A Bay of Blood
Directed by Mario Bava
When a rich Countess dies, strange murders befall people trying to claim her property in Mario Bava's gruesome giallo, which many credit with giving birth to the slasher genre. Combining his famously rich cinematography style with increasingly bizarre murders, Bava's film became a favorite of directors like Joe Dante and horror historian Stephen Thrower. It also found many detractors, including horror icon Christopher Lee, who found the extreme violence revolting. Controversial, disturbing and incredibly influential, A BAY OF BLOOD is a total must-see. Contains sexual scenes, violence and gore.
When a rich Countess dies, strange murders befall people trying to claim her property.
Cast: Claudine Auger, Luigi Pistilli, Laura Betti
Member Reviews
A Bay of Blood is a mixed bag of great and bad horror elements. I enjoyed the tranquil and haunting atmosphere of the bay. The interconnected stories were interesting. The kills ranged from spectacular to bland. The plot was interesting. Most of the characters could've use more time to be fleshed out. The ending was bonkers, and not in the good way. Some moments were nonsensical and weird. There were some elements and stylistic choices which would be seen in films decades later, so it wouldn't surprise me if there was some influence here. So, while I can recommend this film for an aspiring horror fan to watch, don't give your hopes up on it being a grandiose monolith of the genre.
A Bay of Blood is a mixed bag of great and bad horror elements. I enjoyed the tranquil and haunting atmosphere of the bay. The interconnected stories were interesting. The kills ranged from spectacular to bland. The plot was interesting. Most of the characters could've use more time to be fleshed out. The ending was bonkers, and not in the good way. Some moments were nonsensical and weird. There were some elements and stylistic choices which would be seen in films decades later, so it wouldn't surprise me if there was some influence here. So, while I can recommend this film for an aspiring horror fan to watch, don't give your hopes up on it being a grandiose monolith of the genre.
All Hail Bava
I can see the inspirations this had on the slasher genre, and I can see it as some sort of cult classic but that's where I would draw the line. Personally? Not a fan. The whole film was a lot of "what the fuck?" Some times I was not sure if it was voice over or bad sync between audio and sound. There was a lot of times where night scenes were certainly shot in the day, and in different weather than the cut before which really upsets the pacing of the film. The ending was unnecessary - like what kids shoot their parents and are like "yea lets go to the bay!" However, what I did enjoy was a couple of the twists. The idea was strong and it started off well but very quickly became bad acting, poor sound balancing and really weird close ups. It's something to watch if you just want to veg on the sofa and not think for a little while - or if you like 70's horror such as myself!
Some nice camerawork by Bava. Can see the influence it had in slashers. The plot is just too convoluted for my liking. I’m also just not a Giallo fan.