Blood and Black Lace (1964)

The Christian house of high fashion is rocked by the brutal murder of one of its models. It seems that a masked, black-gloved murderer is at work. Police Inspector, Sylvester (Thomas Reiner) is on the case, while Countess Christina Como (Eva Bartok) and Max Morlan (Cameron Mitchell) attempt to run the business as usual. Then, a secret diary is discovered, another woman is killed, and just about everyone is a possible suspect! Not surprisingly, the deaths don't stop there. What is this person looking for that is worth such vicious cruelty? Director, Mario Bava's influence on future filmmakers such as Argento, Fulci, etc. is quite evident. His signature, innovative use of various types of lighting is on full display, as the sets / characters are bathed in constantly changing color schemes and shadows. BLOOD AND BLACK LACE is a feast for the eyes, as well as being one of the greatest giallo films ever made. Chilling for its day, it still holds up well, and the finale is a classic!...

Fmovies: A Fashion House is being plagued by a mysterious masked serial killer who is picking the girls off one by one in a variety of gruesome waysÂ…Why this Maniac is killing these girls is academic to the plot, as this film is STYLE driven and what style it is tooÂ…..we are of course as in any good thriller suspicious of everyoneÂ…Is the Killer a Man a Woman or is there more than one KillerÂ….Bava takes great pleasure in teasing us into believing all of these at some stageÂ…Â…This is the Third film in my indoctrination into Mario Bava and it is again no disappointmentÂ…..Bava's use of light and shadow and of mirrors and reflection is stunning and never has colour been used so brilliantly and not just gaudy reds blues purples yellows but subtle use of pastels tooÂ…Â…The fashion scene is perfect for Bava's visual flair with its very beautiful models and Haute Couture and both are given sublime treatmentÂ…Â….The score is also very memorable and reminiscent of Henry Mancini at his bestÂ…Â…The killer bears an uncanny resemblance to Freddie Krueger only much betterÂ…..now don't tell me he wasn't an influence on the makers of Nightmare on elm streetÂ…..Even though this was dubbed it has one of the best dubbings I have seen and is not intrusive on the filmÂ…. You know some times you hear of certain directors or films that are just Brilliant Magnificent or Unmissable and How often have you been disappointed and wondered what the fuss was all about....Mario Bava is not in that category....He is a master of style and cinema.....To tell you I was dumbfounded by the films I have seen so far is an understatement....I was expecting cheap nasty gory and under-produced films that had some charm..... but what I got is one of the greatest and most sumptuous of Cinematic experiences....The Man truly is a Cinematic God...He is the Orson Welles of Horror and that means a lot coming from meÂ…Â…this film is Simply Wonderful

When the model Isabella (Francesca Ungaro) is murdered by a masked killer, the models of the fashion house managed by Contessa Cristina Como (Eva Bartok) and her lover Max Marian (Cameron Mitchell) are shaken with the crime. The model Nicole (Ariana Gorini) finds Isabella's diary and late night she borrows the car of her friend Peggy Peyton (Mary Arden) and heads to the shop of her boyfriend Frank Sacalo (Dante DiPaolo) to meet him. However, the masked killer follows Nicole and kills her expecting to find the journal. But Peggy had stolen the diary to destroy pages that compromises her and she is also murdered by the killer. Meanwhile Inspector Silvester (Thomas Reiner) has a list of suspects that includes Frank, who blackmails Marquis Richard Morell (Franco Ressel) to give the necessary alibi to him. Who might be the killer and why the diary is so important to him?

"Sei donne per l'assassino", a.k.a. "Blood and Black Lace" is a giallo film directed by Mario Bava and one of his best movies. The colors, shadows and stylish camera-work give the perfect environment to the gruesome murders. The plot is standard with a masked killer that the police believe that is a sexual maniac stalking and killing beautiful women. The conclusion gives a good explanation to the mystery and the plot is well-resolved. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): Not Available

Note: On 01 March 2017 I saw this film again.

Title (Brazil):"Seis Mulheres Para o Assassino" ("Six Women for a Killer")

Blood and Black Lace fmovies. Visually, this may be one of the most stunning films you will ever see. The photography, framing, lighting and use of colour is unequalled in this genre of film making from this era. The fluidity of the camera-work is remarkable and repays repeated viewings to appreciate it fully. The only thing that may make this difficult going for some is the English dubbing so see it with subtitles if you can. The acting is not great and in some places will bring about laughter where it was not intended ditto the actions of some of the victims. The murders are gruesome and graphic even in the cut version of this film and must have been truly shocking to audiences in 1964. The excellent music score fits perfectly with the fashion house setting of the story and the models are beautiful.

One of the most chillingly sadistic gialli of all times, this 1964 masterpiece has lost none of its power. Director Mario Bava, the king of Italian horror, cleared the path for Dario Argento and others with this film, though it was not his first effort in the field. In 1962, Bava delivered what was probably the first Italian thriller, La ragazza che sapeva troppo. But whereas La ragazza was a relatively straight-forward murder mystery, this film ignores plot and character in favor of concentrating on the link between cinema and spectacle. The story deals with a series of gruesome murders which are plaguing the chic Haute Couture fashion salon: one by one, the lovely models are horribly murdered by a mad man who appears to be operating with no real motive. The police write the killer off as a sex maniac, but the truth of the matter is that the salon is a veritable hot bed of sex, drugs, and sordid dealings. A diary, loaded with information about these indiscretions, is making the rounds between the various models, and the killer is obsessed with tracking it down before his/her indiscretions are revealed. Though structured as a murder mystery--the German co-producers no doubt wanted Bava to deliver an Edgar Wallace-style thriller--the director takes the film off into unexpected, visionary directions. Even more so than Argento or Fulci, Bava seems fascinated by images of violent death. Yet whereas former med student Fulci insisted on dousing his corpses with blood and gore, former painter Bava keeps the bloodshed to a minimum, instead concentrating on the violent death throes which are shot in a eerily beautiful manner. The very first slasher film, though that label belittles Bava's achievement somewhat. Unlike later hack-em-up directors, Bava is very conscious of the links between the viewer and the cinematic process. By encouraging the viewer to identify with the killer's pleasure-i.e., we think the killings are beautiful in the same way that he no doubt does-Bava makes a very powerful statement on the power of the image. The characters are flat and one-dimensional, because they need to be. There are no heros, only victems. The police are depicted as arrogant and ineffectual, in contrast to most films of this era, Bava does not encourage the viewer to identify with anyone beyond the killer. Within the microcosmic environment of the fashion salon, Bava makes some telling comments on society, as well. Visionary filmmaking at its best.

An under-estimated classic. My rating ***** out of *****.

Review by Troy Howarth

This was undeniably a major influence on the Gaillo style of film and probably also on the later "body count" serial killer films.

In this film, a serial killer wearing a hose mask kills women brutally and viciously. The film sets up many likely candidates and well keeps one guessing and guessing. Great stuff!

Bava's color visuals also stand out and apart as usual. This is simply gorgeous to view.