A Bay of Blood (1971) Reazione a catena (original title)

Director:

Mario Bava

Writers:

Mario Bava (screenplay)
Franco Barberi (story)
(more)

Release Date:

3 May 1972 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

The second movie rated "V" for violence.

Plot:

An elderly heiress is killed by her husband who wants control of her fortunes. What ensues is an all-out...

Plot Keywords:

Murder | Inheritance | Friend | Throwing Water Into Someone's Face | Dress

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Claudine Auger	...	Renata
Luigi Pistilli	...	Albert
Claudio Camaso	...	Simon (as Claudio Volonté)
Anna Maria Rosati	...	Laura (as Anna M. Rosati)
Chris Avram	...	Frank Ventura
Leopoldo Trieste	...	Paolo Fossati
Laura Betti	...	Anna Fossati
Brigitte Skay	...	Brunhilda
Isa Miranda	...	Countess Federica Donati
Paola Montenero	...	Denise (as Paola Rubens)
Guido Boccaccini	...	Duke
Roberto Bonanni	...	Robert
Giovanni Nuvoletti	...	Count Filippo Donati
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Renato Cestiè	...	Renata and Albert's Son (uncredited)
Nicoletta Elmi	...	Renata and Albert's Daughter (uncredited)

Directed by
Mario Bava

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Franco Barberi		story
Mario Bava		screenplay
Filippo Ottoni		screenplay
Dardano Sacchetti		story
Giuseppe Zaccariello		(screenplay) (as Joseph McLee)

Produced by
Giuseppe Zaccariello	....	producer

Original Music by
Stelvio Cipriani

Cinematography by
Mario Bava

Film Editing by
Carlo Reali

Production Design by
Sergio Canevari

Art Direction by
Sergio Canevari

Costume Design by
Enrico Sabbatini

Makeup Department
Adalgisa Favella	....	hair stylist
Franco Freda	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Roberto Cicutto	....	production supervisor
Fernando Franchi	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Lamberto Bava	....	assistant director

Sound Department
Carlo Diotallevi	....	sound recordist
Gene Luotto	....	post-synchronization
Carlo Tarchi	....	sound

Special Effects by
Carlo Rambaldi	....	special effects (as Rambaldi)

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

Music Department
Luca di Silverio	....	soundtrack album producer

Other crew
Patrizia Zulini	....	continuity
Pino Locchi	....	voice dubbing: Claudio Camaso (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Nuova Linea Cinematografica

Distributors

• Alberto Bitelli Intl. Films (1972) (Brazil) (theatrical)
• Hallmark Releasing (1972) (USA) (theatrical) (dubbed)
• Hokushin Audio Visual (1981) (UK) (VHS)
• Ambassador Film Distributors (1982) (Canada) (theatrical) (dubbed)
• Internacional Films Distribución (????) (Spain) (theatrical)
• Another World Entertainment (2008) (Denmark) (DVD)
• Arrow Film & Video (????) (USA) (DVD) (2-disc set)
• Astro Distribution (2001) (Belgium) (DVD)
• Century Vídeo (????) (Brazil) (VHS)
• Cult Epics (????) (USA) (DVD)
• DMEG (2004) (Sweden) (video)
• Gorgon Video (????) (USA) (VHS)
• Image Entertainment (2001) (USA) (DVD)
• M.I.B. (????) (Germany) (DVD)
• Paradiso Home Entertainment (2006) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Raro Video/Nocturno (2005) (Italy) (DVD)
• Simitar Video (????) (USA) (DVD)
• Starz Home Entertainment (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• Stomp Visual (2005) (Australia) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Digitmovies Alternative Entertainment  soundtrack

Also Known As:

"Reazione a catena" - Italy (original title)
"Twitch of the Death Nerve" - USA (alternative title), USA (new title)
"Ecology of a Crime" - International (English title) (informal literal title)
"The Antecedent" - USA (informal title)
"The Last House on the Left, Part II" - USA (reissue title)

Runtime:

84 min | 76 min (cut)

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Spain:18 | USA:R | West Germany:(Banned) | Argentina:16 | Germany:BPjM Restricted | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:R (Ontario) | Australia:R | UK:(Banned) (1984-1994) | UK:18 (re-rating: 1994) (cut) | UK:R (original rating: 1972) | France:-16 | Netherlands:16 | UK:18 (uncut version, re-rating) | Norway:18 (DVD rating) (2009) (uncut) | Italy:VM14 | Italy:VM18 (DVD rating) | New Zealand:R16

Filming Locations:

Sabaudia, Latina, Lazio, Italy

Company:

Nuova Linea Cinematografica

Trivia:

To ensure the utmost realism in depicting the thirteen different murders, Bava insisted that Carlo Rambaldi be hired to provide the special makeup effects.

Goofs:

Continuity: The Count is stabbed repeatedly in his back and then he falls on his back and dies. When the killer is dragging him away, there should be a blood trail leading from The Countess to the door.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Beasts (1980)

Greed twitches several death nerves in Mario Bava's brutal pioneering slasher flick!

Many films on the Video Nasty list are horror cinema's answer to well-respected classics; The Last House on the Left offers a new spin on Ingmar Bergman's The Virgin Spring, Island of Death is a more brutal telling of the story of Bonnie and Clyde and, indeed, this Mario Bava film owes its plot to the French classic, La Ronde. Bay of Blood is often noted as being an obvious inspiration on the Friday the 13th series, and when taking things such as the setting and a certain murder sequence into account, that is certainly true; but let's not forget that this is also a fantastic movie in its own right. The film starts off with a glorious sequence that opens inside a beautiful manor house. We watch as a wheelchair-bound baroness is brutally strangled, only for the rug to be torn from under us moments later when her assailant is the next one to bite the bullet! It has to be said that the film never tops its opening sequence, but Mario Bava's gore-fest manages to remain fascinating all the way through, as it turns out that the first murder scene sets off a violent chain of events that results in a very high body count.

This film would be properly categorised as a slasher, but its Italian roots ensure that it's often labelled a Giallo, and indeed Mario Bava does include Giallo elements; from black gloved killers and an array of odd characters, all the way to an amazingly convoluted plot. Indeed, the storyline here gets so complicated at times that it's liable to give the viewer an extreme headache, but Bava is always on hand with another glorious murder scene, and as the film features thirteen deaths in it's eighty one minute running time - there's certainly no lack of the red stuff. Bava ensures that the murders are suitably varied, and we get treated from an array of methods of dispatch, including axes, a spear through a lovemaking couple and an excellent scene that sees someone skewered to a wall. Mario Bava's eye for detail doesn't wane with this film, as despite being a grisly slasher; there's still more than enough time for beautiful scene setting. The bay itself looks great and excellently lends itself as a location for savagery, while the decors of the character's homes are elaborately Gothic. With the pitch-black ending, the director shows us that the film isn't meant to be taken seriously, and overall, Bay of Blood is both influential and a great time - and therefore shouldn't be missed by horror fans.