‘Pray to God it’s not true!’
The Legend of Blood Castle – aka Blood Ceremony and The Female Butcher – is a 1972 Spanish-Italian horror film directed by Jorge Grau (Let Sleeping Corpses Lie) from a screenplay co-written with Juan Tébar, Sandro Continenza and [uncredited] José Luis Garci.
The X Films-Luis Films production stars Lucia Bosé, Espartaco Santoni, Ewa Aulin, Ana Farra and Espartaco Santoni. It was originally titled: Ceremonia sangrienta in Spain and Le vergini cavalcano la morte in Italy.
Reviews:
“It’s slow, atmospheric, serious and ominous. Church bells, wolf howls, and harpsichord riffs are used deftly to keep the viewer on edge. It’s well-acted and well shot, with authentic dark 18th-century furnishings. But it’s unpleasant to watch and makes you unhappy.” David Elroy Goldweber, Claws & Saucers
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“This is really a very fine example of eurohorror, well-made and with an intelligent and complex script that comes together very satisfactorily.” Cult Movie Reviews
“The cinematography is handled skillfully, the tone is downright serious, the acting doesn’t border on campy, and the gothic trappings are of the highest caliber, from authentic castles and old-world exteriors to striking period costume designs.” DVD Drive-In
“That the film originated as a personal project is obvious from the start. Despite plenty of visceral material, it’s a sombre and thoughtful affair, boasting a sophisticated focus on Erzsébet’s insecurity and accumulated guilt together with a sardonic critique of the mob mentality that holds sway directly outside her castle.” Jonathan Rigby, Euro Gothic
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“It would be unfair to mention that Grau is more than just a competent filmmaker. Both his included films show some fine attention to visual detail, but he too suffers from disinterest in anything non-exploitative. It just seems too hard for producers to realise that the context in which their violence occurs can serve to make the image stronger.” Ric Meyers, For One Week Only
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“The Legend of Blood Castle, after a slow build, stands as one of the more compelling (if sadly infrequently fleshy and bloody) treatments.” Mike “McBeardo” McFadden, Heavy Metal Movies
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“While the film takes a little while to get going, an excellent last half ensures that this one delivers all the thrills and chills you’d expect from a seventies era European vampire picture. Grau directs with a pretty steady hand and paces the movie quite deliberately, building to a wholly satisfying conclusion…” Rock! Shock! Pop!
“The film itself, unusually, has very little of the gothic sumptuousness that one would expect. Grau draws a cold film around us – and this works as the subject matter suits such coldness. The jump in narrative is problematic on first view – though after that one knows that the narrative has been less jumped and more delayed.” Taliesin Meets the Vampires
“Languid pacing aside, the flick has a solid enough premise. It’s not altogether unwatchable, yet it’s slow and talky and it takes its sweet as time getting going. There’s still some cool sh*t here and there (the highlight comes when the townspeople cut the head off of a suspected vampire and burn it so nothing but the skull is left)…” The Video Vacuum
Main cast and characters:
Lucia Bosé … Erzebeth Bathory – Something Creeping in the Dark
Espartaco Santoni … Karl Ziemmer – Lisa and the Devil
Ewa Aulin … Marina – Death Smiles at Murder
Ana Farra … Nodriza
Silvano Tranquilli … Médico – The Black Belly of the Tarantula; Web of the Spider; The Horrible Doctor Hichcock
Lola Gaos … Carmilla
Enrique Vivó … Alcalde
María Vico … Maria Plojovitz
Ángel Menéndez … Magistrado
Adolfo Thous … Juez
Ismael García Romen … Capitán (as Ismael García-Romeu)
Raquel Ortuño … Irina
Loreta Tovar … Sandra (as Dolores Tovar)
Franca Grey … Nadja
Ghika … Inge
Filming locations:
Estudios Ballesteros, Madrid, Spain
Nuevo Baztán, Madrid, Spain
Pedraza de la Sierra, Segovia, Castilla y León, Spain
Sepúlveda, Madrid, Spain
Related:
Countess Dracula (1970)
