User reviews

Just one of many adaptations of J. Sheridan Le Fanu over the decades, "The Blood Spattered Bride" adheres to many of the traditions of Eurotrash horror: blood (and lots of it), sex appeal, atmosphere, and artiness, with some provocative themes underlying the plot. It's not for all horror fans; indeed, it's rather light on conventional "horror" for much of the running time. Instead, we get an interesting psychological approach to such subjects as virginity and marriage. The pace is unhurried, so people with shorter attention spans may start to fidget around a little.

The sultry Maribel Martin stars as Susan, a virginal newlywed rather uncomfortable about her new married life. The hunky Simon Andreu plays her unnamed husband, who becomes worried when he thinks that Susan is imagining the presence of a mystery woman (the intoxicatingly sexy Alexandra Bastedo). Well, "Carmila" (Bastedo) does exist, and with a subtle intensity, she worms her way into Susans' life and encourages her to think beyond being "trapped" by this male presence.

In general, the performances are decent, with Martin making for a reasonably sympathetic figure. Andreu offers a stolid screen presence, never changing his facial expression very much. Dean Selmier is superb as a well-meaning doctor who naturally does not put much stock in superstition. Bastedo is very easy to watch, and Rosa M. Rodriguez does a respectable job as a precocious youngster.

There's a mild dose of delectable female nudity, as a viewer would come to expect from the genre, and the violence is extremely effective whenever it takes place. (The film is not wall-to-wall gore, but still manages to live up to its title.) And the music score composed by Antonio Perez Olea is appropriately haunting. Director / writer Vicente Aranda also adds an appreciable amount of surrealism when Carmila is discovered under the sand at a beach - this is quite a memorable scene.

Recommended for lovers of the genre, who should also enjoy similar entries such as "Vampyres" and "Daughters of Darkness".

Seven out of 10.

"The Blood-spattered Bride" is a remarkable film filled with haunting imagery gorgeously photographed by veteran cinematographer Fernando Aribas.Wonderful Alexandra Bastedo stars as a lesbian vampire who woos frigid newlywed Maribel Martin from her husband Simon Andreu on their honeymoon.After the film is over,you'll feel like you're waking from a dream,and all the inconsistencies and leaps of logic will surely infuriate many.There is also a nice amount of nudity and gore,so fans of Euro-horror will not be disappointed.

After getting married with her husband (Simón Andreu), Susan (Maribel Martín) travels with him to his isolated manor. The sexual drive of the husband is intense, and Susan feels repulse for his sexual games and perversions.

Susan notes that there are only paintings of his male ancestors and none of their wives and she learns that the pictures are kept in the basement. When she sees the painting of Mircalla Karstein (Alexranda Bastedo) without her face, her husband tells that Mircalla killed her husband in the honeymoon. During the night, Susan has dreadful nightmares with Mircalla.

When Susan's husband finds a naked woman buried on the beach, he brings her home and finds that her name is Carmilla. Susan is seduced by the woman and they have a lesbian relationship. Meanwhile her husband realizes that his life is in danger and Carmilla is a vampire.

"La Novia Ensangrentada", a.k.a. "The Blood Spattered Bride", is an erotic and gore vampire film with an ambiguous story developed in a nightmarish atmosphere, but having a weak conclusion and lack of chemistry between Simón Andreu and Maribel Martín.

It is not totally clear that Mircalla Karstein is a vampire indeed and based on the news in the disappointing conclusion, the plot may be understood differently, with the disturbed and dysfunctional Susan meeting the deranged stranger and having sexual attraction and making lesbian love with her. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "A Noiva Ensanguentada" ("The Bloody Bride")

By turns mysoginistic and feminist, this one has some spooky metaphorical comments on marriage, virginity and lesbianism. It also has the gorgeous cinematography, splendidly dreary autumnal locations and beautiful women going absolutely demented that we've come to expect from European horror movies of the time. Nudity is kept to the minimum, unusually, but the classically beautiful Alexandra Bastedo of cult TV series The Champions is the vampire this time, and the scene where she's discovered buried in the sand is totally surreal and inspired, almost Bunuelian. The movie flags a little in the middle, as most of them do, but the ending is suitably hysterical and subversive. It also seems to be almost a prequel for Vampyres, another stylish and sexy Spanish vampire flick.

