Five Dolls for an August Moon

It has striking set pieces, sets, and color schemes. A pity the plot is not more original. But Bava's morbid sense of humor permeates the film.

Five couples come to an island for rest and relaxation. There is a maid and manservant. One of the guests tries a sacrifice--to whom, what or why isn't explained. The lights go out. The sacrifice is dead when the lights come back on--or is she? One of the guests is an inventor with an invention worth millions. After turning down three financial offers for the formula to it, people start dying. The boats that are an avenue of escape are stolen and the only telephone line is cut. The list of suspects dwindles. Will anyone survive the movie?

The cinematography was done by Antonio Rinaldi. Bava himself did the quick, jumpy editing, which contributes to the viewers' sense of unease. The dominant colors in this film are dark blue and purple, especially at night; in three scenes, the only colors used are black, white, and red. The actors are adequate.

The plot isn't exactly logical and the ending comes close to breaking the bounds of disbelief. It's like Bava gave up on everything but the visuals. So the plot may become unbelievable, but the film's a visual feast and Bava keeps things moving so I didn't have time to get bored.

This 1970 rendition inspired by "Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None" regarding the known plot , as various people (William Berger , Ira von Fürstenberg , Edwige Fenech , Howard Ross , Mauricio Poli , Ely GalleaniIi) are invited by a mysterious host , industrialist George Stark (Teodor Corra) , to relax on his desolate island so that they can exploit the monetary value of one of the guests' revolutionary resin formula . As the group of investment speculators attempt to talk scientist Gerry Farrell (William Berger) into selling the rights of the new formula while they stand at the wild weekend retreat on the private island . But Farrel seems disinterested and tempers rise with the stakes . The wives and girlfriends along for the fun and erotic games feel the tension as their men stray , or attempt to get them to use sex to close a deal . Then a murderer within the group disrupts the proceeding . Once the killings start the possibility of anyone trusting anyone is left far behind . As someone begins to kill them one by one , choosing grisly methods to murder . Freely based on the popular novel Ten Little Indians and subsequent stage play by Agatha Christie about a unseen killer who sequentially knocks off the visitors . Agatha Christie tale of 10 people invited to an isolated place , hovering around mouthing chunks of exposition while waiting to get murdered . The guests discuss and argue each other , only to find that an unseen person is killing them one by one . Just before the gripping climax of the film , you will be given some seconds to guess the killer's identity ! The film will pause and on the screen you will see clues to help you decide who the murderer is...but the person in suspect is always the person who is murdered next . There is no way for any of them to flee , so they set about attempting to determine who their hidden host might be and where he might be hiding . Island of terror!

Whodunit in which some guests have been invited by an entrepeneur , joining various colleagues and their wives , being key figure a brilliant chemist who has some investment ideas , when they are all gathered, they're distrusting to each other , while the competitors try to cheat one another with secret bids ; subsequently , the people are being killed off one by one . A psychological thriller in which a number of strangers are forced to come face to face with their sinister aims after receiving invitation to an isolated location off the civilization . Passable adaptation , though the script is unfaithful to the original Agatha Christie novel , being more an inspiration than a correct retelling . Excruciantly tense and so-so recounting with the usual suspicious characters , packing tension , thrills , chills , twists and turns , but being slowly paced . The whole cast overacts at times and playing cardboard roles against beach scenarios and a luxurious mansion . The cast of connivers is interchangeable , though there's a few familar faces such as : Edwige Fenech , William Berger , Maurice Poli . However , being hard to keep straight and in some cases more easily identifiable by their now-hideous 1970 fashions than the faces .

This medium-budgeted picture is a really slow with some interesting elements , being professionally directed by Mario Bava ; but it sticks little with the original and classic version . Allegedly a professional assignment given Bava with just two days' notice, the movie is a fair murder mystery in which even this filmmaker's visual tricks can't sustain interest enough . It packs an evocative cinematography by Antonio Rinaldi and Mario Bava himself , being shot in Anzio, Rome, Lazio, Dear Studios, Rome, Lazio, Tor Caldara, Lazio where in the Sixties were filmed lots of Peplums . Atmospheric and intriguing score by Piero Umiliani , including lounge sounds and catching songs by Alessandroni . The flick was nicely shot by Mario Bava who made decent horror films until his death .

This is one of the innumerable versions based on Agatha Christie famous novel . The best version (1945) resulted to be the classic by Rene Clair with Barry Fitzgerard , Roland Young , June Duprez , Mischa Auer , C Aubrey Smith , Judith Anderson and Richard Haydn ; furthermore , 1965 version set in Austrian Alps by George Pollock with Hugh O'Brian as Hugh Lombard , Shirley Eaton , Fabian , Leo Genn , Stanley Holloway , Wilfrid Hyde-White and Daliah Lavi. ¨Ten Little Indians¨ (1974) by Peter Colinson with Charles Aznavour , Maria Rohm , Adolfo Celi , Elke Sommer , Stephane Audran , Alberto De Mendoza , Richard Attenborough , Teresa Gimpera . And 1989 rendition ¨Ten little Indians¨, switching from an isolated island to African landscapes located in the sabana , it was shot in South Africa by producers Avi Lerner and Harry Alan Towers directed by Alan Birkinshaw , most actors are mediocre and unknown , though there are three important players as Donald Pleasence , Brenda Vaccaro and Herbert Lom who had acted in a previous remake playing the doctor . Furthermore , a Russian version (1987) by Director: Stanislav Govorukhin with Russia Stars: Vladimir Zeldin, Tatyana Drubich, Aleksandr Kaydanovskiy .

