A Noiva Ensanguentada

By turns mysoginistic and feminist, this one has some spooky metaphorical comments on marriage, virginity and lesbianism. It also has the gorgeous cinematography, splendidly dreary autumnal locations and beautiful women going absolutely demented that we've come to expect from European horror movies of the time. Nudity is kept to the minimum, unusually, but the classically beautiful Alexandra Bastedo of cult TV series The Champions is the vampire this time, and the scene where she's discovered buried in the sand is totally surreal and inspired, almost Bunuelian. The movie flags a little in the middle, as most of them do, but the ending is suitably hysterical and subversive. It also seems to be almost a prequel for Vampyres, another stylish and sexy Spanish vampire flick.

"The Blood-spattered Bride" is a remarkable film filled with haunting imagery gorgeously photographed by veteran cinematographer Fernando Aribas.Wonderful Alexandra Bastedo stars as a lesbian vampire who woos frigid newlywed Maribel Martin from her husband Simon Andreu on their honeymoon.After the film is over,you'll feel like you're waking from a dream,and all the inconsistencies and leaps of logic will surely infuriate many.There is also a nice amount of nudity and gore,so fans of Euro-horror will not be disappointed.

Just one of many adaptations of J. Sheridan Le Fanu over the decades, "The Blood Spattered Bride" adheres to many of the traditions of Eurotrash horror: blood (and lots of it), sex appeal, atmosphere, and artiness, with some provocative themes underlying the plot. It's not for all horror fans; indeed, it's rather light on conventional "horror" for much of the running time. Instead, we get an interesting psychological approach to such subjects as virginity and marriage. The pace is unhurried, so people with shorter attention spans may start to fidget around a little.

The sultry Maribel Martin stars as Susan, a virginal newlywed rather uncomfortable about her new married life. The hunky Simon Andreu plays her unnamed husband, who becomes worried when he thinks that Susan is imagining the presence of a mystery woman (the intoxicatingly sexy Alexandra Bastedo). Well, "Carmila" (Bastedo) does exist, and with a subtle intensity, she worms her way into Susans' life and encourages her to think beyond being "trapped" by this male presence.

In general, the performances are decent, with Martin making for a reasonably sympathetic figure. Andreu offers a stolid screen presence, never changing his facial expression very much. Dean Selmier is superb as a well-meaning doctor who naturally does not put much stock in superstition. Bastedo is very easy to watch, and Rosa M. Rodriguez does a respectable job as a precocious youngster.

There's a mild dose of delectable female nudity, as a viewer would come to expect from the genre, and the violence is extremely effective whenever it takes place. (The film is not wall-to-wall gore, but still manages to live up to its title.) And the music score composed by Antonio Perez Olea is appropriately haunting. Director / writer Vicente Aranda also adds an appreciable amount of surrealism when Carmila is discovered under the sand at a beach - this is quite a memorable scene.

Recommended for lovers of the genre, who should also enjoy similar entries such as "Vampyres" and "Daughters of Darkness".

Seven out of 10.

The 'Lesbian Vampire' sub-genre, which was quite popular in European Horror/Exploitation cinema of the 70s, has brought forth a variety of films that are worth watching including remarkably artistic gems like Harry Kümel's "Les Levres Rouges" ("Daughters of Darkness", 1971) and entertainingly trashy flicks such as those by Jess Franco and Jean Rollin. Vincente Aranda's "La Novia Ensagrentada" aka. "The Blood Spattered Bride" of 1972 is one of the artistic ones, and it certainly also ranks among the highly recommendable contributions to the 'Lesbian Vampire' sub-genre.

As the British Hammer Studios' great "The Vampire Lovers", which is the first part of Hammer's 'Karnstein' trilogy and one of the films that started the Lesbian Vampire trend, "The Blood Spattered Bride" is based on Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu's brilliant Gothic novel "Carmilla". This film transfers the plot to the present day (1972); when a newlywed couple move into the huge mansion belonging to the husband (Simón Andreu), the young wife (Maribel Martín), who is somewhat frightened by her husband's sexual fantasies, soon becomes disturbed. When looking through family portraits in the cellars, the wife stumbles across a mysterious portrait of a woman, the face of whom was cut out of the painting. The painting says "Mircalla Karnstein"...

