here virtually leap
from the screen. Bava used extremes in color to highlight various scenes with
the murders taking place in a highly stylized use of lighting and color that
I’ve not seen before. It helps the story rather than hinder it. It catches your
eye and makes you watch just to see the images on screen.
It was also one of the first of the giallo films, some
calling it the very first made although there were a few others that qualified.
While it was released in 1964 it holds up to today’s standards. Younger viewers
might think it is ripping off any number of slasher films they’ve witnessed but
the fact is it was there long before the rest. The film led the way for
directors that followed, including the most famous of these other than Bava,
Dario Argento. Having worked with Bava the influence he had on Argento is
obvious.
It’s hard to describe just how amazing this film is
visually. I keep raving about it but it really is that great. From the opening
credits my eyes went wide watching what was on the screen. I kept asking myself
how I had never seen this movie but then I thought what sort of condition would
it have been in had I seen it years ago?
The big differences between this release and that from Arrow
are the packaging, price and extras. The price is a little less, about $8 less
on amazon. The packaging features the original ad artwork. The extras here are
extensive for a VCI release and include a 2018 commentary track by Kat
Ellinger, editor-in-chief and author at Diabolique Magazine, a 2018 commentary
track by film historian David Del Valle and director/writer C. Courtney Joyner,
a video interview with Mary Dawne Arden, an archival interview with star
Cameron Mitchell with David Del Valle, the original American theatrical trailer
plus Italian, German and French trailers, bonus trailers of other Bava films,
an extensive photo gallery, alternate original Italian or original US
theatrical main titles, a bonus music track by composer Carlo Rustichelli, a
video comparison of the American version cuts/Euro uncut and a 2 sided cover
with alternate cover art.
If you’ve never seen the movie this is the best time to do
so with either of these greatly restored versions. Due to the extras on each I
would suggest fans pick up both for their collections just to get them all. The
movie is a masterpiece of horror and if you’ve not experienced make a point of
doing so.
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