La Baie sanglante

AKA Twitch Of The Death Nerve, and distributed in the USA under the title The Last House On The Left Part 2 despite having nothing whatsoever to do with Wes Cravens film, this 1971 effort is considered to be Mario Bava's most violent film and is the spouting artery from which all future slasher films would flow. When crippled Countess Federica is murdered at her isolated mansion, a gruesome battle ensues to secure the rights to her valuable property around an isolated bay. Everyone, from illegitimate children to shady real estate agents, stakes a claim, only to be killed in increasingly bizarre ways, from simple shootings to a couple impaled by a fishing spear whilst having sex. The gruesome makeup effects are by Carlo Rambaldi, who would later earn Oscars for his work in Alien (1979) and E.T. (1982). Total Film magazine named it one of the 50 greatest horror films of all time.

At a bay on the remote coast of central Italy, corpses mount up as several people contest over the valuable property rights. Some of those involved are four party-minded youths in a yellow dune buggy.

Mario Bava's "A Bay of Blood" (1971) is called "Ecology of Crime" in Italian (translated) and is known by a few other names, like "Twitch of the Death Nerve" ("A Bay of Blood" is easily the best title).

With one foot firmly in giallo territory, it is hailed as the progenitor and blueprint for the kitschy slasher craze that would soon emerge with "Halloween" (1978) and "Friday the 13th" (1980). But let's not forget about the influential films that led up to this one, like "Psycho" (1960), "Dementia 13" (1963) and Bava's own "Blood and Black Lace" (1964), not to mention "Silent Night, Bloody Night," which was shot at the same time as "A Bay of Blood." These paved the way for early 70's slashers like "Home for the Holidays" (1972), "Torso (1973), "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" (1974) and "Black Christmas" (1974).

While this is superior to "Dementia 13," the somewhat convoluted story is not as compelling as "Psycho," "Silent Night, Bloody Night" and "Friday the 13th." Speaking of the latter, devotees of "A Bay of Blood" suggest that it heavily influenced the first two "Friday" films, but this would mostly apply to the four youths visiting the desolate bay and a couple of death scenes, which amount to a fraction of the runtime. There's nothing in "Bay" about camp counselors staying at a summer camp and the dynamics thereof.

Brigitte Skay is a highlight on the female front as Louise, but there are a few other notables, like Paola Montenero (Sylvie), Anna Maria Rosati (Laura) and the joyless Claudine Auger (Renata). On the other side of the gender spectrum, Claudio Volonté is reminiscent of Oliver Reed as solemn fisherman outcast Simon.

The movie runs 1 hour, 24 minutes, and was shot about an hour's drive south of Rome in Sabaudia, Italy, at the producer's beach house, along with some bits shot at Fogliano, which is 12 miles north.

GRADE: B-

You don't go to a Mario Bava picture expecting an Antonioni picture or a Fellini picture. Bava does exactly what it says on the tin and what it says on the tin here is "A Bay of Blood" so basically you know what you're likely to get and what you're letting yourself in for but Bava is as much an auteur as any Italian maestro and the killing that opens this film proves it. Working almost exclusively within the genre of the horror picture Bava was, above all, a great visual stylist, (as well as directing "A Bay of Blood" he was also the DoP), and unlike most films that might be termed slashers this could almost be called art, albeit of a very kitsch kind.

Budget-wise Bava had to achieve his effects with very little, other than sheer imagination. "A Bay of Blood" may be a fairly basic giallo in terms of plot but it is also creepy and clever and thankfully tongue-in-cheek, (with a laugh-out-loud pay-off), and Bava knew that by including a few 'cult' names in his cast, (Isa Miranda, Laura Betti), he could draw in the cineastes. It may not be in the same class as some of his better known works but it's still worth seeking out.

A Countess (Isa Miranda) is murdered by her husband who in turn is also murdered. What follows is a series of grisly murders around the former Countess's lake.

Released in Italy with the original Italian title of ECOLOGIA DEL DELITTO and in the US with the colourful title of TWITCH OF THE DEATH NERVE, this classic gruesome Mario Bava giallo thriller set the precedent for a new style of grisly horror films, but would later be recognised as one of the main influences of the slasher genre, most especially the FRIDAY THE THIRTEENTH films, despite Sean S. Cunnigham's denials to the contrary.

A personal favourite of Bava's, the film found itself on the so-called video nasty list in the early 1980s, but is a good fun piece of macabre gruesomeness.

This film is the first i have watched from the infamous "video nasties" list (these were banned movies, in the 80s, that would result in you being prosecuted for owning them in the uk) .

I choose at random and thankfully this seems to be one of the better films of that ilk! The acting isn't going to win any awards but it is passable and in some cases genuinely good.

Theres some nudity, nothing too extreme. The reason i guess this film was banned was due more to the violence. Its nothing you haven't seen before and even for it's time it is not too over the top. There are some well executed kills, a good job by the special effects team! The camera work is quite good and there are some impressive shots.

The main plot revolves around the passing of an estate to the former owners children, it quickly turns into a whodunit with 90% of the characters being horrible caricatures! This makes for some fun kills and a pace that really ramps up in the 3rd act.

In closing this is an entertaining movie and if your looking for some competent early 70s schlock then id recommend giving this a whirl!