After getting married with her husband (Simón Andreu), Susan (Maribel Martín) travels with him to his isolated manor. The sexual drive of the husband is intense, and Susan feels repulse for his sexual games and perversions.

Susan notes that there are only paintings of his male ancestors and none of their wives and she learns that the pictures are kept in the basement. When she sees the painting of Mircalla Karstein (Alexranda Bastedo), a.k.a. Carmilla, without her face, her husband tells that Carmilla killed her husband in the honeymoon. During the night, Susan has dreadful nightmares with Carmilla.

When Susan's husband finds a naked woman buried on the beach, he brings her home and finds that she is Carmilla. Susan is seduced by the woman and they have a lesbian relationship. Meanwhile her husband realizes that his life is in danger and Carmilla is a vampire. "La Novia Ensangrentada", a.k.a. "The Blood Spattered Bride", is an erotic and gore vampire film with an ambiguous story developed in a nightmarish atmosphere, but having a weak conclusion.

The story is never clear that Mircalla Karstein is a vampire indeed and based on the news in the disappointing conclusion, the plot may be understood differently, with the disturbed and dysfunctional Susan meeting the deranged stranger and having sexual attraction and making lesbian love with her. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): Not Available

The 'Lesbian Vampire' sub-genre, which was quite popular in European Horror/Exploitation cinema of the 70s, has brought forth a variety of films that are worth watching including remarkably artistic gems like Harry Kümel's "Les Levres Rouges" ("Daughters of Darkness", 1971) and entertainingly trashy flicks such as those by Jess Franco and Jean Rollin. Vincente Aranda's "La Novia Ensagrentada" aka. "The Blood Spattered Bride" of 1972 is one of the artistic ones, and it certainly also ranks among the highly recommendable contributions to the 'Lesbian Vampire' sub-genre.

As the British Hammer Studios' great "The Vampire Lovers", which is the first part of Hammer's 'Karnstein' trilogy and one of the films that started the Lesbian Vampire trend, "The Blood Spattered Bride" is based on Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu's brilliant Gothic novel "Carmilla". This film transfers the plot to the present day (1972); when a newlywed couple move into the huge mansion belonging to the husband (Simón Andreu), the young wife (Maribel Martín), who is somewhat frightened by her husband's sexual fantasies, soon becomes disturbed. When looking through family portraits in the cellars, the wife stumbles across a mysterious portrait of a woman, the face of whom was cut out of the painting. The painting says "Mircalla Karnstein"...

While "La Novia Ensangrentada" isn't the best adaptation of Sheridan LeFanu's novel ("The Vampire Lovers" is, no doubt), it is yet another very good film based on this classic of Gothic literature. Plot-wise, the film has some small holes; the narration is sometimes slow and then seems rushed again. These minor faults are easily made up for by the hauntingly beautiful imagery and wonderfully creepy atmosphere. The family mansion, which is set in a forest estate, makes a magnificent horror setting and the beauty and variety and of the colors of darkness in this film is amazing. "The Blood Spattered Bride" has a nice cast, with actors that should be known to Eurohorror fans. The husband is played by cult-actor Simón Andreu, who was the leading man in many Spanish and Italian Horror productions (including Luciano Ercoli's Gialli). The very beautiful but very young Maribel Martin (she was 17 at the time the film was shot) is great in the role of the wife and ravishing Alexandra Bastedo is wonderful in her mysterious and seductive role. Great praise also has to go to Maria-Rosa Rodriguez, another child actress who proves that children actually can be good actors. Rodriguez, who I estimate was about 13 when this film was made delivers a great performance and some genuine eeriness. Overall, "La Novia Ensangrentada" is a very good addition to the Lesbian Vampire sub-genre that should be seen by any Eurohorror fan who has seen the genre-masterpieces like "Les Lèvres Rouges" and "The Vampire Lovers". My rating of "La Novia Ensangrentada": 7.5/10

