Shudder Saturday: The Whip And The Body (1963)

A '60s gothic horror movie from director Mario Bava, this has pretty much everything you might expect, and want, from this kind of thing. Christopher Lee has a pivotal role, everyone involved seems to be credited under a different name from when the film was marketed for international distribution outside of Italy, and there's a fine atmosphere of lust and kink running throughout it.

Lee plays Kurt Menliff, a nobleman who returns home just in time to congratulate his brother, Christian (Tony Kendall), on his upcoming marriage to Nevenka (Daliah Lavi). Nobody really wants to welcome Kurt back. It's especially difficult for Giorgia (Harriet Medin), a housemaid who believes that Kurt helped driver her daughter to suicide. Others made unhappy are Count Menliff (Gustavo De Nardo), a butler named Losat (Luciano Pigozzi), and a cousin (Katia, played by Ida Galli) who wouldn't mind being kissing cousins with Christian. There's soon another death, and there's always time for one or two people to be whipped, whether for pain or pleasure.

This may not be one of the very best from Bava, but that's a high bar indeed. It still looks gorgeous for many of the key sequences, has admirable consistency in the atmosphere and tone from start to finish, and explores some twisted darkness with a fine balance of restraint and growing hysteria. Although that's me saying that after viewing it through a modern lens. It's worth noting that it was deemed problematic by Italian censors, due to the themes of sadomasochism intertwining with the central mystery. Ernesto Gastaldi, Ugo Guerra, and Luciano Martino are the credited writers, although Gastaldi claims to have received no input at all from the latter, and the screenplay continually dances between the chilliness of the gothic castle setting and the heat (sexual and/or angry) between a few of the main characters.

Lee excels in a role that makes the most of his imposing figure and sheer magnetism, Kendall tries hard as he plays a character who always has to be a step behind unfolding events until the very end scenes, and Lavi does well as she grows more and more nervy and unbalanced throughout the film, not without good reason. Galli is a welcome inclusion, and Medin, De Nardo, and Pigozzi each get at least one moment that places them as a potential prime suspect or victim in the murder mystery.

I'm not sure how others view this one, but I wasn't a huge fan. It's a nice enough way to pass 92 minutes, but I can easily imagine myself forgetting that I've even seen this if asked about it in a year or two (which is one of the reasons I write and review everything I see). I can't fault the cast or the production design though. It just lacks a truly memorable set-piece, and it lacks anything that feels specifically . . . Bava-esque.

6/10

If you have enjoyed this, or any other, review on the blog then do consider the following ways to show your appreciation. A subscription/follow costs nothing.
It also costs nothing to like/subscribe to the YouTube channel attached to the podcast I am part of - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCErkxBO0xds5qd_rhjFgDmA
Or you may have a couple of quid to throw at me, in Ko-fi form - https://ko-fi.com/kevinmatthews
Or Amazon is nice at this time of year - https://www.amazon.co.uk/hz/wishlist/ls/Y1ZUCB13HLJD?ref_=wl_share 

Torso (1973)

Much loved by giallo fans, and yet another contender often included when discussing templates for the modern slasher movie, Torso is enjoyable, twisted stuff. It is, however, also a tad dull in places, leading me to wonder just what I was missing if I didn't immediately consider it an unmissable classic.

Suzy Kendall and Tina Aumont are two lovely ladies in a film full of lovely ladies. Yes, Torso throws in plenty of gratuitous nudity and, in the second half, a big excuse for a sleepover that puts a bunch of potential female victims together. There's also a killer on the loose, of course, and that makes the ladies afraid. So afraid that they continue to get naked often enough to keep viewers happy, in between the moments of tension and/or bloodshed. And that's about it.

Director Sergio Martino is a significant talent, capable of much better work than what's on display here, and he certainly knows how to make his films aesthetically pleasing for those who like attractive women (hint: he tends to employ attractive women and then encourages them to disrobe). Torso has some of his usual flair, here and there, but it's just a bit too clumsy and ugly in places to be considered a top-tier Martino flick, in my eyes. The script, co-written by Martino and Ernesto Gastaldi, works well enough when setting up the killings, and explaining the sleazy background motivator for our mystery killer, but there are moments when it can't maintain any momentum, becoming preoccupied with fringe characters, mainly lust-filled men, who are of little interest to viewers.

Kendall and Aumont, as previously mentioned, are lovely, and that's all that's really required of them. This isn't a film designed to showcase acting talent. It's designed to showcase the physical assets of those ladies, plus Angela Covello, Carla Brait, Conchita Airoldi and Patrizia Adiutori. There are some men onscreen too, mainly Luc Merenda, John Richardson, Roberto Bisacco and Ernesto Colli, and they're all perfectly fine as they do whatever happens to need done in between more scenes involving the ladies.

There are some nice moments of gore, and it's easy to see why this is considered such a major influence on the slasher flicks of the late '70s and '80s, but it's let down by the meandering moments that feel like padding, despite its lean runtime. Still well worth your time, but I just didn't get an all-time-great vibe from it.

Oh, and I can't finish this review without praising one of the main alternative titles that this was known by - "The Bodies Presented Traces of Carnal Violence". How beautifully evocative and unpleasant is that? Both poetic and painful, which sums up the best of Italian horror cinema right there.

6/10

http://www.amazon.com/Torso-Blu-ray-Suzy-Kendall/dp/B004WMOSLO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1413583323&sr=8-1&keywords=torso

The Strange Vice Of Mrs. Wardh (1971)

Sergio Martino is a name I have been hearing for years. His work is recommended by other horror fans who love his work and, having seen this movie and All The Colors Of The Dark, I can now honestly say that I know why he has so many fans.

This is a stylish giallo starring the gorgeous Edwige Fenech (who also, along with a few of the male cast members here, starred in "All The Colors...") as the Mrs. Wardh of the title. She used to like a bit of pain mixed with her sex (which explains her past relationship with the twisted Jean - played by Ivan Rassimov) but is now a happily married woman (her husband, Neil, is played by Alberto de Mendoza). By happily married I mean, of course, that Mrs. Wardh acts like a loving wife but isn't averse to having her head turned by the likes of hunky George (played by George Hilton). Her friend, Carol (Cristina Airoldi), positively encourages this potential dalliance. The fact that some maniac is killing women he views as whores definitely makes life difficult for anyone wanting to take an extra lover.

Have I mentioned recently how long I have held a candle for Edwige Fenech? How I could watch her in anything at all? Well, the big bonus is that the surrounding movie is usually pretty damn good when it's directed by Sergio Martino. And the lovely Edwige wasn't a shy starlet.

I'll grudgingly admit that the movie isn't a success thanks only to the presence of Miss Fenech. The rest of the cast are pretty good in their roles but it's the twisting plot (from the screenplay by Vittorio Caronia, Ernesto Gastaldi and Eduardo Manzanos Brochero) and top-notch direction that really makes this a superior giallo.

There may be more than a hint of free love and the fashions are decidedly of the era but this movie somehow still feels fresh and energetic as opposed to many other examples that have retained their entertainment value while also feeling a bit like a time capsule of the era. In fact, I was pleasantly surprised by the turn of events in the second half of the film and really appreciated the efforts made to intrigue and wrong-foot the viewer.

Definitely one to view if you're a fan of giallo, Sergio Martino and/or Edwige Fenech.

8/10.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0049UVAW4/ref=asc_df_B0049UVAW47445982?smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&tag=googlecouk06-21&linkCode=asn&creative=22206&creativeASIN=B0049UVAW4