Bloodbath in the House of Knives

Regional horror films are the sort of thing every film gnostic lives for. Well do I remember the days of noting strange titles on drive-in marquees and wondering about their origin. Everyone of us used to know at least somebody who caught The Night Daniel Died on a one-week run or discovered the original Night of the Living Dead at the bottom third of week-end bill. And once in a great while we too might have found something special at 2:30AM on a local TV station. Because having access to this sort of experience is what made you cool among other film geeks. So I was delighted that Mr. Ted Moehring would elect to send me a DVD-R (in an illustrated clam shell, no less!) of his gallo, Bloodbath in the House of Knives. Made in the isolated town of Boyertown, PA ( and surrounding environs), Bloodbath is a neat little film that shows how people with limited means can still create something to hold the attention. Using a cast of unknowns, it manages to capture the spirit of Bird with the Crystal Plumage and Suspiria. The plot is complex: a nightclub hypnotist puts a man in a trance. Suddenly, the trancee goes on a rampage, killing a member of the audience before he is felled by a bullet from an unknown shooter. Meanwhile a sinister figure in black and wearing a theater mask is randomly killing people in the town where the movie takes place. And a woman named Ivy keeps getting threatening phone messages from a stalker. Are the killings related? And when is the intrepid police detective going to put it all together? And there are a number of effect-laden murders, none accomplished with CGI or growth hormones. At least one is quite scary. Lloyd Kaufman does an excellent job of playing himself. As a matter of fact, I can't think of anyone else who could do such a good job playing Lloyd Kaufman. The only problem is Lloyd Kaufman is supposed to be playing a sleazy lawyer in this movie. A few other complaints would be the lack of exterior shots. Some local color might have been nice. At least I was able to see the town across from where I live for a few minutes in The Lovely Bones. But I don't recall any news of Mr. Moehring shutting down Boyertown traffic to film Bloodbath. Good use of lighting, color, and a surprise ending. I hope we'll be seeing more of Ted Moehring.

In the intro, a girl in a nightgown has her throat slashed by some guy dressed in black. If that weren't enough, he proceeds to stab her privates repeatedly.

Next we meet a girl who gets creepy phone calls. Her family takes her to see a hypnotist show. The hypnotized audience member goes nuts and kills her dad. The girl had something to do with some mobster. The police investigate. Meanwhile, the killer kills two more people or so. The girl gets all the support from her sister. In the end, we find out who the killer is and it's a neat surprise.

There isn't any bloodbath in this movie, and I'm not sure what the "house of knives" is supposed to refer to. I guess it's meant to be a reference to movies from decades ago. But it has nothing to do with the story.

Let's be frank here. This movie is nothing but a homemade movie with a long and boring script. No one can act, lighting is terrible for the most part- shining one or two lights directly at actors just creates a whole lot of awful reflections and shadows; while the director knows where the place a camera, he doesn't know how to direct the movements of his "actors." There is no sense whatsoever of dread or terror. And the killer's body type bears no resemblance to the person who turns out to be the killer.

The positives of this movie include good sound and music, some good special effects, attractive actresses, a bit of nudity, and the twist at the end.

Bloodbath has a script that's too ambitious. Rather than long dialogue by people who can't act, why not give us more killings, more "action"? Clearly the folks behind this movie weren't aware of their own limitations and took themselves a bit too serious.

Stars: Lloyd Kaufman.

Film has a meaness that surprises and pretty women getting cut.

Great poster reminds one of Fulci and Argento in English.

There is definitely something for everyone that loves the unpleasant ! The women are pretty and most are shown in stages of undress.

Found myself loving the acting of Monica Moehring and Mr. Kaufman.

Saw so many knives wanted more from the skewers that Shish-Ke-Bob one nubile victim,Change it up a little people.

Great ending and some killings really looked painful,No matter the budget ! Really a great effort from TED MOEHRING and his ensemble cast and crew !