This thrilling as well as sumptuous film contains horrifying scenes , chills , lush photography shot in Galicia , appropriate set design , brilliant costumes and lots of nudism and gore . A young hubby's (Simon Andreu) sexual fantasies frighten his new spouse (Maribel Martin) and cause her to seek advice from Carmilla (Carmilla is anti-heroine of J. Sheridan Le Fanu novella Carmilla), a descendant of Mircalla de Karnstein . Carmilla/Mircalla (Alexandra Bastedo) seduces the young bride and takes for her desires . She has developed an elaborate feeding ritual, that involves infiltrating the family of young girls and living alongside them, while she gradually drains their lifeblood over a period of weeks . She forces her to commit gory acts of mutilation and grisly killings . Mircalla Karnstein is a vampire that drains the blood of the victims to use as elixir of youth . She didn't know that her new friend is sucking her blood and the cause of her nightmare ; then there takes place the revenge of a young bride on her wedding night . Then happens a battle of wits between a husband versus seductive lesbian vampire fighting it out for control over his wife .

It's a creepy tale about lesbian vampire issue ; being plenty of thrills , chills , eerie events and lots of blood and gore ; including nudism in double version . Enjoyable version about the famous personage ¨Carmilla¨ with a good cast , brilliant cinematography , glamorous gowns , adequate production design , including evocative sights on palaces , beaches and rotten churches . Surrealist and fantastic images as as when the husband meets a naked woman buried on the beach, he brings her home and finds out that she is Carmilla , as well as the scary frames when Carmilla along with the bride kill their victims . This is based on Sheridan Le Fanu novel titled "Carmila" and on a story by Mathew Lewis , being written by the same director Vicente Aranda. Carmilla was born into the aristocratic Karnstein family in 17th-century Austria , she was originally called Countess Mircalla . Eerie as well as evocative musical score by Antonio Perez Olea . Colorful and luxurious cinematography by Fernando Arribas , being shot on location in Isla De La Toja, and Santiago de Compostela, A Coruña, Galicia, Spain ; adding a decent set production by Juan Alberto Soler.

This known character from Sheridan Le Fanu novel "Carmila" has been adapted several times , such as : ¨Twins of Evil" directed by John Hough , ¨Lust for a Vampire¨ (1971) played by Yutte Stensgaard , ¨ Daughters of Darkness¨ by Harry Kumel , Love for a Vampire""The Vampire Lovers aka "To Love a Vampire" played by Ingrid Pitt as Mircalla Karnstein and "Alucarda" and recently Lesbian Vampire Killers (2009) , among others .

The motion picture was professionally directed in his particular style by veteran filmmaker Vicente Aranda . He directed a series of award-winning movies firmly establishing him as one of the best Spanish filmmakers . His usual film editor is own wife , Teresa Font . Vicente is an expert on literary adaptations ,as he has adapted four novels by Juan Marsé Canciones Amor en Lolita's Club (2007), El Amante Bilingüe (1993), Si Te Dicen Que Caí (1989) and La Muchacha De Las Bragas De Oro (1980). Vicente often shoots strong erotic scenes , being ¨jealousy¨, a customary issue in his films . Vicente has been working from the 60s with ¨Fata Morgana¨ , Las Crueles¨ , ¨Novia Ensangrentada¨ , ¨Clara es el Precio¨ , among others . His greatest successes were intense dramas with plenty of sex such as ¨Amantes¨, ¨Pasion Turca¨ , ¨Si Dicen Que Cai¨ , ¨Intruso¨ , ¨Tiempo De Silencio¨ , ¨Carmen¨ , along with a delinquency tale : ¨El Lute¨ I and II starred by Imanol Arias , his fetish actor along with Victoria Abril (They have worked together 12 times) and specially the historical story titled ¨Juana La Loca¨ also dealing with jealousy and ¨Amantes¨, easily the best of the numerous films of Aranda .

