Island of Terror (1970) 5 bambole per la luna d'agosto (original title)

Director:

Mario Bava

Writer:

Mario di Nardo (story)

Release Date:

14 February 1970 (Italy)

Genre:

Mystery | Thriller

Plot:

A small group of people come to an island to relax but soon find themselves trapped on the island with a murderer in their midst.

Plot Keywords:

Hairy Chest | Voyeur | Murder | Giallo | Rolls Royce

Cast

William Berger	...	Prof. Gerry Farrell
Ira von Fürstenberg	...	Trudy Farrell (as Ira Furstenberg)
Maurice Poli	...	Nick Chaney
Edwige Fenech	...	Marie Chaney
Howard Ross	...	Jack Davidson
Helena Ronee	...	Peggy Davidson
Teodoro Corrà	...	George Stark
Ely Galleani	...	Isabel (as Justine Gall)
Edith Meloni	...	Jill Stark
Mauro Bosco	...	Charles

Directed by
Mario Bava

Writing credits
Mario di Nardo		(story and screenplay)

Produced by
Luigi Alessi	....	producer

Original Music by
Piero Umiliani

Cinematography by
Antonio Rinaldi
Mario Bava		(uncredited)

Film Editing by
Mario Bava

Production Design by
Giuseppe Aldrovandi
Giulia Mafai		(as Giuliana Mafai)

Costume Design by
Giulia Mafai		(as Giuliana Mafai)

Makeup Department
Orietta Melaranci	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Luigi Alessi	....	production manager
Alfonso Cucci	....	production manager
Adolfo Martello	....	production manager (as Rudolfo Martello)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Mario Bianchi	....	assistant director

Art Department
Giuseppe Aldrovandi	....	set dresser

Sound Department
Leopoldo Rosi	....	sound

Visual Effects by
Enrico Catalucci	....	optical effects (as E. Catalucci)

Camera and Electrical Department
Gianlorenzo Battaglia	....	assistant camera (as Lorenzo Battaglia)
Armando Pietrangeli	....	still photographer
Emilio Varriano	....	camera operator

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Roberto Ranucci	....	assistant costumes designer

Editorial Department
Liliana Serra	....	assistant editor

Other crew
Marisa Agostini	....	script supervisor
Franco Tupini	....	production secretary

Production Companies

• Produzioni Atlas Consorziate (P.A.C.)

Distributors

• Redemption Films (1994) (UK) (VHS)
• Image Entertainment (2001) (USA) (DVD)
• DMEG (2004) (Sweden) (VHS)
• Starz Home Entertainment (2007) (USA) (DVD) (as 'Anchor Bay Entertainment')

Also Known As:

"5 bambole per la luna d'agosto" - Italy (original title)
"5 Dolls for an August Moon" - USA (imdb display title), USA (DVD box title)

Runtime:

88 min | USA:78 min | France:90 min | UK:81 min

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Italy:VM18 | UK:18 | USA:Unrated

Filming Locations:

Anzio, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company:

Produzioni Atlas Consorziate (P.A.C.)

Trivia:

Shot in only 19 days.

Quotes:

George Stark:I'm not a man of thought. I'm a man of action.

Movie Connections:

References La Dolce Vita (1960)

Soundtrack:

Ti Risveglierai Accanto a me

Ranks as one of Bava's worst

Eurocult fans know that director Mario Bava did not want to direct FIVE DOLLS FOR AN AUGUST MOON, but had to fulfil a contract or some other stupid reason. It is painfully obvious that Bava feels nothing for this film and despite a strong cast, a great soundtrack, and some fine scenes, FIVE DOLLS falls flat.

A group of rich swingers take a vacation on a secluded island in a nouveau riche, futuristic mansion. The men try to persuade a scientist to sell them an important formula, while the women experiment with lesbianism and have affairs with the house servant. The servant is killed and it goes on from there, a murder every few hours until only three are left and the sinister plot must be uncovered.

Original plot? Hardly. Any film buff will note the strong similarities to Agatha Christie's "Ten Little Indians" with a change of motive. The strongest presences are noted from Edwige Fenech (sex symbol extraordinaire) and Howard Ross (the main suspect in NEW YORK RIPPER), if only because I recognize them. All of the women are beautiful, but no actress sticks out in my mind that makes a great impression. The soundtrack is great, a fun mix of rock, jazz and classical. A few good sequences include the multiple bodies hanging in the meat freezer, Edwige doing a sultry dance in the opening number that results in a "sacrifice", Edwige lounging on a rotating bed, and a fight scene that results in many marbles tumbling and rolling down a spiral staircase (REALLY gorgeous scene!).

FIVE DOLLS is a film I would only recommend to hardcore Bava or Fenech fans. The casual horror fan would be bored by it and a newcomer to Bava would probably not be enticed to view anymore of his films. FIVE DOLLS takes a while to grow on people (I had to watch it three times before I began to like it), especially given the convoluted plotline and "HUH?" ending, but if you give it a chance, you might enjoy it. Just don't expect a memorable Bava giallo like TWITCH OF THE DEATH NERVE or BLOOD AND BLACK LACE. The print I saw was a PAL transfer from the Redemption label and looked pretty bad, but is letterboxed correctly. This is the common dupe that video companies sell.