The Whip and the Body (1963)
Mario Bava was at the peak of his powers in the mid sixties and The Whip and the Body is a prime example of those powers.
Starring Christopher Lee and Daliah Lavi this is perhaps Bava's most romantic film, albeit with a dangerous edge to it. Whilst it may not be the most thrilling film it's one that draws you in to Bava's delightfully Gothic haunted world. The cinematography is exquisite, and the colours, it's like watching a beautiful painting come to life, from the Poldark esq beach scenes to the drapes billowing in the wind in the creepy old mansion, Bava paints before our eyes a canvas with textures only the very best can achieve.
The most exciting thing is that Bava does this on a limited budget rather than some huge Hollywood epic and the subject of his brush strokes is a classic ghost story of psycho-sexual revenge and censor baiting sadomasochism - Now that's art.
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