Sometimes you start watching a movie with low and or absolutely no expectations whatsoever and it turns out to be a very pleasant surprise. Those are the best film-watching experiences you can have. Unfortunately, the opposite scenario exists as well. It's such a tremendous letdown in case a film of which you expected so much turns out to be a big disappointment! I think "The Blood-Spattered Bride" had been standing on my wish list for more than a decade already, and each year that passed my expectations towards it grew larger. I regret to admit now that it's a boring and overlong movie, completely unworthy of the cult status it enjoys. The plot is only mildly interesting, while the lead characters are dull and antipathetic, and the only noteworthy atmospheric and horrific sequences are all – too little too late – saved up for the climax. A newlywed couple (of which the girl looks extremely young) is on its way to the husband's large family estate in the remote countryside. The girl – Susan – is terribly nervous for their first night because she's a virgin, and he doesn't exactly behave comforting or gentle as he rips her wedding dress to pieces. While at the estate, Susan becomes obsessed with the legend of a female ancestor, Mircalla Karnstein, who allegedly killed her husband with a dagger because she grew to hate him. Susan has dreams and hallucinations in which Mircalla shows her where to find the same dagger and she begins to believe that she is also destined to kill her own husband. Later, the man meets a perfect lookalike of Mircalla at the beach (he literally digs her up from the sand in a really bizarre and implausible sequence) and invites her back to the estate. Susan is now convinced that Mircalla has reincarnated (into Carmilla) to guide and assist her on her mission to kill the husband. The middle section of "The Blood-Spattered Bride" is intolerable tedious and absolutely nothing happens, except for the husband trying to have sex with his wife and she inventing various excuses to refuse. Maybe he should just try to be kind and tender instead of pulling her up a rock by her hair or chasing her into a giant bird cage? It's just an idea… The filming locations are stunning, the music is nice and the lead actresses (Maribel Martín and Alexandra Bastedo) are genuine beauties, but that's hardly enough to label this as a euro-exploitation classic. The last 10-15 minutes are downright terrific, with suddenly half a dozen of gruesome massacres and sleazy plot twists, but by this time my feelings of disappointment unfortunately couldn't be reversed anymore.

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!

Heard a lot of this flick, not easy to find over here but by looking overseas I caught me my copy. Immediately from the start I found out for me that it was a Giallo. It is a slow starter, it takes exactly 40 minutes before the real stuff is happening. The storyline is okay and acting is okay, but there is some suspense missing for me, I'm not that Giallofreak as others so it has really be good for me to find it a good flick. I have seen the uncut version so the nudity, typical for those area of giallo's, is intact. At the end you have a bit of that Giallotwist. Maybe it's a bit too old, 1972, to survive his age up to the standards of today. The blood runs now and then but it isn't flowing frequently enough to make it creepy. Anyway, it's watchable so if you can grab yourself an uncut version, don't hesitate.

Far better than the lurid US title suggests, this is a horror movie for adults, and deals intelligently with themes that are rarely addressed so directly. It gets a little slow in the last third, and clearly the filmmakers weren't entirely sure how to end it all, but it's certainly worth watching.

1972's "The Blood Spattered Bride" (La Novia Ensangrentada) was first issued in the US on a double bill with Paul Leder's ultra low budget "I Dismember Mama" by Europix International, advertising a special, free 'Up-Chuck Cup' for the faint of heart. Filmed on location in Galicia, on the northern coast of Spain, it was an adaptation of J. Sheridan Le Fanu's 1871 "Carmilla," updated to the present by director/screenwriter Vicente Aranda, husband Simon Andreu (we never learn his name) stopping off at a hotel with new spouse Maribel Martin as Susan, still wearing her bridal veil, whose initial fantasy about losing her virginity is a violent one (apparently the 17 year old actress used a body double for all her full frontal nude scenes since her face is never shown). Hubby accedes to her request to leave, returning to his boyhood home where portraits of the family patriarchs adorn the upstairs hallway while all the females are stored in the dark, dank cellar. Curiously, the full length painting of Mircala Karstein has had its face cut out, sporting rings on every finger turned around to face the palms, a sharp dagger in her right hand to take the life of a husband who made her commit 'unspeakable acts' on their wedding night two centuries earlier. The newlyweds' honeymoon period first appears to be a pleasant one, but once the dagger is introduced to Susan by Carol (Rosa Maria Rodriguez), the caretakers' young daughter, the bride swiftly loses interest in wedded bliss, soon fixating on the naked stranger discovered submerged in the sand with only a snorkel to breathe. This is Alexandra Bastedo as Carmila, the same countenance seen by Susan on her wedding day, the undead Mircala come back to repeat past events with Susan her new partner in crime, intent on both consuming as well as spilling blood. Clearly more adult in nature than Hammer's Karnstein trilogy, depicting a modern relationship between a virile male and virginal female, the latter swept up in a lesbian tryst with a vampire who only preys on young women. From the outset we are inclined to side with Susan due to her inexperience, yet as she grows more distant there's no one else to fully empathize with (unlike Christopher Lee in "Crypt of the Vampire"). The dagger mysteriously keeps turning up, under a pillow or in a clock, one nightmare showing Susan relishing the repeated stabbing of her sleeping spouse before Carmilla bids her to cap things off with a blood dripping castration (ouch!). It's no wonder that the final scene has the would be hero reportedly cutting out the hearts of the three women who meant to do him harm, the fact that all were vampires going unmentioned in the headlines. Perhaps the title was meant to evoke a virgin on her wedding night, leisurely paced at a fully uncut 101 minutes, Maribel Martin already a 10 year screen veteran (1969's "The House That Screamed" comes to mind), going on to play a naive cousin who survives the carnage in "Bell from Hell." As Carmila Karstein, British-born beauty Alexandra Bastedo kicked off her career at 16 as one of "13 Frightened Girls," a 1963 William Castle adventure, as well known on television (THE CHAMPIONS) as on the big screen, soon to play opposite Peter Cushing in Tyburn's "The Ghoul." Indeed, some ghoulish set pieces raise its creep factor over Hammer's "The Vampire Lovers," and it might have the edge over Christopher Lee's more stately "Crypt of the Vampire"; lesbian vampires were clearly in vogue at the time with "Daughters of Darkness," "The Velvet Vampire," and Jesus Franco's inevitable "Vampyros Lesbos," but what could be more erotically charged than the encounter between Gloria Holden and Nan Grey in the 1936 "Dracula's Daughter." Add the teenage Rosa Maria Rodriguez, similarly paired with Martin in the superior "Bell from Hell," plus the underage female lead Geri Reischl in cofeature "I Dismember Mama," and you have a disquieting viewing experience guaranteed to drive viewers 'insane.'

