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Touches You

Too much of everything

Powerful

Absolutely the worst movie.

The Blood Spattered Bride (1972) ** 1/2 (out of 4)Effective Spanish horror film is yet another adaptation of the Sheridan Le Fanu novel Carmilla. A husband (Simon Andreu) begins to fear for his new bride (Maribel Martin) after her behavior takes a turn for the worse but things are even more complicated when a mysterious woman named Karstein (Alexandra Bastedo) enters the picture. THE BLOOD SPATTERED BRIDE is a decent horror film that manages to have several positive things going for it, although the slow pacing and extended running time certainly doesn't help matters. I think there are enough good things here to make it worth seeing and we can start with the effective atmosphere. Director Vicente Aranda does a very good job at actually building up a very thick atmosphere and one to where you can believe the setting of the picture. Another strong part is a terrific music score and some very good cinematography. You also get the benefit of some very good performances. I was really surprised at how effective the performances were and especially the one by Martin. I thought she did a fantastic job in her role of the bride who finds herself fallen victim to the vampire. Bastedo is also very good and seduction in her role and Andreu is always dependable. Even more important is how well the two actresses work together because they really do sell the story. There are a couple highlights in the film including an incredibly bloody sequence where the title certainly gets its name from. Another great sequence takes place on the beach but I won't spoil what actually happens. I do think the 102-minute running time was a tad bit too long and I think either a quicker pace or perhaps a shorter running time would have helped even more. Still, this is certainly a film that's worth watching if you're a fan of the genre.

Interesting take on the Camilla story, (which I've now seen 3 versions of), this is is terribly misogynist at first, but then it gets pro- feminist, and then gets a wee bit misogynist again. It's pretty ridiculous, gory (especially in the beginning and the end), it's Italian, so there's a bit of animal slaughter in there, and oh yes, some truly messed up ways of thinking. It's actually all a bit of a mess, as the hero of the thing starts by being, a, yes, misogynist assholde(ripping off his bride's dress, implying oral sex with his 15 year old niece!) but then the women get after him, and he becomes eerily sympathetic. It's all a wee bit strange.

A vulnerable, virginal young bride, Susan(Maribel Martin)slowly unravels upon moving to her husband's(Simón Andreu)ancestral castle estate due in part to nightmares involving a vampiress names Mircalla(Alexandra Bastedo, without make-up)who motivates a growing hatred for men and heterosexual sex. A dagger turns up and seems to always return to Susan's hands and the film shows possible danger looming for the husband's life after we witness a horrifying dream sequence where Mircalla convinces her to stab him viciously. A local doc(Dean Selmier)seems to be the only one the Susan's husband can confide in regarding her declining mental state. Soon, a human Mircalla(..identifying herself as Carmilla)is found by the husband buried under sand(?!)and given a guest room for the night. Soon Susan and Carmilla are holding hands as they stroll at midnight to the ruins of a castle, emerged a bit in water, which holds the crypt of Marcalla..Carmilla begins to take the blood of Susan turning her into a vampire and violent slave securing a wrath which many men amongst the husband's inner circle find out unfortunately first-hand. Whether it be the doc or groundskeeper, Susan obeys Carmilla's command, burying the dagger into torsos or slashing and hacking wildly like a madwoman(..one even receives blasts to the face with his shot-gun). The quiet, delicate Susan has become an unstable, destructive cold-blooded vessel for Carmilla to exact her rage towards the opposite sex. Susan's husband will have to take matters into his own hands or else the blood-shed will continue without end. Young 12-year old Carol(Maria-Rosa Rodriguez)is also being used by Carmilla as a tool to capture Susan.I know this opinion might not be popular, but I was rather disappointed with this particular tale based on Carmilla. I didn't find it particularly erotic, although there is some nudity(Martin's gown and bra are ripped away by Andreu in both a rape fantasy, with him wearing a stocking over his head molesting her, and the real sexual confrontation which occurs with a much closer view of the event). The height of this film should be the budding sexual relationship between Carmilla and Susan, but this seems rather abandoned with director Vincente Aranda instead focusing more on bloodshed. The dagger stabbings are rather bloody and intense with Susan plunging the blade in multiple times with red going all over the place. The setting is of course atmospheric(..what is it about these European locales that adds so much to horror films?)and the particular season seems to be Autumn with Winter on the horizon. I have no problems with the "slow burn" approach and consider myself a patient movie viewer, but I have to admit to looking at my watch a few times..the film often crawls. I felt that the husband waits a bit too long to move into action, and why he allows Susan to fall under Carmilla's spell instead of leaving the estate or seeking proper guidance(..he obviously is wealthy and could probably get his wife the best psychiatry money could afford)bothered me. He sits idly by and lets Susan slowly sink deeper into the abyss, Carmilla's hypnotic grip tightening. I do believe others will rate this film much higher than me based on how nice it looks visually, but I found the story a bit padded and this should've been more erotic than it turns out to be. Most of Carmilla and Susan's love-making is hinted at through the dialogue of the doc than elaborated on screen. Aranda instead opts to show Carmilla biting her on the neck pulling away before they embrace in lesbian passion.

It would seem that there are two types of lesbian vampire movie; there's trashy sort (e.g. Vampyros Lesbos) and the classy sort (e.g. Daughters of Darkness). Both have their own set of merits, but in my opinion, the classier ones are the best; and this is firmly one of the latter variety. It has to be said that The Blood Splattered Bride isn't exactly a thrill a minute roller-coaster ride; but even when the plot isn't doing much, the film oozes sexy undertones, which was enough to keep me entertained, and the luscious Gothic atmosphere is a treat to behold also. The plot focuses on a newly wed couple who go to live at the husband's expansive mansion. While there, the wife becomes afraid of her husband's insatiable desire for sex and this coupled with the fact that she begins to see a supposed 'ghost' dressed in a wedding gown in the woods - who may or may not be a descendant of one of the previous family members' wives. As she becomes more alienated from her husband, she drifts further into the arms of this ghostly stranger...Unlike most lesbian vampire films, this one actually has a point beyond the obvious lesbian vampire theme. The theme is a battle between the sexes; with the husband and seductive lesbian vampire battling it out for control over his wife. This theme is laden with various images and symbols that help to portray it. Compared to other genre entries - both classy and trashy ones - this one doesn't have a great deal of blood or naked women, which is a shame - although director Vicente Aranda does give us a couple of excellent death scenes - both of which involve the sexy Maribel Martín wielding a knife. The Blood Splattered Bride seems to be a film of two halves - with most of the exciting stuff coming in the second half. This is not a problem, however, as the two sides of the film join together well and while this is not quite a classic; I'm sure that most people who bother to track it down won't be disappointed. The final fifteen minutes are excellently executed and bring good closure to a lovely slice of lesbian vampire cinema. Recommended viewing!