That's a bit of a toughy - I haven't seen THE GIRL WHO KNEW TOO MUCH (either version), and the other two you mention, you didn't seem to be impressed with either of them. BAY OF BLOOD is a personal favorite, mainly because Il Maestro got to do with it what he wanted to do with 5 DOLLS FOR AN AUGUST MOON, and it contains so much of his ironic (sardonic?) black humor, and one of the best blow-off bits at the end I've seen in his work. 5 DOLLS... was plagued by interference from the producers, who tried to blueprint Bava's every move. The end result is, in my own opinion, disjointed and unsatisfying.
If you can track it down (not too difficult), check out BLACK SUNDAY - there's a release of his preferred edit with the original title, MASK OF SATAN. After rescuing the producers' fat from the fire 2 or 3 times, they were so grateful, they begged him to direct a project of his choice, which they would finance, and MASK OF SATAN/BLACK SUNDAY was it - entertaining story and a miracle of production, considering the pitance they gave him to make it with.
You might also want to look at CALTIKI, THE IMMORTAL MONSTER. I was prepared for B-movie schlock and didn't know that Bava had "ghost directed" it after the original director walked off the project (deliberately, so Bava would be forced to complete the film!). What I got was a visually interesting story, with credible characters and believable acting, and surpisingly sophisticated effects for the time it was made.
THE WHIP & THE BODY is excellent, as are KILL, BABY... KILL! and HATCHET FOR THE HONEYMOON. Bava's own choice as favorite was LISA & THE DEVIL, and it's certainly unlike any other movie he made (and much better than what was released as HOUSE OF EXORCISM). It has a very dream-like quality, a sort of nightmare reality with the sort of logic wherein everything/anything is possible. By the time it's all over, you're wondering what the hell just happened; did anything just happen? Given your stated tastes, you might like it or you might not, but I think your time will be rewarded.
And I'd certainly recommend a better edit of BAY OF BLOOD!
Argento and Bava share some creative sensibilities, but Argento (to me) seems to lack Bava's dark wit; in any case, if Argento does have it, he doesn't seem to incorporate it into his movies. This doesn't detract from him as a director, mind you, but it does differentiate him from Il Maestro. As far as Fulci is concerned, one either loves him, warts and all, or one doesn't - he can be a specialized taste. Still, I don't think it's a fair comparison with Bava - Bava was an artist, not just in film, he studied to be an actual painter, got into the business as a cinematographer and used his films as a canvas to paint with light, shadow and color. By and large, his films are (if nothing else) beautiful to look at.
Contrariwise, Fulci began as a medical student and all his life retained a not-always-secret desire to be a doctor. His approach to film was more to tell a story and mess your mind. At worst (and I say this as a Fulci fan), his horror/gialli are disjointed, pretentious and boring (THE BLACK CAT leaps to mind); but when he's hot, he's terrific. If you haven't, see LIZARD IN A WOMAN'S SKIN or BEATRICE CENCI, neither of which are horror films, but splendid gialli, and may change your mind (slightly) about Fulci.
I think all of these are available through NetFlix; I'm vertually certain they're all on DVD.
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ODDBear
10 years ago
Wow - 8+ years since I posted this question and so many great feedbacks. I think I checked back for a few weeks; didn't see any reply and then forgot about it. So; thanx for the feedback everyone.
I sort of grew out of my italian phase and I haven't checked out Bava for a number of years but I got around to a few more before that;
"Bay of Blood" is actually quite good and it benefits heavily from not being viewed in a chopped up version.
Really liked his "Four Times that Night" - that former miss Italy is a stunner and overall the film is quite funny, stylish and campy in good way.
Didn't care much for "Baron Blood" - it's stylish as hell but something was off (around 4 years since I saw it; can't remember excactly what)
I kinda' liked "5 Dolls" but it's not great - it's amazing how durable that 10 little indians scenario is and the film is quite lovely to look at - I've even contemplated shelving out for a Blu-ray version because of the film's look
"Lisa and the Devil" is very good - very atmospheric and surreal / House of Exorcism just undoes everything that's good about Lisa
Liked "Blood and Black Lace" too
Never got around to "Black Sunday", "Planet of the Vampires" or "Kill Baby Kill"
As for Fulci - since then I've had a complete change of heart. "Don't Torture a Duckling" is one of my all time favorite Italian movie - "Four of the Apocalypse" is just a great western - "The Psychic" is a nice little thriller and "Lizard in a Woman's Skin" was quite good. Have to check out "One on Top of the Other" one of these days.
As for Bava; I might give that Arrow Blu-ray edition of "Black Sunday" a shot in the near future - time to revisit the Italians!
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