The Whip and the Body (1963) Mystery

The Whip and the Body (1963) - Another film from the year I was born. In this Mario Bava directed mystery the sadistic son of a 19th century nobleman appears to rise from the grave to seek revenge on his family which has disowned him.Well written and executed this period piece is a refreshing side trip from all the biker movies I have been watching the last month and a half. Co-written by renown Ernesto Gastaldi, Ugo Guerra and Luciano Martino all prolific, experience writers and producers. Directed by Mario Bava on of the great Italian directors and performed by a cast including Christopher Lee, Daliah Lavi, Tony Kendall and Ida Galli it is one of the better mysteries I have seen in a while.
 The story goes that the eldest son Kurt Menliff (Christopher Lee) was sent away from the castle loosing his spot as heir to his father's title after cruelly killing the daughter of the castle's maid Giorgia (Harriet Medin). Details of the girl's death are never shown other than the knife she was killed with, but it is implied that it was a cruel death. So much so that Count Menliff (Gustavo De Nardo) disowned his son after he was implicated. His inheritance and title forfeited to his younger brother Christian (Tony Kendall). Kurt returns to the castle with Giorgia swearing vengence, the old count shaking in fear at his return and Christian now married to Kurt's former lover Nevenka (Daliah Lavi). Complicating the setting further is the revelation that Nevenka only has eyes for Kurt and there relationship includes violent whipping. This must have been somewhat shocking to audiences when this film came out. Kurt standing over the beautiful Nevenka whipping her repeatedly with a horse crop. Nevenka crying out but also showing a quivering anticipation, waiting in an aroused state for the next blow.
   The setup aside this film is both simple and wonderfully mysterious. The simple setting and the possible directions turned in a way I was not ready for. The fact that Christopher Lee was the star I figured we would be following him throughout the film. Not so! very early on he is murdered and we are left wondering who killed him. The red herring has to be Giorgia who made it obvious she would love to see him dead. Or how about the younger brother who married Nevenka only after his father required it. He loves his childhood sweetheart Katia (Ida Galli) who follows him around like a puppy dog. (also a suspect), or is it the count himself who out of fear only needs to remove his fear by removing the threat. Or did Nevenka herself do away with the man who both excites and harms her. Then when it seems Kurt starts being seen around the castle at night, it may be his death was faked by him and he has put a diabolical plot in motion to take back what was once his. Now when I was watching it before paying attention to who was in the cast. I saw Christopher Lee and was like" Wow they really got a Christopher Lee look alike for this film." but later I found out it was him but all of his lines were dubbed by someone who sounds nothing like Christopher Lee. Shocking!
  Becoming the featured cast member Nevenka leads us through the tale to its conclusion. I make a point never to share too much in a mystery review.In particular one like this which is intriguing all the way through. Bava sets a mood and carries it through the film masterfully. If there is a weakness in the film it is the score by Carlo Rustichelli, not because it is not wonderfully created but because he develops a theme and repeats it too often through the film. When all is said and done though this may be one of Bava's best films. It stands as a really wonderfully developed and acted mystery thriller. Maybe a ghost story if you want to stretch the meaning. So spend a bit of time and go rent this one. I found it on DVD at Netflix.

The Ghost (1963) - Horror Ghost

The Ghost (1963) - After watching the Slime People I immediately had to try something else from 1963 to be sure everything wasn't shit that year. Lucky for me the Riccardo Freda ghost mystery The Ghost, "Lo spettro" had just arrived from Netflix. It is a period piece set in 1910 in an old Scottish castle Starring the incomparable Barbara Steele as Margaret Hichcock a long suffering wife to Dr. John Hichcock (Elio Jotta) who for many years has been wasting away with some sort of muscular disease. 
  John is getting a treatment for his problem that is highly risky and ethically questionable. He receives a shot of a couple poisons and then before they kill him an antidote. This is supposed to shock the muscles back into working order and weaken the diseases hold. Administering this  poison is Dr Charles Livingstone (Peter Baldwin) who may not be the best person to take you to the brink of death every day. First because he would be willing to poison someone in an effort to cure them, but also because he is secretly having an affair with Margaret. Boy this is a common theme in film, the wife has an affair after the spouse ends up sick where is the loyalty? (Although I suppose cancer treatments are poisoning someone to cure them, so maybe that isn't a big deal).
 The plot centers around Margret trying to get Charles to use just a bit too much poison and ending her husbands life. After this is done she will inherit all his worldly possessions and she and Charles can be a couple. Also mixed in is the loyal housekeeper Catherine Wood (Harriet Medin) who acts a a medium in John's experiments trying to talk to the dead. John seems obsessed with death feeling his is coming too soon and through seance he wishes to know what is to come.
  There is an incongruity in the early plot. John is bouncing between wanting to recover and wanting suicide. His need to do seances later can only be seen as a show for his wife and Charles but since he is lacking knowledge of their behavior it makes no sense that this show is needed. It could be that his loyal servant Catherine has informed him of the relationship between the two. Certainly throughout the film John suspect something is going on. It means that John and Catherine are putting on an elaborate show, which seems odd because he could just call them on it instead of doing the incredible dance that happens in this film.
  Filmed in color but the print I received was not the highest of quality, still after watching The Slime People in black and white it is a pleasure to see  this film. It exceptional music by Franco Mannino that may be a bit overwrought but still beautiful it is a pleasure also to listen too. Director Freda who also directed the horror classic "I Vampiri (1956)" does a fine job directing as well as helping with the screenplay.
  When the cheating wife finally convinces her lover to do the deed the story really picks up. Soon after his death they see signs of his ghost. His call bell rings, his wheel chair moves on its own, and they hear his voice calling to Margaret through the medium housekeeper Catherine. Also the last will and testament is not what Margaret was expecting. John has changed it in his last days leaving the house and belongings to her but insisting that Catherine gets to stay as a servant until the end of her days. Surprisingly he then give two thirds of his wealth to the church and only a third to his wife.
I do want to point out the image above The director has blood drizzled down the camera lens. I have always found this a cool technique that does not get used very often but when I saw it I was like WOW! and this place in the film was a very effective place to use it.
  I am going to stop with a lot of plot points here because if you can find a good print of this film it is certainly worth a watch. The paranoia of fearing getting caught plays on Margaret, played exceptionally well by Steele. She grows more and more nervous and with that careless until finally snapping. It is a mystery around what is going on in the house after the murder and the twist and turns are well thought out and executed. In the end if you figured out the basic plot you will be hard pressed to see the final twist before that scene starts. This is a really entertaining film and here at Soresport Movies it gets a recommendation
Rating (6.0) 5.0 and up are recommended, some more recommended than others.