While "La Novia Ensangrentada" isn't the best adaptation of Sheridan LeFanu's novel ("The Vampire Lovers" is, no doubt), it is yet another very good film based on this classic of Gothic literature. Plot-wise, the film has some small holes; the narration is sometimes slow and then seems rushed again. These minor faults are easily made up for by the hauntingly beautiful imagery and wonderfully creepy atmosphere. The family mansion, which is set in a forest estate, makes a magnificent horror setting and the beauty and variety and of the colors of darkness in this film is amazing. "The Blood Spattered Bride" has a nice cast, with actors that should be known to Eurohorror fans. The husband is played by cult-actor Simón Andreu, who was the leading man in many Spanish and Italian Horror productions (including Luciano Ercoli's Gialli). The very beautiful but very young Maribel Martin (she was 17 at the time the film was shot) is great in the role of the wife and ravishing Alexandra Bastedo is wonderful in her mysterious and seductive role. Great praise also has to go to Maria-Rosa Rodriguez, another child actress who proves that children actually can be good actors. Rodriguez, who I estimate was about 13 when this film was made delivers a great performance and some genuine eeriness. Overall, "La Novia Ensangrentada" is a very good addition to the Lesbian Vampire sub-genre that should be seen by any Eurohorror fan who has seen the genre-masterpieces like "Les Lèvres Rouges" and "The Vampire Lovers". My rating of "La Novia Ensangrentada": 7.5/10

This thrilling as well as sumptuous film contains horrifying scenes , chills , lush photography shot in Galicia , appropriate set design , brilliant costumes and lots of nudism and gore . A young hubby's (Simon Andreu) sexual fantasies frighten his new spouse (Maribel Martin) and cause her to seek advice from Carmilla (Carmilla is anti-heroine of J. Sheridan Le Fanu novella Carmilla), a descendant of Mircalla de Karnstein . Carmilla/Mircalla (Alexandra Bastedo) seduces the young bride and takes for her desires . She has developed an elaborate feeding ritual, that involves infiltrating the family of young girls and living alongside them, while she gradually drains their lifeblood over a period of weeks . She forces her to commit gory acts of mutilation and grisly killings . Mircalla Karnstein is a vampire that drains the blood of the victims to use as elixir of youth . She didn't know that her new friend is sucking her blood and the cause of her nightmare ; then there takes place the revenge of a young bride on her wedding night . Then happens a battle of wits between a husband versus seductive lesbian vampire fighting it out for control over his wife .

It's a creepy tale about lesbian vampire issue ; being plenty of thrills , chills , eerie events and lots of blood and gore ; including nudism in double version . Enjoyable version about the famous personage ¨Carmilla¨ with a good cast , brilliant cinematography , glamorous gowns , adequate production design , including evocative sights on palaces , beaches and rotten churches . Surrealist and fantastic images as as when the husband meets a naked woman buried on the beach, he brings her home and finds out that she is Carmilla , as well as the scary frames when Carmilla along with the bride kill their victims . This is based on Sheridan Le Fanu novel titled "Carmila" and on a story by Mathew Lewis , being written by the same director Vicente Aranda. Carmilla was born into the aristocratic Karnstein family in 17th-century Austria , she was originally called Countess Mircalla . Eerie as well as evocative musical score by Antonio Perez Olea . Colorful and luxurious cinematography by Fernando Arribas , being shot on location in Isla De La Toja, and Santiago de Compostela, A Coruña, Galicia, Spain ; adding a decent set production by Juan Alberto Soler.

This known character from Sheridan Le Fanu novel "Carmila" has been adapted several times , such as : ¨Twins of Evil" directed by John Hough , ¨Lust for a Vampire¨ (1971) played by Yutte Stensgaard , ¨ Daughters of Darkness¨ by Harry Kumel , Love for a Vampire""The Vampire Lovers aka "To Love a Vampire" played by Ingrid Pitt as Mircalla Karnstein and "Alucarda" and recently Lesbian Vampire Killers (2009) , among others .

The motion picture was professionally directed in his particular style by veteran filmmaker Vicente Aranda . He directed a series of award-winning movies firmly establishing him as one of the best Spanish filmmakers . His usual film editor is own wife , Teresa Font . Vicente is an expert on literary adaptations ,as he has adapted four novels by Juan Marsé Canciones Amor en Lolita's Club (2007), El Amante Bilingüe (1993), Si Te Dicen Que Caí (1989) and La Muchacha De Las Bragas De Oro (1980). Vicente often shoots strong erotic scenes , being ¨jealousy¨, a customary issue in his films . Vicente has been working from the 60s with ¨Fata Morgana¨ , Las Crueles¨ , ¨Novia Ensangrentada¨ , ¨Clara es el Precio¨ , among others . His greatest successes were intense dramas with plenty of sex such as ¨Amantes¨, ¨Pasion Turca¨ , ¨Si Dicen Que Cai¨ , ¨Intruso¨ , ¨Tiempo De Silencio¨ , ¨Carmen¨ , along with a delinquency tale : ¨El Lute¨ I and II starred by Imanol Arias , his fetish actor along with Victoria Abril (They have worked together 12 times) and specially the historical story titled ¨Juana La Loca¨ also dealing with jealousy and ¨Amantes¨, easily the best of the numerous films of Aranda .