Mario Bava trained as painter and was formerly a set designer before turning his hand to directing. So he knows his stuff, his films are visual delights, bloody colour palettes that give substance to his Expressionist nightmares. Over the 60s, he was the major force behind a new brand of Italian horror - the giallo. 'Blood and Black Lace' has to be the prettiest little thing dressed in gorgeous reds, blues, greens and purples almost as beautiful looking as my all-time 'Suspiria'. It has a shadowy masked killer in an unforgettable and much emulated costume of hat, gloves and trench-coat. Paranoia is rife, no one is innocent and the super-fun soundtrack with the trombones stridently playing in the background add…
Mario Bava trained as painter and was formerly a set designer before turning his hand to directing. So he knows his stuff, his films are visual delights, bloody colour palettes that give substance to his Expressionist nightmares. Over the 60s, he was the major force behind a new brand of Italian horror - the giallo. 'Blood and Black Lace' has to be the prettiest little thing dressed in gorgeous reds, blues, greens and purples almost as beautiful looking as my all-time 'Suspiria'. It has a shadowy masked killer in an unforgettable and much emulated costume of hat, gloves and trench-coat. Paranoia is rife, no one is innocent and the super-fun soundtrack with the trombones stridently playing in the background add to the thrills.
If Lovecraft inspired John Carpenter and Stuart Gordon, then Agatha Christie inspired Mario Bava. Not the best of comparisons if you consider Bava's use of bizarre surreal imagery and colourful violence but parallels can be found in Christie's inventive murders and police involvement thwarted at every point to reveal the killer. Credited as the first giallo, 'Blood and Black Lace' was the template for future forays into this exciting Italian genre going as far as to impact on the American slasher boom. And his 'Bay of Blood' is widely recognised as the precursor to the slasher phenomena that hit its stride in the 80s. Well known for its graphic nature but the killings are so gloriously excessive. it's hard to keep a straight face (like the first time when the reveal to 'Blade in the Dark' came up but that's another story...). As the corpses mount in weird and wonderful ways, you can tell Bava had a blast, it has the darkest humour. Either that or I am downright weird.
Of course there is more to Bava then I have acknowledged but I only really know him for his giallos and the odd sci-fi. Bava's work spans decades but as I have a particular interest in the aforementioned horror sub-genres, my main focus is on them. I'll have to expand my knowledge on his work further down the line...
