Customer Reviews

Blood and Black Lace

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(17)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

1 star is for the DVD, 5 stars for the movie. I don't need to say anything about the film; those familiar with Bava's work know this is among his masterpieces. I'm writing this review to clear up some things about this new "Unslashed" edition. On the positive side, this version is Anamorphic widescreen and it does present noticeably more picture information on the right and left sides of the frame (the old VCI version was leterboxed a 1.66:1, where as this one is 16 x 9). Now the bad news. The color and contrast have been boosted/altered to the point that the image appears blurrier, grainier and more damaged than the previous version. Also, the interior sets (especially in the fashion house) have a putrid yellow/green hue to them not present in the old version. The soundtrack is horribly remixed, making the dialogue sound like it was recorded in a tin can and it pops quite a bit through the opening of the film. The French and Italian audio channels are reversed. None of these audio problems are present on the old version by the way. To top it off, the dvd menus are gaudy and offputting, trying to make this seem like a bloody slasher pic. In summution, the extra picture information just doesn't outweigh all of the drawbacks of this edition. My advice is to hold on to your old release until something better comes along. Thanks for reading. -JWH-

Many have said this movie is misogynistic. I won't get into that. To be fair, I would have to say that it is disturbing to a degree, but also a stylish shocker done by a master film maker that is highly watchable if you're not squeamish. The world of haute couture is a perfect place to present a murder thriller in that it affords the limitless opportunities of playing with color, showcasing beautiful women and providing a host of possible villains...and victims. Bava does all of this in classic continental style. The victims are beautiful fashion models, the murders are violent and ,in some cases, gory. The settings of the salon and showrooms are garish with lots of red and black. The murder set pieces are scary, bizarre and done to the hilt. The storyline has some cohesence with enough sordid details to make it juicy. VCI has done the film marvelous justice on DVD and it looks beautiful. All in all, an engrossing horror film that continues to satisfy Bava and giallo fans and a collector's treat as well. Enjoy this one.

Just to back up the very critical review of this dvd below, this is a major disappointment: the one star is for the quality of the dvd release, not the film, which is one of Bava's best pictures. The image here is really substandard, way below what should be expected from any serious dvd release in this day and age. Although it is anamorphic, it would be hard to call this in any way improved over the first VCI release; if anything, in sharpness and color, it might actually be worse. That a dvd release this mediocre is a rerelease is a travesty; if they want to get people to upgrade and buy again, it should be for a better product. Stay away from this one and hope for another version to come. I had heard bad things but ordered anyway since it was relatively inexpensive, hoping that Tim Lucas's involvement would mean that this was a quality dvd; unfortunately, not the case.

Italian Giallo's are an acquired taste. If you like one, most likely you'll like most of them if they're done correctly. Mario Bava was a pioneer when it came to Giallo's his original ideas and terrific use of light, colors and shadows would be seen for years in future Giallo's.

Bava's "Blood and Black Lace" is a prime example of what a Giallo should contain. Simple plot; An unknown, masked and crazed killer is running about, slashing beautiful super models. Of course with any Giallo, made in the 60's and 70's, you can expect bad acting and terrible dubbing but because of Bava's brilliance you don't care. His legendary tactics are portrayed brilliantly throughout the film. The amazing use of colors and shadows and, the key element to almost any Giallo, the black gloved hands of the killer.

Bava's influence would be seen in many more great Giallo films, including films by the phenomenal Dario Argento. Like Argento, Bava films are an acquired taste and if you're not a fan of the Giallo style films, more than likely you will not enjoy Bava's "Blood and Black Lace". However if you're an avid fan of the director or The Giallo films from the 60's and 70's you'll find this more than enjoyable. Recommended for fans of The Giallo style only.

We all know that Director Mario Bava is really a Cinematographer at heart and it really shows in "Blood And Black Lace". Unusually graphic for 1964, though fairly tame today I guess, this film is still suspensful, full of red herrings and difficult to watch in certain scenes. This is the film often credited with popularizing and really starting the "giallo" genre and it truly is a masterpiece of it's kind. Of course we have the black-gloved killer, the plot twists, the sexual heat, etc... which makes any good giallo and as wonderful as Bava is at Directing this movie, just witness the tracking shots and the close-ups, he really excels as a Cinematographer in this one! The use of color is amazing! As strange as it is to say, it is a beautiful film to look at despite the fact that it is brutal in content. The beautiful colors grab you and hold you and create a surreal, almost dream-like quality in spite of the fact that there are people being brutally murdered. It is quite obvious that, even though it was different in content, this film with it's use of colors was a clear inspiration for Dario Argento's gorgeous, color-induced, frightening, nightmare film "Suspiria". If your looking for a film to show you what Mario Bava is all about as a Director and Cinematographer and you want to see the "grandfather" of the giallo film, there is no better place to start then with "Blood And Black Lace". A true cinematic masterpiece!