An industrialist invites some of his friends to his island retreat in order to persuade a chemist (William Berger better known as Django}to sell them his new secret formula for an industrial resin. Of course he doesn't want to sell at any price and this leads to resentment and veiled threats which leads to all on the island being killed off one by one, in this "Ten little Indians" type thriller and of course there is a storm brewing and the phones are down, I think you get the picture….Now how do I review a Bava film without mentioning "Stylish" or "Superb use of Colour"…. I don't think I can really,but I will try…..This films theme is reminiscent of Bava's more famous work Bay of Blood, with its high body count….it has a funky little score too, very 60's…..the film at times tends towards black comedy with the body bags swinging in the freezer, I have to say it made me laugh and as with all Bava films the women are quite nice to look at…in particular Edwige Fenech a lady I have heard a lot about and I can see why….all in all an enjoyable little thriller, not Bava's best work but certainly worth a look

George Stark (Teodoro Corrà), a wealthy industrialist, invites several business friends and their partners to his island retreat for the weekend, with the intention of convincing scientist Gerry Farrell (William Berger) to sell his secret formula for a new industrial resin. Philanthropist Gerry isn't interested in making a deal, intending instead to make his invention public, a fact that forces one or more of the guests to turn to murder.

The general consensus seems to be that this is one of director Mario Bava's weakest efforts (even Bava himself was reportedly not fond of the film, being contractually obliged to direct); I can't really comment much on that since I've seen too few of his films to compare, but what I can say is that, even though I found the twists and turns of this Italian variation of Agatha Christie's Ten little Indians virtually impossible to fathom (especially the twist ending), there were still enough positives to make it worth a go.

As with many a giallo, the female cast are very easy on the eye, with genre regular Edwige Fenech stripping off whenever possible as always. There are numerous murders, and although they all occur off-screen (we get to see just the aftermath), the hanging up of the steadily growing number bodies in a meat locker is wonderfully macabre and darkly amusing. The jazzy score is super cool, perfectly complementing the wonderful '60s/'70s architecture and decor of the island's house. And despite Bava's purported disinterest, there is still an unmistakable sense of style, with effective uses of whip-pans and rapid zooms, and at least one stunning scene worthy of a genius, wherein a display of glass balls roll down a spiral staircase, along the floor, and into a bathtub where a woman has committed suicide.

All said and done, if this is his worst, I really must check out his best.

Seemingly Mario Bava was not pleased with having to direct this film. He carried out his duties as a director for hire though but despite the presence of the beautiful giallo regular Edwige Fenech, his disinterest to the project shows and the movie is wildly uneven but hugely likable. It's about an inventor who, along with a group of would-be investors, assemble on an island. The investors want a formula from the inventor and are willing to pay big for it but he does not want to sell out. Before long people start being murdered one by one. It's a variation on Agatha Christie's Ten Little Indians.

It has the breezy atmosphere that many late 60's Italian thrillers have. It wasn't until after Dario Argento's The Bird with the Crystal Plumage became an international success that the giallo genre became more direct, aggressively suspenseful and violent. Five Dolls is very much a product of the gialli that came before this. Its lounge music soundtrack and languid nature testify to this. As an actual mystery thriller it's pretty lacking it has to be said. It feels like Bava's contempt for the material is reflected in his complete indifference in creating a suspenseful or thrilling movie. While it's a whodunit with quite a number of murders, they are all committed off-screen. This is not to the film's advantage at all. Characters suddenly die from out of nowhere with no build up. Sometimes it feels like Five Dolls is a lampoon of the genre. Judging by the black humour Bava utilised in the following year's Bay of Blood it is entirely possible that he isn't taking things entirely seriously here either.

What Five Dolls does have though is a beautiful look and feel. This is hardly surprising I suppose seeing as its Bava's trademark. The cinematography is always interesting, with several well composed shots and good use of the beach-front location and villa. While the production design, fashions and cool décor are all appealing. The interest of the film, therefore, is more in watching a chic melodrama involving a group of largely unsympathetic rich people. It works better as this, than as a thriller. Still, it does have some nice macabre touches that would have graced his best films, such as the repeat scene of the murder victims hanging up in the freezer wrapped in plastic; or the shot of crystal balls rolling en mass down a set of stairs and into a bathroom leading us to yet another dead body. But perhaps best of all is the opening party scene which introduces all of the characters. It's campy to the max, with lots of slow zooms into all of the character's faces, while Fenech dances in a crazy sensual way. This sequence, like many others, benefits from the score by Piero Umiliani. It's a very eccentric soundtrack of organ-driven Italo-pop. Five Dolls is certainly a film that favours style over substance.

Five Dolls for an August Moon is not one of Mario Bava's best films but it is among his most charming. Despite the inherent weakness of its plot and mystery-thriller elements there's just something extremely likable about it. It's of its time in the best possible sense.