Castle of Blood

I remember seeing this film at the West End theater in Louisville, Kentucky when I was a boy. The scene where Dr. Carmus finds the gardener's coffin, and the breathing dead body therein, was the scariest part of the movie for me, only intensified by the darkness of the film. I also wondered about the people hanging from the trees at the end, until I recognized the part of the film in which the family name of the Blackwoods was changed from Blackblood, due to the fact that in the family history there was a character who was known for his many hangings of various people. Sir Thomas Blackwood seemed to get his kicks out of adding to the deaths caused by his family. I also noticed that as Foster first enters the gate of the cemetery, he is careful in noticing the sharp object of the gate, where he meets his end. I would not hesitate to recommend this film to horror movie lovers.

I originally saw this movie as a boy at the old Rialto Theatre as part of a Saturday afternoon matinée triple bill which also featured Vincent Price's "Last Man on Earth" and Mario Bava's "Nightmare Castle." I had nightmares about blood lusting ghosts for a week afterwards! Though I didn't know it then, all three movies would prove to be classics of the genre. No wonder I was so scared! Though all three films frightened me, it was Castle of Blood that had the most profound impact.

It was the first on the bill. I didn't even get to see it from the beginning as we were late getting to the cinema and missed the first 20 minutes of the movie. That's lot to miss since the edited print only ran about 79 minutes (the unedited runs 87minutes). But despite this, the dark creepy atmosphere (complete with ruined castles, fog enshrouded cemeteries, shadows and cobwebs), Gothic set design, strong acting, and suspense (especially the last 20 minutes) scared the bejeepers out of me and made a lasting impression It took me years to finally get a copy of the film for my collection. Since it was a French - Italian import, it wasn't a movie that showed up on the late show in Winnipeg. I couldn't quite remember the title (remember I didn't get to seen the beginning of the film and was scared witless), and to make matters worse, the film had been released under literally a dozen different movie titles (aka Danze Macabre, Coffin of Terror, Castle of Terror, Long Night of Terror, etc...) and the USA/UK working title "Castle of Blood" was very generic, similar to dozens of other "b" horror and suspense films, making it illusive. But thanks to the internet and perseverance, I found it at last! What a treat to finally watch the film in its entirety after so many years! It may not have had quite the sheer emotional impact that it did when I was a boy, but as haunted house movies go, it's stands up well and compares favourably to similar iconic films of the period such as "The Haunting," "The Innocents" or "Black Sunday," The film is a fine early effort of Italian director Antonio Margheriti. It stars 60's scream queen icon Barbara Steele and features a well written screenplay by Sergio Corbucci about a sceptical writer (Georges Riviere) who, on a bet, spends the night in haunted house and unsuspectingly becomes part of an annual ongoing ghostly story. The hypnotic Steele is well cast as the ghostly love interest - as is Arturo Dominici as Dr. Carmus, and Margarete Robsahm as Julia.

Many of the tricks Margheriti employs to create the film's eerie atmosphere (cobwebs, creaking doors, fog, etc) are bound to seem cliché to a modern audience, but they work far more effectively in black and white than they ever could in modern day colour. Rather than using body counts and special effects, the film creates scares the old fashion way, relying on a good story, stylish direction, fine set production, interesting camera work, and strong acting performances. Margheriti does a marvellous job taking these elements and building the film's suspense as the horrifying paranormal secret of the house gradually reveals itself to the unwitting writer.

The film is not without faults. The pace drags at the beginning of the film (ironically, the 20 minutes I originally missed). This is probably worsened by Synapse films effort to restore the film to its original length. Though fans will likely appreciate the chance to see the film restored - in terms of the intro - it may have been more of hindrance than a help. The English voice dubs are merely passable and, in the restored scenes, the language shifts from English to French (English subtitles provided) which is sure to be annoying to some viewers.

However, Synapse Films deserves kudos for the quality of the print. Clearly some effort was put into its restoration and deservedly so.

I enjoyed the film immensely and highly recommend it to aficionados of 60's Italian Goth films, or anyone who enjoys a good ghost story.

Rob Rheubottom Winnipeg, MB Canada

Of the many black and white Gothic horror-thrillers to come out of Italy in the '60's, this is undoubtedly one of the best. However, it is, of course, second to Mario Bava's masterpiece "Black Sunday". Both films star the mysterious and very beautiful British actress Barbara Steele who would become a leading figure in these creepy sixties shockers. Plot of this film deals with a cocky reporter(George Riviere) who is offered a wager to spend the night in a supposedly haunted castle. Predictably, he accepts the wager. The million-dollar question is, will he live through the night to collect his prize? Barbara Steele is a captivating "ghost" who roams the halls of the dark, sinister place and makes the man's stay there a little more pleasant. But as the evening passes on, other specters appear, and with less than godly intentions. Beautifully atmospheric chiller with Steele in fine form. A lesbian scene with Barbara and co-star Margaret Robsahm was cut from the film before it was released to the US. The movie was remade six years later and by the same director(Anthony Dawson) as WEB OF THE SPIDER.

I've watched this movie a number of times, and found it to be very good. This movie is also known as "Castle Of Terror", "Coffin Of Terror", and "Dance Macabre". Barbara Steele, is her usual beautiful/creepy self. George Riviere, the male lead, does a good job with his role. The whole movie is dripping with atmosphere, and there is a good deal of tension throughout. The camera angles are good and the acting, for the most part, isn't bad. This film is quite suitable for a rainy day or evening. I have the DVD uncut version, which is far superior to the edited TV version. Grab some popcorn, turn out the lights, settle back and enjoy. John R. Tracy

For years now I was aware that this was regarded as one of the best Italian horror films of the 60's. Having finally seen it, I understand the praise but would go further and say that it is one of the definitive examples of gothic horror period. Like the vast majority of films in this category, its story is not the point and is purely a means to an end. A journalist accepts a bet to spend the night in a haunted mansion; when there, this stereotypical sceptic encounters a series of ghostly goings on which grow increasingly disturbing as the night progresses.

Like I say, story isn't what makes a gothic horror tick - its atmosphere. And this film sure has lashings of that, including an arrival scene where the protagonist explores the environs of the mansion and its grounds - this scene is so very bold because it is not afraid to spend a dozen minutes looking around, with no dialogue and no 'action' so to speak. It's all about gothic imagery, with elegant black and white cinematography which captures the cobwebby décor and architecture in its full shadowy splendour. This is a good indicator of the film as a whole, as this is a beautiful looking movie, which is accentuated significantly further with the presence of its two stellar leading ladies - Barbara Steele and Margrete Robsahm. The former is quite rightly regarded as the greatest icon of Italian gothic and here she is utilised splendidly, while the latter is much less known but is stunning here as an icy seductress. Her character Julia has lesbian designs on Steele's Elisabeth, which was a pretty bold angle for an early 60's film to run with and there is an overall strong sense of eroticism embedded in this one generally. The ghostly entities encountered in the house were previously doomed by a love triangle which resulted in multiple murder; these events are re-enacted once a year on All Souls Night, with the unwitting help of the poor sap who enters the house that evening.

The director of this one was Antonio Margheriti, who was something of a jack-of-all-trades who made films in most of the genres of Italian popular cinema. I think this may very well be his masterwork though. Interestingly enough, the director originally allocated this one was Sergio Corbucci who is now famous for classic spaghetti westerns like Django and The Great Silence; in this one, he is drafted in to direct one solitary scene, where Elisabeth's muscle-bound lover Herbert bursts into her bedroom and stabs her to death. Overall, this is upper-level stuff as far as gothic horror goes and indicates once again, that these types of films work so much better in black and white.