Featured Post

THE CHURCH, OR MMMM, SACRILICIOUS... - ITALIAN HORROR WEEK

MARCH 10TH, 1989 - The Church  opens in Medieval times where a religious order, the Teutonic Knights who, at the behest of the Church w...

Friday, June 10, 2016

BLOOD AND BLACK LACE, OR MAKE IT WORK, BAVA


Arriving on Blu-Ray/DVD on July 5th from Arrow Video is the Mario Bava masterpiece, Blood and Black Lace, a tale of blackmail, drugs, and high fashion.


The film centers around the Christian Haute Couture Fashion House, where a faceless murderer is stalking and killing models. After the discovery of the first victim, another model finds the victim's diary and discovers some incriminating information, that sends the black-gloved killer into a rage that won't stop until all witnesses are dead.


Blood and Black Lace is said to be the archetype for the giallo film, which is the longest lasting film movement in Italy's cinematic history. The film itself is a classic that is well acted, beautifully lit and masterfully directed, however, I found it to be a little slow and borderline boring in between the kills. Blood and Black Lace has my utmost respect, but this isn't my favorite giallo.


Arrow Video did a tremendous job on Blood and Black Lace. The 2K transfer is so crisp and clear, that the negative may very well have been frozen in time. The colorful lighting, a Bava specialty, appears very vivid and surreal. The mono audio is nothing short of pristine with no hot sounds or distortion that I could notice.


The Arrow Video Blu-Ray of Blood and Black Lace deserves a special place on the shelves of Bava fans, giallo fans, and horror fans alike.

Order Here

FROM ARROW VIDEO:
The Cristiana Haute Couture fashion house is a home to models... and backstabbing... and blackmail... and drug deals... and now MURDER. Having established a template for the giallo with The Girl Who Knew Too Much, Mario Bava set about cementing its rules with Blood and Black Lace. In doing so he created one of the most influential films ever made - an Italian classic that would spearhead the giallo genre, provide a prototype for the slasher movie, and have a huge effect on filmmakers as diverse as Dario Argento and Martin Scorsese. Newly restored from the original camera negative and presented here in its original, uncut Italian form, this dual-format release allows fans to see Blood and Black Lace afresh and offers newcomers the ideal introduction to a major piece of cult filmmaking.

 BONUS FEATURES:
  • New 2K restoration of the film from the original camera negative
  • High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) and Standard Definition DVD presentations
  • Optional Italian and English soundtracks presented in original uncompressed mono PCM audio
  • Newly translated subtitles for the Italian audio
  • Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing for the English audio
  • Brand new audio commentary by Mario Bava's biographer Tim Lucas
  • Gender and Giallo - a visual essay by Michael Mackenzie exploring the giallo's relationship with the social upheavals of the 1960s and 70s
  • An appreciation by Helene Cattet & Bruno Forzani, the creative duo behind Amer and The Strange Color of Your Body's Tears
  • Yellow - a neo-giallo by Ryan Hansom & Jon Britt
  • The Sinister Image: Cameron Mitchell - an episode of David Del Valle's television series, devoted to the star of Blood and Black Lace and presented in full
  • The alternative US opening titles, sourced from Joe Dante's private print and scanned in 2K especially for this release Original theatrical trailer, with optional English and Italian audio
  • Original theatrical trailer, with optional English and Italian audio
  • Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Graham Humphreys
  • Booklet featuring new writing on the film by Howard Hughes, author of Cinema Italiano, and an interview with Joe Dante, illustrated with archive stills and posters

No comments:

Post a Comment