The traces of Polanksi's "Repulsion" are hard to ignore here - notably in the ambivalent attitude of "Susan" toward hetero-normative sexuality that drives the plot of the entire film. Given the rather abrupt ending, I am not sure this film is up the caliber of "Repulsion;" but it is certainly very much better than its unfortunate English title would suggest. The symbolism may be heavy - daggers, crucifix poses, lilac gowns, female paintings in the basement - and the allusions to Freud and Jung obvious; but there is more than enough ambiguity here to make this film's approach to its subject-matter feel surprisingly contemporary.

There might be a temptation to compare this film to the Hammer Horror "Karnstein" trilogy from around the time period. But the introduction of Mircala/Carmilla "Karstein" as the Sapphic, and deeply psychological, element that seeks to upend the sexual order (and leads Susan astray in the process) takes us quite a bit of distance away from Hammer's more tongue-in-cheek approach to the horror genre. I was surprised at the relative complexity of this film.

I got like 5 minutes in before quitting. Might've gotten further if it wasn't for what I think is a rape scene? Nothing happens then suddenly a woman is getting sexually assaulted. Maybe the movie overall is good, but I'm not going to find out.

In the form of a story about a newly wed woman who we witness losing her virginity the exploitation-y titled 'The Blood Spattered Bride' thematically covers a lot of the same and similar grounds to 'Valerie and Her Week of Wonders' albeit very much focusing on all the psychosexual aspects. Where "Valerie", summed up, is a film about a girl's sexual awakening after her menarche (=first menstrual bleeding) and all the other realizations that can result from that awakening, for example about religion and the government, "Bride" is about a young woman's sexual awakening (her age is never specified, the actress was about 18 years old at that point) which makes the woman fall into a psychotic state that makes her feel fear and disgust of men so this character's psychology isn't dissimilar to Catherine Deneuve's in 'Repulsion', it also roughly covers the events of one week although just like in "Valerie" it seems like development in a compressed form, showing a psychological evolution that usually would have to take considerably longer.

Despite the supernatural elements in the story other than in "Valerie" one is prone to take the ongoings in the film literally because of its mundane visual style and the relatively coherent plot that wouldn't obviously suggest a symbolic reading although if one takes things on face value here it would be a rather ridiculous and unintelligently written film, but if taken metaphorically, always with the theme in mind, it's just the opposite. There certainly are quite a few surreal touches, though, both movies also include a good share of vampirism as well as lesbianism although neither of them really is a vampire, a horror nor an erotic movie, at least they aren't predominantly any one of those things.

