Kelly WandBlood and Black Lace
November 11th 2006 00:51
And here, for good or ill, is the point where slasher films start. Director Mario Bava creates so many new lighting tricks, camera moves that it is impossible to keep count. I think it is fair to say that, without this film, Dario Argento would have been a very different director and John Carpenter would never have had the big hit “Halloween” to hang a career off of.
The bad news is that both Argento and Carpenter took this ball and ran with it. Compared to their work, this film is – quite frankly – dated and dreary. And let’s not talk about age. “Halloween” and “Deep Red” both still thrill today and they’re getting on to be thirty years old a piece. Argento’s “Cat’o’Nine Tails” was only made a couple of years after “Blood and Black Lace” and it stands up just fine.
“Blood and Black Lace” is a tale of fashion models being murdered. I watched it three days ago and I can’t remember who did it. There was a white cloth mask which looked fairly cool but I can’t really remember any of the characters. I could fake it and check the box but why bother? I don’t want to watch films in which people die and I don’t feel anything about it. I don’t want to be that desensitised.
I remember the set piece murders which are lurid but not gory. I remember the lighting tricks which are a wash of colours frequently imitated. I remember thinking while I was watching that there wasn’t a proper story – just murders strung one after another. The scrip[t was appalling. I didn’t care about the victims. I didn’t care who survived. It was like being forced to sit through the first Friday the Thirteenth movie.
Mario Bava is one of the most important and influential directors who ever lived. You can learn so much about cinematography and atmosphere by watching his work. Sometimes, however, it can be a bit like having your teeth pulled. If you want to investigate his work, start with “Black Sunday”.
I must admit that I find myself watching his films like a scientist. They do not grab me emotionally. The looped soundtracks are very off putting. It is not even that these films are dubbed in the traditional sense of the word. Most of the actors appear to be speaking in English but their voices have been badly post recorded. As my old teacher used to tell me, a film with crap pictures and good sound is art; a film with good pictures and crap sound is just crap.
The bad news is that both Argento and Carpenter took this ball and ran with it. Compared to their work, this film is – quite frankly – dated and dreary. And let’s not talk about age. “Halloween” and “Deep Red” both still thrill today and they’re getting on to be thirty years old a piece. Argento’s “Cat’o’Nine Tails” was only made a couple of years after “Blood and Black Lace” and it stands up just fine.
“Blood and Black Lace” is a tale of fashion models being murdered. I watched it three days ago and I can’t remember who did it. There was a white cloth mask which looked fairly cool but I can’t really remember any of the characters. I could fake it and check the box but why bother? I don’t want to watch films in which people die and I don’t feel anything about it. I don’t want to be that desensitised.
I remember the set piece murders which are lurid but not gory. I remember the lighting tricks which are a wash of colours frequently imitated. I remember thinking while I was watching that there wasn’t a proper story – just murders strung one after another. The scrip[t was appalling. I didn’t care about the victims. I didn’t care who survived. It was like being forced to sit through the first Friday the Thirteenth movie.
Mario Bava is one of the most important and influential directors who ever lived. You can learn so much about cinematography and atmosphere by watching his work. Sometimes, however, it can be a bit like having your teeth pulled. If you want to investigate his work, start with “Black Sunday”.
I must admit that I find myself watching his films like a scientist. They do not grab me emotionally. The looped soundtracks are very off putting. It is not even that these films are dubbed in the traditional sense of the word. Most of the actors appear to be speaking in English but their voices have been badly post recorded. As my old teacher used to tell me, a film with crap pictures and good sound is art; a film with good pictures and crap sound is just crap.
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