El molino de las mujeres de piedra

Neatly expressionistic mood piece about a mad scientist/sculptor trying to keep his afflicted daughter from turning to stone by transfusing her with the blood of local babes. The storyline (a favorite of European horror films - THE AWFUL DR. ORLOF and EYES WITHOUT A FACE also had to do with a mad scientist trying to save a deformed daughter at the expense of anyone within reach) has holes thick enough to bowl a woman's severed head through, but the film is great on atmosphere and ambiance. Completed without credit by Mario Bava after director Giorgio Ferroni began it, the Mondo Macabro DVD version includes the uncut French edition (massacred in bad US VHS prints till now). This film was one of two that reportedly started the Eurohorror boom of the '60s and '70s, of which Bava was a primary maestro.

Beautifully directed and photographed European horror film that owes a debt to Franju's EYES WITHOUT A FACE.

An evocative, creepy score by Carlo Innocenzi helps director Giorgio Ferroni conjure a work of great atmosphere and intense drama.

As in EYES and Franco's ORLOFF, the subject is a fanatic obsessed with preserving the life of a dearly departed member of his family -- in this case, his daughter Elfi, played by the achingly beautiful and sensual Scilla Gabel.

The setting, a windmill outside Amsterdam, is a superb arena for the fantastic goings-on that provide frisson upon frisson of wonder and dread. The "stone women" of the title are frightening, fascinating figures of fear and are richly employed by Ferroni who demonstrates an acute talent for fantasy.

The superb opening sequence establishes a mood that never falters, and the exciting finale, with the Stone Women ablaze, is pure magic.

A handsomely produced gem.

Mill of the Stone Women otherwise known as Drops of Blood is a creepy little horror that looks fantastic for a movie barely out of the 50's.

It tells the story of a young man who is set to work on a macabre waxwork laden carousel. He becomes bewitched by the mysterious daughter of the owner, but nothing is quite as it seems.

Italian made the film looks incredibly ahead of its time. Sure the acting is offensively overdone, the score is forgettable and the external sfx of the windmill are laughable but the concept itself and delivery is really quite impressive.

Italy dominated horror throughout the 60's and 70's, this early title is a demonstration of why. Yes it's flawed (Badly in places) but it's an interesting little title regardless with a brilliant dark finale.

The Good:

Looks great

Solid ideas

The Bad:

Gratuitous overacting

Could have been constructed a tad better

Things I Learnt From This Movie:

She totally got a head of herself!

Waxworks were a common subject matter in the 50-60's, we need a revival!

Based on a Flemish short story by Pieter Van Weigen, Mill of the Stone Women is an excellent slice of Eurocult Gothic horror. The film is along the same lines as films by Mario Bava; most notably Black Sunday and Kill Baby Kill, and just like the aforementioned masterpieces; bathes in its own atmosphere and most of the horror is drawn from that. Horror is a genre that people often mistake for not having many ideas, but films like this prove otherwise. Here, we have a story that couldn't be further away from the 'norm' in horror, and on a technical level, Mill of the Stone Women is both inventive and influential. The macabre plot follows a young journalist named Hans who travels to Holland to write an article on the mysterious sculptor, who lives in a mill, that the locals have nicknamed "The Mill of the Stone Women". While there, he meets the Professor's beautiful daughter; but she's damaged goods, as she suffers from a sinister malady that means she has to remain within the mill. Is there something yet more morbid to this intriguing set up...?

The mill at the centre of the piece makes for an excellent location for this story to take place in. Old castles are a more common location for Gothic horror, so the fact that this one takes place in a mill again differentiates it from the norm, and is yet another example of the imagination behind the story. The colour scheme is largely quite drab, and to be honest, I'd have preferred either more striking colours or a black and white picture...as the in-between doesn't look good in my opinion. That's pretty much the only thing I don't like about this film in regards to the style, however. The plot moves slowly, but this means that the film has time to both build up it's plot and wallow in the atmosphere. One of the trademarks of Italian horror is a muddled plot and things that don't completely make sense; and this film adheres to that. There are several threads within the plot, and a number of them are left unexplained by the conclusion...which is a shame. Still, the final conclusion is fitting and at least it doesn't suffer from bad dubbing! Recommended.

This is one of the films that is very atmospheric, stylish, and inventive in the European 60's fashion. The story is somewhat of a cross between Nathaniel Hawthorne's short story "Rappacini's Daughter" and the film House of Wax. An art professor is keeping a secret about his invalid, beautiful, seductive daughter Elfi away from Hans von Arnam, a man sent to write a piece on the centennial of the professor's mill and its famous statues of women that move around on a carousel-like machine. The statues are of famous women through history as well as having local historical murderesses and victims displayed. Living with the professor and Elfi is a strange doctor. Amidst this strange four-sided triangle, women are disappearing. The story is'nt too hard to figure out and much is given away early on. What it does do quite nicely is create a slowly-paced mood that leads to an interesting if not wholly imaginative denouement. The style infused throughout the picture is a credit to Italian director Giorgio Ferroni. The use of colors, the settings, the haunting carousel music, the "waxworks" themselves all help create the oppressive almost hallucinogenic mood. The acting is pretty good overall with Wolfgang Preiss as the complex doctor and especially Robert Boehme as Professor Gregorious Wahl standing out. Scilla Gabel as Elfi is just gorgeous as is Liana Orfei as one of the girls that gets missing. The production looks very German in manner and style - another compliment to the director. There are several scenes which stand out: the first time we see the carousel moving, nay, almost cranking itself away past those that have come to gawk at it, the drug-induced dream sequence Hans goes through, and the ending - a real barn-burner! Mill of the Stone Women isn't a fast-paced horror film but if you like movies like Black Sunday or Bava's work in general - Ferroni seems to have some similar directorial flair.