Undoubtedly one of Mario Bava's finest films, that in itself saying a great deal, BLOOD AND BLACK LACE is a skillfully directed, stunningly photographed murder mystery well served by this VCI DVD release.

First the good stuff: This DVD restores footage from the original European release, including the original credit sequence, never before seen in North America, and features a wealth of extras, including interviews with stars Cameron Mitchell and Mary (Dawne) Arden, a selection of international trailers and an information packed commentary track by film scholar and Bava expert Tim Lucas. The video quality is excellent, though not faultless, and presented in a widescreen 1.66:1 aspect ratio, allowing the viewer the opportunity to appreciate Bava's visual canvas in a way not possible with previous video releases.

The not so good stuff: As much of a revelation as this VCI release is, in terms of visual quality, the limited edition PAL German DVD of BLOOD AND BLACK LACE (BLUTIGE SEIDE) is undoubtedly the hands down winner. The colours are even more vibrant and the film is presented in the full, correct, aspect ratio of 1.85:1. If you have PAL DVD capabilities, you might want to look at that release, but otherwise, the VCI edition is still an excellent purchase.

The biggest problem with this DVD is that there are at least three, different releases of this disc, some of which have very serious problems.

I can not personally verify the problems with the original release, which reportedly would not play in some DVD players including some makes of Philips/Magnavox and Pioneer players. I believe that this version has the front cover BLOOD AND BLACK LACE logo in yellow with red stripes, whereas the subsequent releases have the logo in red.

The second release features a 2001 copyright on the package design. At least some of the discs in this release feature another major fault preventing any of the bonus materials from playing. The film itself plays fine, but trying to access the bonus materials results in a black screen and jerking, broken sound. I have had personal experience with this problem and have found online reports of others encountering it.

In a third release, with a slightly different package and a 2002 copyright, all materials on the disc play faultlessly. It looks like VCI finally worked out all the bugs. This is the one to have.

All in all, a great film in an excellent, if not perfect DVD release.

If you are like me and are a fan of this movie and for years had to rely on an old, faded video for your repeated viewing------REJOICE. This movie has been released on DVD. It was like watching it for the first time. The reds (and if you are a BAVA fan you know about the reds) are so vidid they will make you weep. And that widescreen. WOW. Thank you to whoever was responsible. The picture is so clear and crisp, sound is great, and loaded with extras like trailers, interviews, and bios.

The first body count-movie, Bava's "B&BL" truly ushered in a whole genre of horror film. Many directors were admittedly influenced by Bava's work including Carpenter, Argento and even Almodovar. Bava created a whole style on his own that no one will ever be able to completely re-create, but it's worth trying. BLACK LACE introduced audiences to the giallo, an italian horror-mystery --- the masked and gloved killer, the various suspects, the damsels that will surely die, the violent killings, the murderer's identity revealed --- and it also introduced the "body count" gimmick (check out the euro-trailers for the film on the disc as they count down the victims one by one --- "Friday the 13th" would rip-off this advertising campaign 15 years later!) You can't watch BLACK LACE without laughing somewhat at some of the character's actions and lines, and dubbed voices, but the script is not the key here. It's the style, lighting, colors, camera movements...and of course, the deliriously fun murder scenes that make this a masterpiece of horror. The movie looks stunning, colors are vibrant --- and it's uncut featuring the one blood-moving-in-water shot from the bathtub scene which has always been edited. The DVD includes a fun Cameron Mitchell interview, an interview with actress Mary Arden who played the model Peggy in the film, some other Bava trailers ("Erik the Conqueror"), the original American re-shot title sequence (quite good), a Tim Lucas commentary track, photo gallery and more. It's a great disc - recommended highly.

WARNING! This disc has a known problem with not being able to play in a Philips/Magnavox 825 and some Pioneer players including: DV-414, DV-515, and DVL-909.

If you are looking for a breathtakingly beautiful use of color and lighting, YOU MUST SEE "BLOOD AND BLACL LACE". This has to be one of the great overlooked movies of all time. Great Jazz score.
What happened to the mentality that could both make and go see this kind of movie? After watching this one, and looking over the current cinema listings in the local paper, I nearly cried at the lack of anything like this to see.
The rich jewel tones that flood every frame in this film are amazing. Eastmancolor must be one of the most underrated processes in film history. Notice how shocking the white undergarments of the models seem after the killer rips their bodices away.
A great movie in which nearly the whole cast lies dead at the end. Eva Bartok is amazingly beautiful, why didn't she become more of an international star?
Recommended.