|
|
The Devil’s Wedding Night
AKA Il Plenilunio Delle Vergini
Directed By Luigi Batzella
Released: 1973
Starring: Mark Damon, Rosalba Neri, Esmeralda Barros, and Enza Sbordone
Running Time: 98 minutes
DVD Studio: Shout Factory
----------------------------------------------------------
Karl Schiller (played by Mark Damon) discovers the
location of a ring possessing magical powers at Castle Dracula in the
Carpathian mountains. Despite his warning, Karl’s twin brother Franz (also
Damon) heads out on his own to claim the ring for himself. Franz finds the
castle but is immediately seduced by the evil Contessa Dracula (Rosalba
Neri), who is using the ring to call for virgin sacrifices from the nearby
village. Sensing Franz is in grave danger, Karl sets out to rescue his
brother who has become the next in line to be possessed by and inherit the
powers of the soul of Count Dracula.
Director Luigi Batzella (Nude For Satan)
is responsible for this gothic piece of Italian cheese. From the trippy
credit sequence to the hammy performances to the goofy twist ending,
The Devil’s Wedding Night
is all aces. The plot is painfully mundane and tired and the dialogue is
very stilted and groan-inducing. The soundtrack by Vasili Kojucharov is a
mixed bag. Part of it is ridiculously dramatic and more suited to a
spaghetti western than a gothic horror film. The rest of the soundtrack is
very bizarre and complements the creepy and the campy elements perfectly.
The saving grace of the film comes from Joe D’Amato’s cinematography. The
guy takes a minor little cheapie like this film and makes it look better
than it should. I’m also smitten with the editing which combines with the
camera tricks by adding just the right amount of slow-motion. Even though
the interior sets are cheap, the rural setting and the castle itself are
excellent for their contributions to the atmosphere.
You have to give Mark Damon (Johnny
Yuma) credit for playing twin
brothers and actually pulling it off. Karl is the bookworm and Franz is
the playboy. Sounds challenging! Okay, enough sarcasm. The thing is that
the toothy Mark Damon creeps me out anyway so him playing a vampire
possessed by the soul of Dracula works in my book. Keep an eye out for the
scene near the end where he pretends to be in slow motion. It is both pure
genius and completely stupid.
Stealing the show as usual is the supremely sexy Rosalba Neri of
Amuck! and
Frankenstein’s Daughter.
Her over-the-top performance combined with her propensity for nude scenes
make Neri’s presence a boon for this flick. There’s also Lara, the
Contessa’s servant (and lesbian lover), who is played to perfection with a
dichotomously somnambulistic and bug-eyed craziness by Brazilian actress
Esmeralda Barros. The most pitiful roles are given to Xiro Papas (Frankenstein’s
Castle Of Freaks) as the monstrous
vampire thug and Gengher Gatti (Let
Sleeping Corpses Lie) as the
mysterious butler/coach driver.
Now I know that
The Devil’s Wedding Night
is not a good movie but it’s fun as hell and is just perfect for when you
need a cheesy horror fix. With all the spooked townsfolk, blood
sacrifices, and delectable maidens in this flick, you’ll be hard pressed
to find a more typical 1970s Euro-horror outing than this. Heckle away,
people, Karl and Franz are waiting.
DVD Stuff:
While I would love to see this film restored, I must
admit that the unbelievably scratched up print on this Shout Factory DVD
is just gorgeous. The colors are rich (and yellowed) and the mono audio is
decent (so very scratchy). But be prepared to see a print so damaged that
it is almost comical. Most importantly though is that this appears to be
an uncut version of this film with all the nudity and blood intact. Elvira
Mistress Of The Dark is our host and interjects at the “commercial breaks”
to rip on the film. The menu gives the option of watching the film without
Elvira’s interruptions but, my God, why would you want to?
Quotes:
“Hail Mistress Dracula, our queen of blood!”
|
