TRIBUTE – Hitchcock and Bava; Thirty Years Later

Christian Sellers — Sat, 10 Apr 2010 12:56:41 +0000

This month marks the thirtieth anniversary of the passing of two of cinema’s greatest auteurs. One is perhaps the most influential director of all time and has been recognized in history as such, whilst the other has been relegated to cult status and never given the respect he deserves. Both would be responsible for countless masterpieces and would reinvent various genres, as well be amongst the few to truly understand the magic of filmmaking…

Hitchcock:
The first needs no introduction: Alfred Hitchcock is arguably the most acclaimed director of all time, having been responsible for such classics as Rear Window, Vertigo, Psycho and The Birds. With a film career that spanned fifty years, Hitchcock first began in Britain the silent movie industry in the 1920s, as well as a stint in Germany. He first gained popularity with his early thrillers that included Number 13, The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog and Blackmail, the latter of which would usher in the era of the ‘talkies.’

Further acclaim would come in the 1930s with The Man Who Knew Too Much (a film he would choose to remake twenty years later), The 39 Steps and The Lady Vanishes, before relocating to the United States with Rebecca in 1940. The movie would star screen legend Laurence Olivier and would win the ‘Best Picture’ Academy Award the following year. Continuing his obsession with murder and betrayal, many of Hitchcock’s movies would explore the ‘wrong man on the run’ formula, whilst others during this period would flirt with film noir. Amongst his greatest works during the Second World War were Saboteur, Shadow of a Doubt and Lifeboat.

Amongst the noted actors that he would collaborate with after moving to America were Cary Grant, James Stewart and Ingrid Bergman. The 1950s was perhaps his most successful and acclaimed period, which would result in a variety of stylish and respected work, including Strangers on a Train, Rope, Dial M for Murder (his one and only 3D effort), Rear Window, To Catch a Thief, The Wrong Man, Vertigo and North by Northwest. Whilst 1960’s Psycho would repulse critics upon its initial release, it has since become noted as one of the most influential movies of all time.

He would continue his obsession with espionage and murder with Marnie, Torn Curtain and Topaz, before directing perhaps the darkest movie of his career, Frenzy, which would see him return to Britain. His last movie, Family Plot, failed to achieve the success of his earlier work and Hitchcock would pass away on April 29, 1980 at his home in Bel Air, Los Angeles from kidney failure at the age of eighty. Throughout his long and prestigious career, Hitchcock had directed approximately seventy movies, although there are believed to be more undiscovered or ones that he had not taken credit for. Even today, filmmakers are still attempting to capture the magic that Hitchcock had so effortlessly demonstrated time and time again.

Bava:
The other filmmaker who would die thirty years ago this month was Italian director Mario Bava, the man most associated with the giallo subgenre and an early pioneer of the slasher film. Son of special effects artist and cameraman Eugenio Bava, Mario would first enter the industry as a noted cinematographer in 1939 with Roberto Rossellini’s short La vispa Teresa/Lively Teresa. He would make his own directorial debut just seven years later with the little-seen documentary L’orecchio, which would lead to a string of similar titles.

Having worked as a cinematographer for the likes of Massimo Terzano and Jacquez Tourneur, Bava would be forced to take over as director during the filming of 1956’s I, Vampiri (aka The Devil’s Commandment), when its director, Riccardo Freda, walked from the project after disagreements with the producers. Bava would not receive credit for his directing chores, but would soon find himself in the same situation again when, two years later, he was forced to once again take over from Freda when he stepped down from Caltiki, il mostro immortale (Caltiki, the Immortal Monster). Impressed with his ability to control a set and salvage the movie, the producers finally offered Bava the chance to direct a film of his own, resulting in 1960’s La Maschera del demonio (Black Sunday).

The early 1960s would prove to be a successful time for Bava, which would result in several successful fantasy movies, such as Ercole al centro della terra (Hercules at the Center of the Earth) and Gli invasori (Erik the Conqueror), before directing the stylish thriller La Ragazza che sapeva troppo (The Girl Who Knew Too Much); a film which critics have since stated would provide the blueprint for the giallo genre. The following year would see him create the horror anthology I Tre volti della paura (Black Sabbath), which would see the legendary Boris Karloff as the host. His next effort was the science fiction horror Terrore nello spazio (Planet of the Vampires), which has since been stated as a major influence on Ridley Scott’s Alien.

Other classics from this era would include Operazione paura (Kill, Baby…Kill!), Il Rosso segno della follia (Hatchet for the Honeymoon) and 5 bambole per la luna d’agosto (Five Dolls for an August Moon), before Bava would come under fire for his graphic murder mystery Reazione a Catena (Twitch of the Death Nerve). The movie would be criticized for its departure from his usual restrained and stylish approach and would later be labeled as a ‘video nasty’ in the United Kingdom. The 1970s would prove to be less successful, with Lisa e il diavolo (Lisa and the Devil) being re-cut by its producer and re-released as The House of Exorcism, whilst the footage for Cani arrabbiati (Rabid Dogs) would be confiscated by the courts after the death of one of the financiers. His last movie, Shock, would be released under the title Beyond the Door II, in an effort to cash in on the success of Ovidio G. Assonitis’ supernatural horror Chi sei?, which gained minor acclaim three years earlier under the title Beyond the Door. Bava would pass away on April 25, 1980 at the age of sixty-five.

Purchase Hitchcock and Bava DVDs below:

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TRIBUTE – Georges Méliès

Christian Sellers — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 19:06:26 +0000

Almost seventy years before Apollo 11 made history and Neil Armstrong became the first man to step foot on the moon, French filmmaker Georges Méliès took his audience on a fantastic journey with his twelve minute classic Le Voyage dans la lune, more commonly known as A Trip to the Moon. Shot in 1902, the film would become one of the most iconic images of early cinema and would prove to be a major influence on directors for the next century.

Méliès was forty years old when he made Le Voyage dans la lune and had directed over three hundred short films, including 1896’s Le manoir du diable/The Devil’s Castle, which many critics site as the first ever horror movie, despite being only two minutes in length. Inspired by a variety of classic science fiction literature, the film would become Méliès’ most acclaimed work.

Le Voyage dans la lune is even more of an achievement because cinema at that time was still in its infancy, with very few filmmakers (with the exception of R.W. Paul) embracing the possibilities that this new medium had to offer. Méliès was a former stage magician and would incorporate many of these tricks into his films, including matte paints.

Despite his legacy, by 1913 he had become bankrupt and much of his work would be destroyed or lost forever. It would not be until after his death in 1938 that his reputation as the first ever true filmmaker would be cemented. Along with Le manoir du diable, his crowning achievement would be Le Voyage dans la lune, which he will be forever known for.

Watch Le Voyage dans la lune below…

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TRIBUTE – Hitchcock and Bava; Thirty Years Later

TRIBUTE – Georges Méliès