As always, there may be spoilers here. And the trailer may be NSFW and/or NSFL.
Session: Deadly Dykes (Week 4)
Movie: The Blood Spattered Bride (1972)
Directed by Vicente Aranda
A yound, scared bride is haunted by her new husband's long-dead relative (who happens to be a lesbian vampire). Horror ensues.
Reaction and Other Folderol:
The biggest problem with BSS is its lofty pretensions of being some kind of study of psych-sexual obsession and fear, or a kind of virulent man-hating feminism. The young bride, Susan (Maribel Martin), is terrified of losing her virginity. Her fear of sex is a recurring theme, an it transforms her, as she is increasingly influenced by Carmila/Mircala (Alexandra Bastedo) who urges her to kill the men in her life. The pretension is made even more obvious by the trailer (which, as per class custom, we didn't see until after the movie).
In some ways it reminded me of the more recent Thelma and Louise. I have heard both praise and hatred for T&L by people who see it as an exploration of girl power, as the titular characters rampage through Texas, exacting revenge on men. But I could never really see it that way, since the bottom line is that the two women in that movie ultimately commit suicide, preferring to die rather than drive through Texas. BSS similarly features some graphic violence against men -- one man has his genitals carved out and another takes a shotgun blast to the groin (both after the victims are dead). But ultimately the women, driven by fear, all end up dead as well. So it's hardly a real victory.
Putting aside the psychological analysis (and acknowledging that I don't have a degree in that field, I was annoyed by a certain incoherence to the plot. A lot was left unexplained -- or explained poorly. So I was often wondering what the hell was going on.
But putting those issues aside, I couldn't help but find the movie compelling. I wanted to know what was going to happen. It captivated me in a way more-coherent movies often fail.
Ratings
Me: 8
Bob-O: 7.5
Dave: 9.8
Ethan: 10
Joe: 9.8
Sharon's reaction to the trailer: "I like the pigeons."
Cats: No cats, but there are lots of homing pigeons and a fox.
No comments:
Post a Comment