Black Sabbath

"A story that goes beyond the boundaries of the Supernatural to the half-world of the living dead...Where a woman's soul inhabits a fly's body...Where vampires suck only the blood of those they love dearest."

1963 1h 35m IT

👍

7.2

SOLID

★7.2TMDB · 497

Horror

Synopsis

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Three tales of supernatural horror include a woman plagued by threatening phone calls, a family targeted by vampiric monsters, and a deceased medium who wreaks havoc upon the living.

“A story that goes beyond the boundaries of the Supernatural to the half-world of the living dead...Where a woman's soul inhabits a fly's body...Where vampires suck only the blood of those they love dearest.”

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Cast

Boris Karloff
Gorca (segment "The Wurdalak")
Mark Damon
Vladimire d'Urfe (segment "The Wurdalak")
Michèle Mercier
Rosy (segment "The Telephone")
Susy Andersen
Sdenka (segment "The Wurdalak")
Lidia Alfonsi
Mary (segment "The Telephone")
Jacqueline Pierreux
Helen Chester (segment "A Drop Of Water")
Glauco Onorato
Giorgio (segment "The Wurdalak")
Massimo Righi
Pietro (segment "The Wurdalak")

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Mario Bava
Writers: Marcello Fondato, Alberto Bevilacqua, Mario Bava
Languages: Italian
Countries: France, 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

ERA

Did you know

63 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 2 countries: France, Italy.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Mario Bava, shot by Ubaldo Terzano. 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 Roberto Nicolosi. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Editor Mario Serandrei 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

Boris Karloff and Mark Damon and Michèle Mercier carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "A story that goes beyond the boundaries of the Supernatural to the half-world of the living dead...Where a woman's soul inhabits a fly's body...Where vampires suck only the blood of those they love dearest.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0057603 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Mario Bava directs. Ubaldo Terzano behind the camera. Roberto Nicolosi scores. Mario Serandrei cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in France, Italy. Dialogue in Italian.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

163 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
2International production across 2 countries: France, Italy.
3Directed by Mario Bava, shot by Ubaldo Terzano. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Roberto Nicolosi. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Mario Serandrei shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Boris Karloff and Mark Damon and Michèle Mercier carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "A story that goes beyond the boundaries of the Supernatural to the half-world of the living dead...Where a woman's soul inhabits a fly's body...Where vampires suck only the blood of those they love dearest.".
8IMDB entry: tt0057603 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Classified under 11 themes, including "nurse", "vampire", "telephone", "stalker".

The technical file

Cinematography: Ubaldo Terzano
Original score: Roberto Nicolosi
Editing: Mario Serandrei
Production design: Giorgio Giovannini
Costume design: Tina Grani
Makeup / hair: Otello Fava
Runtime: 95 min · 1h 35m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Original language: IT
IMDB: Black Sabbath (1963)

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Mario Bava

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Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2023-05-18
★ 6/10
Boris Karloff introduces this triptych of short stories. I found the first, the shortest, to be the least interesting centring around a greedy nurse who robs a corpse of a valuable ring only to find that it's erstwhile owner isn't quite finished with it, or her, quite yet! The second sees a beautiful woman return to her apartment one evening only to find herself subjected to repeated telephone calls warning her that she shall not see the morning! Michèle Mercier is quite effective as the terrified "Rosy" in this story. Finally, Karloff himself takes to the stage in a rather lengthier, enjoyable, vampire story that sees a travelling count discover the body of a dreaded bandit and take it to a nearby farm. It's only once there, and with the return of the father "Gorca", that he begins to realise that this danger has already been "invited in"! The productions have a very Hammer look to them, the make up and visual effects (especially in the first story) don't hold up so well, but in the main, the three stories are quite solid with portentous messages of revenge for those who would steal or cheat or kill! You are unlikely to recall it a few days after watching, but Bava knew how to do budget/studio horror quite well and the last two stories make a decent fist of developing some sense of menace and threat. Good fun.

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