Blood Mania

The greatest moment in "Blood Mania" is the point when you come to realize that the writer and lead actor of this terribly inept movie is actually one and the same person! So, in other words, this dude – Peter Carpenter – probably couldn't care less that the overall film is dull & derivative, because he arranged for himself that he could smooch and fondle the perky breasts of no less than three extremely cute and luscious women! Nice going, Peter! Hey, I certainly don't blame the guy because a) apparently he died quite young about one year after the release of this film, and b) at least "Blood Mania" is a lot more watchable than the other movie he wrote; "Point of Terror" starring Dyanne Thorne. Carpenter depicts Craig Cooper, a hunky and successful private physician with a stunning redhead girlfriend, but he's being blackmailed by a sleazy thug who knows that he performed illegal abortions in the past. One of Craig's patients is a wealthy private clinic owner with a nymphomaniac daughter named Victoria. Her insatiable sex-hunger is marvelously illustrated near the beginning of the film, when she jumps the pool boy who literally screams for his mother! Victoria wants to kill her father with drug aphrodisiacs and share the inheritance with Craig, but only if he promises to remain her personal sex toy forever. Complications arise when the inheritance unexpectedly goes to deceased's other daughter Gail. Luckily for Craig, Gail is another very beautiful chick that also easily falls for his charms, but obviously the mad raving Victoria will not allow this romance to happen! Okay, so… Where's the blood? Where's the mania? I'm actually convinced that this could have been much better, if only they focused more on the atmosphere and plot instead of the on the bare chests of the female cast members. The opening sequences hint at psychedelic situations, but the rest of the film is slow-paced and full of redundant dialogs. There's a bit of nasty bloodshed near the ending, but the actual finale is dumb and unsatisfying. The constant "music" is irritating and the best characters (like the witty nurse) get neglected. Worth seeing only for the continuously exposed boobs of Maria De Aragon, Reagan Wilson and Vicky Peters.

Blood Mania (1970)

* (out of 4)

Victoria (Maria DeAragon), the slut daughter of a rich old man, gets the bright idea to impress the doctor (Peter Carpenter) she likes by killing her father so that she can give the doctor his inheritance money. The sex maniac daughter eventually kills her old man and this here gets the doctor interested because the money can keep his good name from being ruined by a blackmailer. However, the good doctor has around five other women on the side and this isn't going to sit well with Victoria.

That's basically what happens in this film but once again, I haven't the slightest clue what this film is about. If you're looking for any blood then you might as well skip to the final five minutes where we get one good kill scenes but don't fear, the movie makes up in other ways. I'll state the obviously bad stuff first however. Everything from the acting to the directing is lower than what you'd expect from an Ed Wood film and especially any scene where one of the characters has to be emotional. Another incredibly silly thing is Peter Carpenter and his playboy act. The actor also served as producer and I can't help think he used this ability to be in sex scenes with beautiful women. His macho act never works but it does bring several laughs to the film.

Is Blood Mania a complete bus then? Nope and I'll tell you why. Outside an interesting animated sequence to start the film, this movie, like no other I've seen, has an outrageously good amount of nudity. You've heard people say a horror film needs at least one murder every ten minutes well this film has a nude scene at least every three minutes. All of the doctor's lovers are happy to get naked and they do so throughout. Even though the story and actors were bugging me to death, I could never call this a complete disaster since the director was smart enough to throw in plenty of good looking women.

Stylish film noir-like thriller concerning a dashing doctor (Carpenter) whose medical practice owner (Allison) is bed-ridden following a heart attack, his daughter (De Aragon) a seductive vixen with a psychotic streak and a penchant for mind altering substances is eager to sink her claws into the virile Carpenter, but he's already got his hands full with another lusty companion (Wilson). De Aragon paints bold, expressive canvasses, has lots of sex and looks dazzling in the buff. She also agrees to help out Carpenter after he's blackmailed for having been a backyard abortionist, a stain that threatens his career, but the grand plan they conjure begins to unravel when her little sister (Peters) returns to claim the inheritance.

Funky, psychedelic sex soap opera isn't as bad as I'd read; it's not so much "blood" as it is "mania", and there's plenty of plot twists and diversions to keep you engaged. Carpenter isn't the best actor, but he's charismatic and has the charm to pull it off, as his character digs his grave ever deeper with each carnal lapse, while De Aragon, Peters and Wilson are three impressive specimens in spite of their apparent amateurish acting (De Aragon does improve as the film progresses, her 'mania' is at times quite chilling). Leslie Simms is sometimes amusing as an ugly duckling nurse and Alex Rocco gets a few frivolous moments as an estate lawyer. You'd also have to appreciate the minor yet absorbing role played by Dalya as Peters' loyal lesbian minder.

The soundtrack is a hybrid electronica, progressive rock sound, a fusion you'll either find petulant and irritating, or fitting with the offbeat nature of the film. Overall, I like it - it's cheap, dated and clichéd (it also ends quite abruptly), but it remains a sensory attraction with plenty of effort displayed in light, sound, sets, cinematography (some credited to Gary Graver), costumes and colour, not garish or gaudy when taken in its temporal context. Worth a look if you're open-minded.

This film is best described as an early fore-runner for the glut of erotic thrillers choking the video store shelves today. In this one, a woman kills her father in order to get his inheritance to help a blackmailed doctor, but much to everyone's surprise, the inheritance goes to her sister instead! Nope, not making this up, folks. Worth a look to see the attractive DeAragon in the flesh, however, as well as the comical blackmailer who apes Clint Eastwood to the nth degree.

Why did I rent this? Because I kept seeing it on the video store shelf and finally gave in to see what it was like. I don't know why I do these things.

Victoria is a pretty bad girl, as the box says. And I guess she is. She seduces every guy she comes across, and then kills her father for his inheritance. Then her sister and some other woman come to their house, and Victoria learns her sister is getting the inheritance instead. A little more, some weak horror, a sudden ending, and there's your movie. Nothing scary, nothing interesting, just a lot of cheesy make-out scenes put together with one scene of bloody murder, and there's your film. It's quite dull, and lifeless. Leave it be.