Barão Sanguinário

After the completion of his master's degree, Peter Kleist (Antonio Cantafora) travels to Austria to spend a leisure period doing nothing. He is welcomed in the airport by his uncle Dr. Karl Hummel (Massimo Girotti) and he asks if he could visit the castle of his ancestor, the evil Baron Otto von Kleist a.k.a. Baron Blood. In the Sixteenth Century, the sadistic baron was cursed by a witch Elisabeth Holle that he had burned at the stake and then he was killed by the locals in his Castle of Death. Peter meets the gorgeous Eva Arnold (Elke Sommer) that works restoring the castle and invites her to go with him to the castle after dinner to read an incantation written in an ancient parchment that would evoke the family course and bring the Baron back to life. After reading the magic words, the wind blows the parchment to the fireplace and it burns. When villagers mysterious disappear and Eva is chased by a weird man, they realize that they have released the Baron and they do not have the parchment anymore to call the incantation off. Their hope is that the clairvoyant and medium Christina Hoffmann (Rada Rassimov), who is a descendant of Elisabeth, might help them.

"Baron Blood" is another eerie and spooky movie by Mario Bava. The uncanny story of curse, witchcraft and resurrection is very well supported by the predictable screenplay that works well, but the stylish cinematography, the lighting and shadows and the camera work with unusual angle are impressive and give a creepy and nightmarish atmosphere to the feature. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Os Horrores do Castelo de Nuremberg" ("The Horrors of the Nuremberg Castle")

The closet thing to a remake of Mask of Satan(1960) that Mario Bava ever did was this film. The plotline is the opposite of Mask of Satan(1960) where in this film the witch is not evil. Gli Orrori del Castello di Norimberga/Baron Blood(1972) is an atmospheric supernatural thriller with marvelous cinematography and some good scare scenes. The main source of inspiriation for Baron Blood(1972) is Antonio Margheriti's The Virgin of Nuremberg(1963). Its interesting that Baron Blood(1972) takes place in the birth country of Adolph Hitler. Baron Otto Von Kleist seems to symbolize the atrocities committed by the nazis during the mid 1930s to mid 1940s.

Mario Bava did Baron Blood(1972) right after the controversial blood letting of A Bay of Blood(1971). Baron Blood has some gore scenes but without frequency and show stopping manner of Mario Bava's previous film. Baron Blood was the first and only time that Mario Bava did a film away from home as he didn't like to leave Italy. The music by Stelvio Cipriani is very good. The chase scenes in the film are some of Baron Blood's most exciting scenes. The death of Fritz is a reference to La Maschera del Demonio(1960) and Sei Donne Per L'Assassino(1964).

Elke Sommer doesn't do much in the role of Eva but she does look arousing in short dresses and mini skirts. Elke Sommer would give a much better performance in her next film for Mario Bava called Lisa E il Diavolo/Lisa & the Devil(1974). Joseph Cotten's performance as the evil Baron Otto Von Kleist brings to mind his role as the "Merry Widow Murderer" in Alfred Hitchcock's Shadow of a Doubt(1943). Baron Blood(1972) is not in the same league as the best of Bava's supernatural films such as La Maschera del Demonio/Mask of Satan(1960), La Frusta E il Corpo/Whip & the Body(1963), Operazione Paura/Kill Baby Kill!(1968), and Lisa E il Diavolo/Lisa and the Devil(1974) but is still better than any horror film from Hollywood from the 1990s til now. The set designs for the castle are excellent. The mysterious figure that appears on top of the castle at the end of the film gives me chills everytime I watch this movie.

A young man travels to Europe and visits the ancient castle of a rather notorious ancestor called Baron Blood, a man whose name is still not very popular in the surrounding villages. Seems the Baron was a bit of a sadist, just in case the "Baron Blood" title didn't give it away already. Our young hero, Peter, meets Elke Sommer, and instead of breaking into the castles dungeon in the middle of the night and having sex like any normal hot young couple in the early 70s,

these two brilliantly decide instead to perform a centuries old ritual designed to raise the dead. When will these people learn? The Baron rises, seen first as a Phantom-of-the-Opera type guy with a face like a spoiled casserole, and later as a wheelchair bound and Maybelline dependent Joseph Cotton.

This really isn't a bad little film. There's some great spooky lighting techniques, some even better funky music and some gorgeous shots of the European

countryside. The ancient, crumbling castle is a wonderful set and the death

scenes are quite gruesome, especially the one featuring an Iron Maiden-ish

casket and a guy who looks a LOT like the late great Peter Lorre. In a nice twist, there's even a centuries-dead witch who turns out to be the GOOD guy! (Or girl, as the case may be) The acting isn't that great, but it doesn't make this an unwatchable film by any means. The story seems loosely based on the life of

Vlad the Impaler, but still manages to be original and interesting. A nice feeling of dread permeates the entire film. One of Bava's best efforts.

The one thing this film has going for it is a nice atmosphere for horror fans... fog/smoke, old castles, incantation for raising the dead, scary torture chamber, weird but well filmed scenes, a witch and, above all, a mad sadist ghost or demon! The story is alright enough, not to bad.

Joseph Cotten as Baron Otto von Kleist aka Baron Blood / Alfred Becker was good - he was better in this horror film than I anticipated (I really don't think of Cotten as a horror actor that's why I mentioned it).

One thing about these types of films - the living dead or undead always seems to have plenty of money - filthy rich they are! How does a long time dead man get such riches without selling off his gold? The money has changed over the years (I think in every country) so how can he spend it - sell it I suppose to those interested in old money I guess. Whatever, I still by into it for a movie. LOL.

Not a bad film to watch for fans of the older horror - in particular the Italian horror films.

6/10

Taking a break from his college studies, Peter Kleist (Antonio Cantafora) flies to Austria to get in touch with his heritage. He learns that his notorious ancestor was nicknamed "Baron Blood," a sadist cursed by a witch he burned to death. After meeting Eva (Elke Sommer) they playfully read an incantation at his family's castle and inadvertently bring the infamous Baron back to life, which is when people start dying. Joseph Cotton is on hand as a mysterious wheelchair-bound man who purchases the chateau at auction.

The original Italian title of Mario Bava's "Baron Blood" (1972) is "The horrors of Castle Nuremberg" (translated), which describes the film in a nutshell. In style & content it places just between Hammer gothic horror and the soon-to-come slashers.

The best thing about the flick is its spooky castle ambiance, which brings to mind hallowed horror like "The Terror" (1963), "Bloody Pit of Horror" (1965) and "The Devil's Nightmare" (1971). It's superior to the hammy "Bloody Pit," but pretty much on par with the other two, although I prefer them for various reasons. This one's marred by nonsensical script elements concerning the witch's curious curse & the Baron's unexplained abilities. Nevertheless, it's a top contender for gothic horror atmosphere.

Antonio Cantafora looks like the Euro version of Peter Fonda, albeit less formidable (physically). Meanwhile feminine charms are limited to Elke Sommer, unless you favor witchy women like Christina/Elizabeth (both played by Rada Rassimov, who resembles Celine Dion). Little redhead Nicoletta Elmi (Gretchen) would grow up to be a striking minor actress.

The film runs about 1 hour, 37 minutes, and was shot at Burg Kreuzenstein (castle) and Klosterneuburg (street scenes) & Korneuburg in Lower Austria, as well as Vienna. Writer Vincent G. Fotre was a professional tennis player who dabbled in scriptwriting.

GRADE: B-/B