Movie Review - Hands Of The Ripper

Hands Of The Ripper

1971

The Cast

This film has got me wanting to read the story that spurned it.  I've always liked the psychological idea of hereditary madness and this is a pretty good example of that... but with a possible twist.

Jack the Ripper is being chased down so he runs to the safety of his mistress' house.  Still caught up in the killing fugue, he attacks and kills his mistress in front of their young child.  Years later the child has become a young woman, Anna (Rees) and is helping an old woman to run a medium scam, pretending to be the dead family members and friends of the clients she entertains with her seances.  It's at one of these meetings that her path crosses with Dysart (Godfrey)... a pervert who buys her virginity from Mrs Golding (Bryan).  However, things take a nasty turn when he tries to force himself on her and Mrs Golding comes to her rescue.  Mrs Golding is killed, but who is the murderer?

The thing I liked most about this story is its darkness.  Not only do you have a psychotic killer, but a doctor who is willing to overlook the murders so he can view and record the killer's moods.  He's even willing to team up with a miscreant to get his results.

There's nothing bad about this movie at all.  It could have been stronger had the director opted to add a darkness to the atmosphere.  For me, it was a little light, especially when considering all the bleaker subject matters.  Though there are some really good shots in the film.  The ending in the whispering gallery at Saint Paul's is very well done.  As is the "Oh My God!!!  That's gonna leave a mark," moment when Dr Pritchard (Porter) pulls the sword from his side.  The moment when the bloody sword hangs from the doorknob, swaying and banging, will stay with me for a while.  Very iconic and well thought out.

Another thing that may have strengthened the film is the hinted at possession of Anna by her father Jack The Ripper.  If this had become a story arc on its own then it would have opened up a few more possibilities for twists and turns.  It would have turned it into a full horror film by doing so.

However, this is a good psychological thriller based on The Ripper mythos.  I would recommend this to everyone.

I give this a Ripperriffic 6.5 out of 10.

The Trailer

Video Nasty - Bay Of Blood

Bay Of Blood

1971

Nuova Linea Cinematografica : Hallmark Releasing / Hokushin Audio Visual / Image Entertainment / Arrow Video / Cult Epics / Gorgon Video

8.25 / 10

Bay of Blood is listed as a Mystery, Horror, Thriller film.  Well, two out of three ain't bad... this is NOT a horror film, it doesn't really fall into the Stalker genre either because at it's core is a solid Thriller and Mystery... just with lots of gore...

The opening sequence is a masterful exercise in creating atmosphere and tension as the director, Mario Bava, shows us the death of a wheelchair-bound woman.  Bava gives the audience an uneasy feeling by hinting that something isn't quite right.  The elderly woman wheels herself slowly to the window and looks out, though when she doesn't notice anything amiss she starts back into the house.  Something catches her attention and she turns round towards the window once again.  It's at this point she spots the noose... hands push her towards the awaiting death...  as the rope tightens around her neck, somebody kicks her wheelchair away...  This is shot in minimal light, though Bava makes sure it's not too dark giving the scene an eerie feeling.  This is one of the better opening sequences I've seen in a movie as it immediately grabs the viewer and pulls them headlong into the story...  Who is this woman?  Why has she been murdered?  Who murdered her?  These questions get answered but are replaced with more mysteries in the course of the movie.

The writers, Franco Barberi and Dardano Sacchetti, and screenwriters, Filippo Ottoni, Giuseppe Zaccariello, and Mario Bava, have scripted a tight murder mystery.  As grisly death after grisly death occurs the audience is wondering what is happening as four sightseers are slaughtered.  Slowly, the killer's motives are exposed and revealed to the viewers, with a couple of twists in the tale.  It's a very good story and I didn't really work out whodunnit until it was disclosed.  This was fantastic for me as I usually work out the murderer and their motives well before the reveal.

The special effects are extraordinary, even today... there's one scene where one of the sightseers gets a machete to the face, though the kill shot is off camera the scene where the killer pulls it out of his victims head isn't.  I must admit it's more than a little disturbing due to the reality of the effects.

I'm still not too sure about the ending though.  I have a dark and morbid sense of humour so the finale made me smile, though I don't think it quite fits with the film.  It also has a feeling of being added to try and give the story a moralistic finish.

Should you like murder mysteries then I would advise you to give this a viewing, though you have been warned about the goriness of some of the death scenes.

This has to be one of the strangest and artistic trailers I've ever seen, please give it a watch, though it gives very little away about how good the movie is.

Nergling - The Video Nasties Scare - Bay Of Blood