(1957)
Dir - Riccardo Freda/Mario Bava
Overall: MEH
Both Riccardo Freda and Mario Bava can be credited with ushering in the Italian horror movie in the sound age since I Vampiri, (The Vampire, The Devil's Commandment, Lust of the Vampire),
was the first such vehicle produced at a time when the country's film
industry was exponentially booming, yet genre pictures such as this were
not on the menu. Freda and Bava, (the latter who acted as
cinematographer, uncredited special effects supervisor, and director on
the last two days of shooting), convinced Titanus Studios executive
Goffredo Lombardo to let them make a horror film in less than two weeks and on the cheap once Freda produced a script in one day. Set in the modern era to avoid period costumes and filmed on
pre-existing sets, the results show both the rushed production and lack of budget. Still, decrepit scenery and a mad scientist laboratory are atmospheric additions, the story borrows from familiar sources such as the legend of
Elizabeth Bathory, and on the make-up effects side, it utilizes some of the same
camera tricks that the legendary 1931 Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
did. A historically important
milestone in European horror, but it lacks the mood and flair of the filmmaker's later works and is understandably a mediocre first attempt at Gothic Euro-horror.
(1958)
Dir - Mario Bava/Paolo Heusch
Overall: WOOF
Recognized as Italy's first science fiction film, The Day the Sky Exploded, (La morte viene dallo spazio, Death Comes From Space, Death Comes From Outer Space), is essentially a stock footage montage that is interjected with characters in a control room panicking. A precursor to Michael Bay's blockbuster turkey Armageddon, the story concerns an incoming meteor shower that threatens the entire planet, causing apocalyptic destruction before scientists and astronauts figure out a way to stop it. Completely sterile melodrama is haphazardly tossed in to provide it with some sort of human element, but a couple's heartfelt reunion, a ladies man trying to smooth over a woman, and one guy snapping under the pressure by proclaiming that mankind has doomed itself due to our building of nuclear missiles, it all come off as an afterthought just to have some more dialog exchanges to break up the recycled disaster footage. Though Paolo Heusch was officially credited as director, various cast and crew members proclaimed that cinematographer/special effects man Mario Bava was mainly in charge of the proceedings. Thankfully there are a few above-average camera angles and shots that are eerily lit due to Bava's always keen eye for visuals, but this is an inconsequential saving grace to a relentlessly boring movie with no other redeemable qualities.
(1959)
Dir - Riccardo Freda/Mario Bava
Overall: MEH
Riccardo Freda and again cinematographer turned co-director Mario Bava join forces to unofficially remake The Quartermass Xperiment for a European audience. Caltiki - The Immortal Monster, (Caltiki, il mostro immortale), was another historically noteworthy film in Italian cinema, being
one of the country's early sci-fi outings that gave the careers of both Freda and Bava another push into genre terrain. Unfortunately though, the
film itself is dull, mundane, and derivative of its Hammer
source material. Some of the dialog and one random car
crash are laughable in a way that is likely not intended, plus the
American dubbing does not help the accidental awkwardness any more than bad dubbing ever does. Bava handles
a number of special effect shots and though he is clearly working with unconvincing miniatures and a Doctor Who
worthy monster, these scenes are cleverly shot in heavy shadows that, (along with
being in black and white), do enough to hide the budget constraints. It
is also a nice touch that a Mayan curse element is brought in as a
foundation, though plenty of "superstitions natives and greedy white men
on jungle expeditions resulting in their doom" cliches are also
present.
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