Director(s) – Jack Hill (Coffy, Foxy Brown) and Stephanie Rothman (The Velvet Vampire)
Starring – William Campbell (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine), Marissa Mathes (McHale’s Navy), and Lori Saunders (The Beverly Hillbillies)
Release Date – 1966
Rating – 3/5
Blu Review – 4/5
Tagline – “The shrieking of mutilated victims caged in a black pit of horror !!!”
Everyone has got to respect Roger Corman and his amazing career. He has worked on some of the most iconic genre films, as well as, some of the cheesiest. Aside from directing several of these films he has also produced so many more. Some of my favorite horror films from he late 60s were produced by Corman. He may not have been that hands on with some of these films but his name was still attached none-the-less.
A few months back Arrow Video released the 1966 vampire filmBlood Bath on bluray in the U.S. I requested a copy and I guess my email was lost or looked over. When other horror sites started sharing reviews of the film I decided to reach out to them and see if I was still getting a copy. I finally did and I want to thank MVD and Arrow U.S. for hooking me up!
**Spoiler Alert**The film follows artist Sordi (Campbell) who is known for his paintings depicting nude women covered in blood. The local artists dislike him and his techniques but art lovers can’t get enough of it. He falls in love with a beautiful, young woman but is afraid to get too close. He continues to only let her into his life a little bit at a time but refuses to give up his morbid art.
He brings up a local girl to pose for him who he then kills and feeds on. When she doesn’t turn up the locals set out to find her when they learn that she was one of Sordi’s girls. They then start connecting the dots and place him to a legend in the area involving a vampire who painted his victims. Now, Sordi is on the run from the other artists but some of his former victims are coming back for revenge as well.**Spoiler Alert**
What I like about these films is the atmosphere and look. These dark, gothic films have amazing set designs that create horrifying experiences without the use of gore and torture porn. This Blood Bath set from Arrow Video features several cuts of the film. For the sake of time I watched two different cuts which resulted in the same rating of the film.
The acting in this one is not the best but that is something you come to expect from a Corman produced film. The cast goes through the motions and actually shines in a few scenes but most just don’t have the dedication you would get in another flick. For most, this was strictly a paycheck.
The story for this one is fun. It is pretty dark and uses the gothic devices heavily which works. The romantic vampire painting beautiful women before killing them adds a sense of romanticism to the film without taking the beast out of the vampire. On the downside, the film is very slow paced. There was several scenes that seemed to be repeating itself. These scenes needed to be tightened up and the movie edited heavily.
Finally, the film does have a few kills but they are very lackluster and forgettable. The effects we get are fun. The effects for the kills are not there but the effects on the victim’s bodies was great and really sold the last scene. Overall, Blood Bath is a flawed but enjoyable film. The arrow set doesn’t improve the film but does give you several cuts to check out.
Special Features:
Four Versions of the Film: Operation Titian, Portrait of Terror, Blood Bath, and Track of the Vampire
Visual Essay
Interview
Still Gallery
Poster
Reversible Sleeve
