For my last update of 2014, I remember one of the greats:
Knives of the Avenger (1966), in which we contemplate what to call a Western about Vikings. A Northern? A ryer? A drakenskif opera?
5 Dolls for an August Moon (1970), which was Bava’s own pick for his worst movie ever…
Lisa and the Devil (1973), which is my pick for his most eccentric movie ever…
Rabid Dogs (1974), in which Bava spreads his wings only to have the perch collapse under his feet before liftoff…
and…
The House of Exorcism (1975), in which Bava and producer Alfredo Leone resort to truly desperate measures in the hope of recouping some of Leone’s Lisa and the Devil investment.
#1 by Braineater on December 31, 2014 - 1:17 pm
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I was going to suggest a lutefisk western.
#2 by El Santo on December 31, 2014 - 5:57 pm
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I thought about that, too, but ultimately decided that that’s what you’d call a Western made by Scandinavians.
#3 by Alaric on December 31, 2014 - 6:37 pm
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Yeah, this sounds more like a Spaghetti Northern.
#4 by Banjoman on January 2, 2015 - 10:36 am
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How about… spagh-edda?
#5 by Alaric on January 2, 2015 - 12:54 pm
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That’s brilliant. This movie sounds more like a saga than an Edda, though. Saga-Ghetti?
#6 by Doug on January 1, 2015 - 7:34 am
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Ah, I love Lisa and the Devil. One of the few films that truly captures the feel of a nightmare. And yet, it is coherent enough to support several different explanations–depending on which parts are “real”–but Bava never tips his hand as to which explanation is “correct”, leading to all sorts of fascinating speculation.
Also, there are few things as entertaining as seeing someone else watch Lisa and the Devil for the first time.
#7 by blake on January 1, 2015 - 8:14 am
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I was hoping for Hercules in the Haunted World, but that’s OK. Good stuff as Always.
#8 by El Santo on January 2, 2015 - 10:19 pm
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There was never a chance of that this time around. That one’s part five in a series I haven’t even begun yet, and you know my mania for doing things in order.
#9 by blake on January 3, 2015 - 1:15 pm
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True. I suppose you could have done the first two entries if you had wanted to, since he at least did the cinematography for those.
#10 by RogerBW on January 18, 2015 - 2:20 pm
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Knives of the Avenger: I can’t help noticing that this film about Vikings doesn’t seem to include much actual, um, viking, as in going out by sea to plunder and kill. Is there any?
Lisa and the Devil: People do, to be fair, demand explanations for why Adam Sandler is allowed to make anything.
It’s very hard to make a satisfying film where you’re duping the audience about the protagonist – caper films manage it sometimes.
Rabid Dogs: “Fangio is our getaway driver! How can this possibly go wrong? Oh.”
#11 by El Santo on January 19, 2015 - 10:45 am
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Not a bit.