I am clearly still way behind on everything horror movie related. The second Mario Bava film in my lineup this year, A Bay of Blood is also known as Twitch of the Death Nerve. I don’t know what that means but I think it’s brilliant.
If you haven’t read it yet, here’s my friend Gavin’s take on Italian Giallo. He also talks about this film.
A Bay of Blood, 1971. Dir. & Written by Mario Bava. Starring Claudine Auger, Luigi Pistilli, Claudio Camaso.
This movie… doesn’t make much sense. In terms of plot at least. There was a plot. Stuff happened. Mostly though, people died. A lot. In bloody, gruesome, fantastic ways.
If you’re a fan of the Friday the 13th movies, this one might feel very familiar. And for good reason. They copy this movie almost kill for kill! Now I have to be honest, I’ve never been a fan of Jason’s movies. They just bore me. Except, occasionally, for the kills which can be quite creative. Now I know why! Because they stole them from Bava. Ha, figures.
In any case, Bay of Blood is quite entertaining. It has a nonsensical plot that’s ostensibly about a family fighting over a property inheritance. Doesn’t really matter. From scene one people start dying, there’s a little bit of a mystery but not much. There’s not just one killer. Everyone’s dying and everyone’s killing each other. Then there’s the random group of vacationing teenagers that get caught in the middle? I don’t know. Again, doesn’t matter. They all die too.
It’s ridiculous and it’s great.
Check this one out. It’s a lot of fun.
Previous Years:
2013: Joe Dante
2012: A Tale of Two Sisters
2011: The Fly
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