Movie #16 - Black Sunday by Mario Bava (1963)
Black Sunday is my first Mario Bava film, and while it had some solid aspects, overall, I thought the film as a whole was a mixed bag... But having said that, I came away enjoying the film anyways.
Needless to say, Black Sunday is visually strong, being home to some of the best cinematography I've seen in a classic horror film. The environments/set designs are organic, dense and alive. The contrasted lighting is absolutely gorgeous, working in lockstep with the before mentioned set design to create some pretty memorable imagery. This film is the very definition of atmospheric; between the Gothic stylings of the set design, potent lighting, over abundance of fog/mist and some smooth camera work, Bava was able to create an eerie mood/atmosphere before the narrative even has a chance to come together. Bava had me coming away from Black Sunday wishing that more contemporary horror films would utilize black and white. It's such an underappreciated medium within film, and arguably most effective at creating a visual mood that's relevant to the horror genre.
The music, likewise, was also eerie, working perfectly in sync with Bava's visuals to create an absolutely dreadful atmosphere.
While the film is obviously tame by today's standards, I was surprised at the graphic nature of some of the practical effects spread through out the film. Well, not really considering the nature of Italian cinema over the course of film history, but there's no denying Black Sunday is one of, if not the most, brutal films up until the release of the film.
Unfortunately, the movie was effectively style over substance, and the impression I get is that Bava is a better cinematographer than he was a director. The acting was wooden, made worse by the fact that I was watching a dubbed copy, although I have to admit, the voices themselves were quite solid. I thought the actual story and narrative were overly simple and quite generic, even by 1960's standards, considering it's something we've seen in horror
again and again. Not only are there a plethora of plot holes, but it simply didn't do enough capitalize on the atmosphere of the visuals and audio, completely failing to create any sense of suspense or dread.
Typically, this would be an absolute deal breaker, but the pedestrian acting and sub-par narrative are completely propped up by some other worldly cinematography. Damn near every frame of this film is almost art like in its execution. It's simply a beautiful film to watch, and I'm inclined to recommend people watch it for that element alone.
Rating: *** out of ****