The Devil's Wedding Night (1973)

Good start, but then it gets ruined

Fantastic!

The first must-see film of the year.

Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

The Devil's Wedding Night (1973) ** (out of 4) Archaeologist Karl Schiller (Mark Damon) is doing research on a mythical ring that was apparently once owned by Count Dracula. Even though his twin brothers tries to talk him out of going, Karl heads off to Transylvania where he goes to a castle ran by Countess de Vries (Rosalba Neri) and her assistant Lara (Esmeralda Barros).THE DEVIL'S WEDDING NIGHT is one of the most popular EuroHorror movies out there but I'm going to guess the main reason is because of its public domain status and the fact that this film has been included in so many cheap releases that most collectors would have bought one of the various versions at some point in their life. That's not to say that this is a completely worthless film because it isn't but at the same time it's certainly not what one would consider a "good" movie.Like most European films from this era that deals with vampires, this one here has a rich atmosphere as well as plenty of nudity, sex and of course blood. There are some effective moments throughout the picture but the highlight has to be a sequence where Neri is bathed in blood before standing up where we get a terrific shot of the blood covering her body as the fog rises and covers here. Neri was one of the most beautiful starlets from this era and she's very effective in the film here. Obviously she's on full display in regards to the nudity, which is never a bad thing. Damon is also good in his two roles and Barros is effective as well.As I said, director Luigi Batzella does a very good job at building up some atmosphere and a few of the scenes are quite effective but at just 83 minutes there are still plenty of moments where the film becomes quite dull and talky. Even with that short of a running time the film seems long but the ending packs a nice punch. THE DEVIL'S WEDDING NIGHT isn't a masterpiece or even a good film but fans of Neri will want to check it out.

There are roughly 18,262 days in a 50-year period. Thus, I would have to say that the odds of twin brothers Karl and Franz Schiller, in the 1978 Eurosleaze horror flick "The Devil's Wedding Night," arriving at the castle of Countess Dolingen de Vries in Transylvania on the one night in 50 years when village virgins are sacrificed is, well, 18,262 to 1. Still, the viewer can well imagine on which night they DO arrive: that's right, the Night of the Virgin Moon! In their quest for Wagner's legendary Ring of the Nibelungen, which gives its owner almost limitless powers, the brothers (well played, I suppose, by Mark Damon) run afoul of not only the beautiful vampiric countess, but her castleful of zombie retainers, as well. In the role of the countess we have the perfect 10 Eurobabe Rosalba Neri (here called Sara Bay, for some reason), an actress who I only recently became enamored of after admiring her performance as the doomed nymphomaniac in 1971's "Slaughter Hotel." Rosalba, though a talented thespian (and, in this film, lesbian) and much more than just a gorgeous face, nonetheless still looks incredible here, especially when streaked with blood and rising out of a steaming vat. She easily flaps away with the film. But there are still other, modest pleasures to be had here, in a film that ultimately comes off as sleazy shlock. Like another Italian film that I recently saw, 1960's "Mill of the Stone Women," "The Devil's Wedding Night" features a disorienting, drug-induced, psychedelic freakout sequence that comes roughly halfway in. Director Luigi Batzella and composer Vasili Kojucharov's contributions do create a film with some creepy atmosphere, and for all you hound dogs out there, the five virgins that are called to the castle, stripped and butchered are quite a toothsome lot. In all, certainly not a classic or even very good film, but still fun. Unfortunately, this DVD from Shout Factory showcases a very damaged-looking print that is only just barely watchable, and with no extras to speak of other than some snide comments from Elvira. Even this sleazy piece of Eurohorror deserves a better treatment!

Unlike the only other reviewer of this title, I thought this was quite terrific. Actually I was amazed at how good it is.My overall impression was of a film that had a Hammer vibe, with a couple twists - the twists being more blood (though there's not a tremendous amount), and more overt nudity (several topless shots).Other than that it is as good - and silly - as Hammer vampire flicks of the day. Sure the plot is a bit daft, the whole thing turns on possession of an ancient ring, but what do you expect from a vampire film of this era? It didn't matter to me at all.The copy I saw was from tape, so the quality wasn't great. Never mind though, seeing it was better than missing out.As for the previously mentioned "lesbian" sequences, they're tame, and along the lines of the classic Hammer film "The Vampire Lovers".So, if you're a Hammer fan who doesn't mind a slight Euro influence on the ambiance, then this is a film you simply must seek out. I think it's terrific and would buy a remastered edition in a heart beat.

A 19th century version of Indian Jones goes looking for a Ring of Vermougglian of Wagnerian legend in Castle Dracula in Transylvania!(While he's at it he might also look around for the mythical South American city of El Dorado). He stays at an inn at a nearby town and finds out from the attractive innkeeper's daughter that once every year during the full moon the town sends five virgin sacrifices to the mysterious inhabitants of the castle (thus the Italian title of this movie). After briefly pausing to help the innkeeper's daughter with her virginity problem, he heads to the castle. (The guy has an amulet which supposedly protects him from all evil, but in an act of unbelievable stupidity he leaves it at the inn). He meets the inhabitants of the castle-- Countess Dracula (Rosalba Neri) and her sinister lesbian servant. He quickly forgets about the Ring of Vermougghlian (being obviously more interested in Aureolas of Neri) and winds up sealed in a coffin and turned into a vampire for his trouble. Then just when you think the movie couldn't get any stupider his identical twin brother shows up for some reason. . .This movie like "Death Smiles at Murder", "The Reincarnation of Isabel" and the director's more famous "Nude for Satan" was made at a time when the Italian Gothic horror films of the 1960's had pretty much completely sunk into blood-drenched and sex-fueled delirium. Most of these other movies were content to have no coherent plot at all; this one instead just has a really stupid one. The main attraction here, of course, is the numerous nude scenes by Rosalba Neri and the sequence where the five virgins are sacrificed (which, of course, involves each of them being stripped naked and stabbed to death by the lesbian servant). A professional critic I once read describes the famous scene where blood is poured on on Neri's nude, writhing body as "pretty unappealing". While I would never use the words "Rosalba Neri", "writhing, nude body" and "unappealing" in the same sentence, she is pretty much wasted here. Neri was a great actress when given a chance and this could have been a memorable role for her (like the famous Erica Blanc role in the similar "The Devil's Nightmare"), but this movie is just too stupid and ham-handedly executed. For what it's worth Neri's "blood bath" is longer and much more erotic than the one Ingrid Pitt takes in "Countess Dracula" (which no doubt inspired the one here). Die-hard flesh hounds at least won't be disappointed. I can't really recommend this to anyone else though.