Pena de muerte

The English language title - "Violent Blood Bath" - is an unfortunate misnomer. It gives the impression that this as a splatter movie and yet the entire amount of blood shown in this movie was less than 1/2 bottle of Max Factor #5. The Italian title - "The Private Life of a Public Prosecutor" - is more descriptive but less grabbing.

This is a competently made movie: well acted by both Fernando Rey and Marisa Mell, a dark beauty. It is dubbed so well that it is hardly noticeable. It is beautifully photographed, for the most part, in some interesting, and very scenic, locations.

It has enough suspense, although you may guess who the real killer is before the actual denouement . Not a great movie; it is definitely above average and well worth a look.

I recently watched the Italian/Spanish 🇮🇹 🇪🇸 film Violent Blood Bath (1974) on Tubi. The story follows a district attorney with a long history of convictions - many of which led to death row. When a copycat killer emerges, recreating crimes from the attorney's past cases (all involving inmates who were executed), things take a dark turn. What's the killer's motive? And will the attorney become the next target?

Directed by Jorge Grau (Let Sleeping Corpses Lie), the film stars Fernando Rey (The French Connection), Marisa Mell (The Great Swindle), Espartaco Santoni (Death Will Have Your Eyes), and Nené Morales (The Night of the Executioner).

This is one of those films where you're waiting for something big to happen... and it never does. The acting is excellent, the women are gorgeous, and it delivers that classic giallo-style nudity. But the kills are underwhelming, and the twist at the end doesn't land with much impact. There just isn't enough substance here to make it truly engaging.

In conclusion, Violent Blood Bath has a promising premise for a giallo, but not enough execution to stand out in the genre. I'd score it a 4/10 and recommend skipping it.

This Spanish giallo takes us from Paris to Galicia in Spain, following on his holidays the French public prosecutor Oscar (Fernando Rey, Coartada en disco rojo), an "implacable defender of the law", who makes it his duty to sentence to death bloody murderers. Oscar is married to a much younger wife, Patricia (Marisa Mell, Alta Tension), and in their hostel she meets a former lover, Will (Espartaco Santoni, Ceremonia sangrienta, from the same), a writer in criminology who interests himself in trials attended by Oscar.

And horrible murders, real "violent blood bath", start to occur in the quiet touristic place, reacting the crimes prosecuted years ago in Paris by Oscar. Who is the mysterious killer who seems to seek revenge upon the death of the condemned former murderers? A young couple, Javier (Maximo Valverde, Estratto dagli archivi segreti), an actor, and Laura (Elisa Laguna, Chicas de Club, from the same), are soon suspected, but the local inspector Navarro (Julian Navarro, La Decente) is even less efficient than usual, and he lets Oscar lead the investigation.

The plot is indeed very predictable, and the well designed pictures of the director don't remedy to the global lack of thrill. In fact, the film is a pleading against the "penalty of death", at this time still in force in the Francoist Spain. (Viewed in English 1h32 version.)

Bloodless Soap Opera

This is by far one of the least bloody giallo out there. It is very slow to start. And slow throughout. It's filmed and acted in a manner reminiscent of a soap opera. There is little mystery about who the killer is. You'll figure it out quickly even if you didn't read the tagline.

There is one final twist in the last seconds of the film which I did not see coming, and I really appreciated it. That was the strongest part of the film imo.

Overall, I'd say to skip this lackluster effort.

Seventh film of Jorge Grau that I watched, and it only confirmed he is one of my favorite filmmakers, a great auteur who, for some weird reason, has not received the attention he deserves.

Based on a work of Guy de Maupassant, the film is a breathtaking psychological thriller with one of the most intelligent plot twist I ever saw. Fernando Rey is superb as a magistrate that believes in death penalty as a way of protecting society. He is a troubled marriage, and his wife (played by the excellent Marisa Mell) is having an affair with a writer who opposes to Rey's vision and is determined to prove his thesis in a new book. Strange murders that imitate the ones committed by the criminals condemned to death by the magistrate starts to happen, and an investigation takes place. But, nothing is what seems in this sordid story written by Grau and Juan Tébar, and I can't reveal more to avoid spoilers.

Be careful with the title given to it in the USA, "Violent Blood Bath". Fans of gore may be seduced by this misleading title, and the fact IMDb puts "horror" as one of its genre doesn't help. There is no blood bath here, and the murders all occur off screen. This is the kind of movie where what matters is the character development, and it excells in this department.

Impecably shot, photographed, edited and scored, "Pena de Muerte" deals with a controversial topic without falling in the mere sensationalism or sounding preachy. It is not easy to say if the script is supporting or opposing death penaulty, and this is one of its merits. The last half hour will make you devour all your fingernails, in one of the most brilliant exercises in tension.

Thanks to Vinegar Syndrome for the excellent restoration of this masterpiece. I hope more works of the underrated Jorge Grau receives the same treatment soon.