Another prevalent theme (especially as "Bride" reaches its conclusion) is that of the inspirational power of history as well as having a certain responsibility to act upon sacrifices other people made in the past, in this specific case especially in regards to feminism. Carmilla, the vampire with lesbian tendencies who becomes increasingly more real, is like a figure conjured up by the bride's fears and desires and that figure is a resurrection of a person that really existed within the fiction of the film, most likely materialized in idealized form to fit the bride's purposes.

Although I think the film is feminist in its intent it interestingly has no qualms to come off as misogynist at times (especially in the first half) when showing the often violent male oppression and sexual dominance since, unlike "Valerie" or 'Repulsion', it doesn't choose a point of view, it's (almost) as much the husband's film as it is hers. I think the sympathies are clearly with the bride (which makes the ending all the more refreshing) but thematically the husband's male psychology is almost as fleshed out as hers and his psychological torture can at times also be felt.

While I obviously think that thematically it's a great and intelligent movie it's certainly a minus that if taken literally the movie doesn't hold up well. Visually it's largely unremarkable although it does have its moment, especially one gory fantasy sequence in the middle section and the much talked about surreal beach sequence offer some notable visuals. The characterizations are coherent and believable but I wouldn't go as far as to call any of them well-developed. In one scene the movie's themes are actually blatantly spelled out with the characters reading out of psychology books that quote Plato and Jung. This being my first contact with Sheridan Le Fanu's Carmilla novel possibly helped my appreciation of the film, had I read the book or seen other films that were based on it things might look differently, but I haven't.

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.

My Rating: Story 1.25 : Direction 0.75 : Pace 0.50 : Acting 1.00 : Entertaining 1.00 Total 4.50 out of 10.00

I was expecting to enjoy this film and enjoy it I did. It wasn't as enjoyable as I expected. The reason being both the story and the direction. I like the idea of the ghostly tale, though there are way too many "Strange" events to make it reasonably believable.

A newlywed bride has doubts on her wedding night. She gets her newlywed husband to cut the honeymoon short. Once they are back at the husband's mansion, she quickly notices there are no portraits of the females of the family. The walls are adorned by the male ancestors of the family. The housekeepers' daughter informs her the women are down in the basement. The paintings scariest aspect was the women looking more macho than the men - I'd hide them down in a dark, dank cellar too. Except for one painting, showing the full figure of a woman, holding a ceremonial dagger, dressed in a wedding gown, with the woman's face cut away.

As time passes, the new bride has strange dreams and visions of murder and an unfamiliar woman. These dreams infringe on her life and force a change in her behaviour and manner. Which sets her on a sexually destructive path.

This along with the supernatural element should have been enough to hold the audience's attention. But the writer, Mathew Lewis, and writer and director, Vincente Aranda, though otherwise. So we see the strange woman at the honeymoon, as a teacher at the housekeepers' daughter's school, and buried naked in the sand sucking air through a snorkel. Way too much oddity. There's no reasonable rationale for these events either. These illogical scenes only hinder the story and damage the film. It compels the audience to wonder what the hell is happening. This brings them out of the story, instead of immersing them in it.

Vincente Aranda is not the best director in the Giallo genre. To be honest, this is one of the weakest films in the genre. This is chiefly down to the direction. A Giallo film should be full to the brim with atmosphere, suspense, and tension. This has very little. The story is told at such a slow pace I found myself starting to yawn... I wasn't even tired. Worse yet, my eyes were straying away from the screen.

I will say this though. I genuinely liked the dream-sequence of the husband's evisceration. There was so much blood, it was gloriously awesome in its outrageousness. Aranda even did a good job of filming the scene too. The slight upward angle to show the two women, the new bride's face dripping with her husband's gore. Best scene of the whole film.

As for the acting, this is okay. Like the rest of the film, there's nothing too special about it. Though, I admit I watched the film because the beautiful Alexandra Bastedo starred. I had a crush on her in my youth, when I first saw her in The Champions TV show. Thank you, BBC.

Unless you are trying to watch as many Giallo films as you can or are a fan of a cast member or the director, then I wouldn't recommend you watch this film. There are many finer films in the genre to pick from.

Take a ride on over to my Absolute Horror and Killer Thriller Chillers lists to see where I've ranked this underachieving picture.

Take Care and Stay Well.