Mania de Sangue

An excellent example of drive-in fare, "Blood Mania" is a well-shot and acted sex thriller, notable for its unusual and dominant musical and electronic sounds score. It was diverting 50 years ago and holds up well as an example of horror before gore and special effects took over and became foremost in the fans' content demands.

Story of blackmail and murder makes perfect sense, with the added attraction of all the leading characters guilty of something -no good guys here. The general soap opera approach is conducive to better character acting than usual amateurism or overacting of B-horror movies. The deliberate, placid pacing works well - a more traditional approach. The biggest surprise here is the frequent sex and nudity included, tastefully presented but abundant. Stylish erotic fantasy sequences are a highlight.

Unusual plot elements are still topical, notably the antihero doctor lead being blackmailed by a handsome young slimeball for his past history of performing abortions (picture was made three years before Roe v. Wade). Claustrophobic stagings are balanced by a fine very '60s interlude of the doc starting to romance a new character, heiress Gale in S. O. L. I. footage of a renaissance fair and then gamboling in the surf.

Rewatching this film so many decades later I was reminded how entertaining traditional storytelling was before gimmicks of all sorts (mainly SPFX) took over. More's the pity.

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.

Blood Mania: A scumbag doctor is blackmailed by a former associate to fork over $50,000 in hush-money for performing illegal abortions. To make matters worse, one of his despicable bed-ridden patients has a slutty daughter that won't take "no" for an answer-- she just wants some scumbag doctor sex! It doesn't take long for the daughter to realize the doctor needs a lot of cash--stat. Finally, she has the opportunity to make the doc her personal sex-slave boy-toy: murder dad! This movie seizes every opportunity to take the low road: it has a great deal of nudity, perhaps to distract the audience from the fact that the characters are all generally nasty and repulsive. It's more of a sleazy, soft-core porn/soap opera than it is the horror film it bills itself as. Pay no attention to the opening credit sequence, as it has nothing to do with the rest of the film. For cartoon fans, there is a wickedly cool animated title card at the film's opening.

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.

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.