Bloody Pit of Horror

"He was a homicidal maniac who LIVED TO KILL!"

1965 1h 27m IT

💀

4.6

SKIP

⭐

4.5

IMDB

★4.6TMDB · 77★4.5IMDB · 2,387

Horror

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

A photographer and his models go to an old, abandoned castle for a photo shoot. Unbeknownst to them, the castle is inhabited by a lunatic who believes himself to be the reincarnated spirit of a 17th-century executioner whose job it is to protect the castle against intruders.

“He was a homicidal maniac who LIVED TO KILL!”

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Cast

Mickey Hargitay
Travis Anderson
Walter Brandi
Rick
Luisa Baratto
Edith
Ralph Zucker
Dermott, the Photographer
Rita Klein
Nancy, the Cover Girl
Alfredo Rizzo
Daniel Parks
Barbara Nelli
Suzy, the Cover Girl
Moa Tahi
Kinojo, the Cover Girl

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Massimo Pupillo
Writers: Roberto Natale, Romano Migliorini
Languages: Italian
Countries: Italy

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

87 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

61 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Massimo Pupillo, shot by Luciano Trasatti. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Gino Peguri. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Mariano Arditi shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Mickey Hargitay and Walter Brandi and Luisa Baratto carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "He was a homicidal maniac who LIVED TO KILL!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0058983 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Massimo Pupillo directs. Luciano Trasatti behind the camera. Gino Peguri scores. Mariano Arditi cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in Italy. Dialogue in Italian.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

187 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.
261 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3Directed by Massimo Pupillo, shot by Luciano Trasatti. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Gino Peguri. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Mariano Arditi shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Mickey Hargitay and Walter Brandi and Luisa Baratto carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "He was a homicidal maniac who LIVED TO KILL!".
8IMDB entry: tt0058983 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Only 77 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.
10Classified under 10 themes, including "photographer", "delusion", "castle", "murder".

The technical file

Cinematography: Luciano Trasatti
Original score: Gino Peguri
Editing: Mariano Arditi
Production design: Franco Fontana
Makeup / hair: Carlo Rambaldi
Runtime: 87 min · 1h 27m
Status: Released
Original language: IT
IMDB: Bloody Pit of Horror (1965)
IMDB rating: 4.5/10 · 2,387 votes
MPAA: Unrated

Also by

Massimo Pupillo

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

Wuchak2019-10-24
★ 6/10
Kitschy Italian torture horror from the mid-60s A group of ten people on a photoshoot near Rome spend the night in a castle owned by an eccentric recluse (Mickey Hargitay) who’s fascinated by an infamous executioner who was executed there over 300 years ago. "Bloody Pit of Horror" (1965) is akin to mid-60’s kitsch like “Village of the Giants” (1965), but with the horror bent of “Horror Hotel” (1960, aka “City of the Dead”) and “Dracula, Prince of Darkness” (1966). Future movies like “The Devil’s Nightmare” (1971) and “Howling V: The Rebirth” (1989) took the template and made better movies, low-budget though they may be. Don’t get me wrong, “Bloody Pit of Horror” is definitely worth checking out for its over-the-top garish entertainment, but Hargitay hams it up too much, although he looks great for the role. The characters are simply uninteresting, which detracts suspense. Luisa Baratto as the bookish Edith ends up being the most alluring female (riding the bull, lol), along with the dumb blonde. The rest are good-looking, but too thin and forgettable. The film runs 1 hour, 27 minutes, and was shot at Castello Piccolomini, Balsorano, L'Aquila, Italy, about a 75 minute drive from Rome with interiors done in the city (studio). GRADE: B-

Production companies