Warner Bros released I Tre Volti Della Paura (literally: The Three Faces of Fear) in Italy on 23 August 1963. Eight months later, they released it in the United States as Black Sabbath.
As far as I know, Mario Bava only directed this one anthology film. Italy was not big into anthology films. Few producers are keen on them. There are many reasons. Most are not compelling. For examples, film “critics” tend to treat them as individual shorts that are judged accordingly. So even with positive reviews, the “critic” will find this or that sequence less good. Thus: no four stars for you!
But I think it is that anthology films are just harder to make. They normally require more locations, sets, actors, and crew. The writing is more difficult both on the individual segments and overall to make them work together.
Bava didn’t have any of these problems on Black Sabbath. He got a budget that was on the high end of his films at that time. And Bava was always a darling of the “critics,” even when they didn’t like the film.
I like Black Sabbath a lot. Bava was at his best when creating gothic atmospheres, as he does here and in Black Sunday. But I’m not a huge Mario Bava fan. He is great technically. But he lacks passion. I fully admit that he’s a better filmmaker than Lucio Fulci, but I’d almost always rather watch Fulci.
In addition to its atmosphere, Black Sabbath shines by making the narrator a bit cheeky. Efforts to translate EC Comics to the screen have largely failed because the hosts don’t work. The puns and broad humor that work on the page just don’t translate to the page. It works here because it isn’t too much.
Let’s celebrate the release of Black Sabbath by watching it:
Other 23 August Anniversaries
Filmmakers
- Gene Kelly (1912-1996): Actor known for his dancing, especially in Singin’ in the Rain.
- Vera Miles (1930-): Actor known from The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance and Psycho.
- Barbara Eden (1931-): Jeannie!
- Shelley Long (1949-): Actor known for Hello Again and The Brady Bunch Movie.
- Roger Avary (1965-): Screenwriter of Pulp Fiction and the excellent Silent Hill.
Films
- The Pit and the Pendulum (1961): A brother visits his dead husband’s castle to find out the truth.
- The Horrible Dr Hichcock (1962): A woman weds a necrophiliac, which never goes well.
- To Kill A Clown (1972): A couple on vacation are attacked by the guy they are renting from.
- Godzilla 1985 (1985): Thirty years later, the monster returns.
- Teen Wolf (1985): High school student becomes a werewolf.
- Warning Sign (1985): A small group fights a virus outbreak.
- Dead Again (1991): A man investigates a woman who has lost her memory but learns he has a connection to her.
- The Island of Dr Moreau (1996): Mad scientist has an island.
- Exorcism (2003): As the end of times come, demons possess more and more people.
- You’re Next (2013): Family members want to kill everyone else to get money. Bloodbath ensues.
- I Survived a Zombie Holocaust (2014): Real zombies show up on a zombie film set. Excellent horror comedy.
Black Sabbath (1963) DVD cover via Amazon under Fair Use.