The Devil's Wedding Night (1973)
** (out of 4)
Archaeologist Karl Schiller (Mark Damon) is doing research on a mythical ring that was apparently once owned by Count Dracula. Even though his twin brothers tries to talk him out of going, Karl heads off to Transylvania where he goes to a castle ran by Countess de Vries (Rosalba Neri) and her assistant Lara (Esmeralda Barros).
THE DEVIL'S WEDDING NIGHT is one of the most popular EuroHorror movies out there but I'm going to guess the main reason is because of its public domain status and the fact that this film has been included in so many cheap releases that most collectors would have bought one of the various versions at some point in their life. That's not to say that this is a completely worthless film because it isn't but at the same time it's certainly not what one would consider a "good" movie.
Like most European films from this era that deals with vampires, this one here has a rich atmosphere as well as plenty of nudity, sex and of course blood. There are some effective moments throughout the picture but the highlight has to be a sequence where Neri is bathed in blood before standing up where we get a terrific shot of the blood covering her body as the fog rises and covers here. Neri was one of the most beautiful starlets from this era and she's very effective in the film here. Obviously she's on full display in regards to the nudity, which is never a bad thing. Damon is also good in his two roles and Barros is effective as well.
As I said, director Luigi Batzella does a very good job at building up some atmosphere and a few of the scenes are quite effective but at just 83 minutes there are still plenty of moments where the film becomes quite dull and talky. Even with that short of a running time the film seems long but the ending packs a nice punch. THE DEVIL'S WEDDING NIGHT isn't a masterpiece or even a good film but fans of Neri will want to check it out.
** (out of 4)
Archaeologist Karl Schiller (Mark Damon) is doing research on a mythical ring that was apparently once owned by Count Dracula. Even though his twin brothers tries to talk him out of going, Karl heads off to Transylvania where he goes to a castle ran by Countess de Vries (Rosalba Neri) and her assistant Lara (Esmeralda Barros).
THE DEVIL'S WEDDING NIGHT is one of the most popular EuroHorror movies out there but I'm going to guess the main reason is because of its public domain status and the fact that this film has been included in so many cheap releases that most collectors would have bought one of the various versions at some point in their life. That's not to say that this is a completely worthless film because it isn't but at the same time it's certainly not what one would consider a "good" movie.
Like most European films from this era that deals with vampires, this one here has a rich atmosphere as well as plenty of nudity, sex and of course blood. There are some effective moments throughout the picture but the highlight has to be a sequence where Neri is bathed in blood before standing up where we get a terrific shot of the blood covering her body as the fog rises and covers here. Neri was one of the most beautiful starlets from this era and she's very effective in the film here. Obviously she's on full display in regards to the nudity, which is never a bad thing. Damon is also good in his two roles and Barros is effective as well.
As I said, director Luigi Batzella does a very good job at building up some atmosphere and a few of the scenes are quite effective but at just 83 minutes there are still plenty of moments where the film becomes quite dull and talky. Even with that short of a running time the film seems long but the ending packs a nice punch. THE DEVIL'S WEDDING NIGHT isn't a masterpiece or even a good film but fans of Neri will want to check it out.