Baron vampire

Peter goes to Austria to relax after getting his MA and to..."find his roots." He stays with an uncle who shows him the castle that belonged to his dead ancestor (aka Baron Blood), who was notorious for his torture chamber. He meets an architecture student named Eva and they find out the Baron was cursed under a witch's spell. So they decide to invoke the Baron's spirit. Why? Because Peter can't pass the chance to get to know one of his ancestors. Really. This is the worst Bava movie I've seen so far. Not to say it was bad. Baron Blood is very stylish and entertaining, gruesome, suspenseful, and the sets are great. The main problem is that the plot is absurd and the characters and their apparent motivations are extremely stupid. The horrid 70s song that opens and closes the movie should have never been recorded. My Rating: 5.5/10

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

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

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.

Mario Bava is one of the greats of horror cinema, but I wouldn't judge his importance by 'Baron Blood'. It isn't close to his best work. While stylishly directed (to be expected being Bava) and with plenty of atmosphere, it is low on both suspense and gore, and sets up a potentially dynamite premise (the resurrection of an evil Vlad The Impaler-like maniac hell bent on revenge), then goes nowhere much with it. One or two sequences are outstanding, but overall it's a major disappointment, and the usually excellent Joseph Cotton (who did some strong genre work in movies like 'The Abominable Dr Phibes' and 'Soylent Green') is a bit of a let down in the title role. Even so, no Mario Bava movie can be dismissed entirely, and for all its flaws it's still worth watching more than almost all of Hollywood's recent puerile and uninspired horror output.