La frusta e il corpo (1963)

Director:

Mario Bava

Writers:

Ernesto Gastaldi (screenplay)
Ugo Guerra (screenplay)
(more)

Release Date:

10 December 1965 (USA)

Genre:

Horror

Tagline:

The most deliriously romantic horror picture ever made!

Plot:

In the 19th century, a sadistic nobleman terrorizes the members of his family. He is found dead, but his ghost soon returns to haunt the residents of his castle.

Plot Keywords:

Castle | Ghost | Dagger | Sadist | Abused Woman

Cast

Daliah Lavi	...	Nevenka Menliff
Christopher Lee	...	Kurt Menliff
Tony Kendall	...	Christian Menliff
Ida Galli	...	Katia (as Isli Oberon)
Harriet Medin	...	Giorgia (as Harriet White)
Gustavo De Nardo	...	Count Menliff (as Dean Ardow)
Luciano Pigozzi	...	Losat (as Alan Collins)
Jacques Herlin	...	Priest

Directed by
Mario Bava		(as John M. Old)

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Ernesto Gastaldi		screenplay and dialogue (as Julian Berry)
Ugo Guerra		screenplay and dialogue (as Robert Hugo)
Luciano Martino		screenplay and dialogue (as Martin Hardy)

Produced by
Ferdinando Baldi	....	associate producer (as Free Baldwin)
Federico Magnaghi	....	producer (as Tom Rhodes)
Elio Scardamaglia	....	supervising producer (as John Oscar)

Original Music by
Carlo Rustichelli		(as Jim Murphy)

Cinematography by
Ubaldo Terzano		(as David Hamilton)
Mario Bava		(uncredited)

Film Editing by
Renato Cinquini		(as Rob King)

Casting by
Priscilla Contardi		(as Priscilla Huston)

Art Direction by
Ottavio Scotti		(as Dick Grey)

Set Decoration by
Riccardo Domenici		(as Gus Marrow)

Costume Design by
Anna Maria Palleri		(as Peg Fax)

Makeup Department
Raffaele Cristini	....	assistant makeup artist (as Raf Christie)
Franco Freda	....	makeup artist (as Frank Field)

Production Management
Ferdinando Baldi	....	unit manager (as Free Baldwin)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Ernesto Gastaldi	....	assistant director (as Julian Berry)
Sergio Martino	....	second assistant director (uncredited)

Sound Department
Peter Jakson	....	sound
Rex McCrea	....	boom operator

Camera and Electrical Department
Mark Baer	....	assistant camera
Robert Schafer	....	still photographer
Ubaldo Terzano	....	camera operator (as Art Balsam)

Editorial Department
Lina Caterini	....	assistant editor (as Kathy Line)

Other crew
Joe M. Seery	....	production secretary

Production Companies

• Francinor-PIP
• Leone Film
• Titanus

Distributors

• Cinépix Film Properties (CFP) (1967) (Canada) (theatrical) (dubbed)
• Big Sky Video (2009) (Australia) (DVD)
• Epoca (????) (Argentina) (VHS)
• Futuramic Releasing (1965) (USA) (dubbed)
• Midnight Choir (2009) (USA) (DVD)
• VCI Home Video (2000) (USA) (DVD) (widescreen)
• e-m-s the DVD-Company (2005) (Germany) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Digitmovies Alternative Entertainment  soundtrack

Also Known As:

Le corps et le fouet (France)
Night Is the Phantom (UK) (dubbed version)
Son of Satan
The Body and the Whip
The Way and the Body
The Whip and the Body
The Whip and the Flesh (International: English title)
What (USA)

Runtime:

France:85 min | Italy:91 min | UK:78 min | USA:87 min | West Germany:86 min

Country:

Italy | France

Language:

Italian

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.75 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Germany:12 (re-rating) (2005) | Australia:MA (2009) | Argentina:16 | France:-18 | Italy:VM14 | USA:Unrated | West Germany:18 | UK:X

Filming Locations:

Tor Caldara, Lazio, Italy

Company:

Francinor-PIP

Trivia:

Christopher Lee's voice was dubbed by another actor even though the film was shot in English.

Quotes:

Kurt Menliff: [to Nevenka] You haven't changed, I see. You've always loved violence.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Le pacte des loups (2001)

Bava at his most Gothic

This unrelentingly-creepy tale of obsession and perversion plays like a more-horrific version of _Wuthering Heights_: cobwebbed crypts, dark castles with secret passages, rotting bodies, muddy footprints, pale faces scowling through windows, love-hate relationships that continue beyond the grave, sea cliffs, turbulent ocean, sunsets, and a very haunting music score. The sets are rich and the direction is moody, with lots of brilliantly-composed photography and a convincingly-cruel performance by Christopher Lee. This one does require some patience, but it's one of Bava's greatest masterpieces and deserves to be saved from obscurity.