The Blood Spattered Bride (1972) (Blu-ray Review)

The Blood Spattered Bride (1972) (Blu-ray Review)
Directed By: Vicente Aranda
Starring: Simón Andreu, Maribel Martín, Alexandra Bastedo
Rated: R/Region A/1:85/1080p/Number of Discs 1
Available from Mondo Macabro

After getting married with her husband, Susan travels with him to his isolated manor. The sexual drive of the husband is intense, and Susan feels revulsion towards his sexual games and perversions. Susan notes that there are only paintings of his male ancestors and none of their wives and she learns that their pictures are kept in the basement. When she sees the painting of Mircalla Karstein, a.k.a. Carmilla, without her face, her husband tells that Carmilla killed her husband during their honeymoon. During the night, Susan has dreadful nightmares about Carmilla. When Susan’s husband finds a naked woman buried on the beach, he brings her home and finds that she is Carmilla. Susan is seduced by the woman and they have a lesbian relationship. Meanwhile her husband realizes that his life is in danger and Carmilla is a vampire…

The Blood Splattered Bride certainly has its fair share of blood, but you might actually end up with more boobs than blood when all is said and done. Now, I realize to some that’s no issue and I myself am a fan of T and A, but I did expect perhaps a bit more horror than erotica heading into it. The movies tales a very strange tale of a woman who is apparently raped on her wedding day but says nothing and goes on to get visited by a woman who may very well be a form of vampire. From there, she starts to slip as things get a bit trippy. Then is when things start to get a bit bloody. So, yes, this is a movie that is a bit slow moving at first. I like things when we finally get to the point but I admit I was a bit bored with it from time to time getting there.

You can never say that Mondo Macabra doesn’t go all in on their releases. Love the movie or not, it does come here with an English and Italian audio if you don’t feel like reading subtitles. It also comes with a very nice looking transfer that doesn’t always pop but seems to at least not leave out very much in the way of detail, especially on up close shots. The disc also has some interviews and such to keep you busy once you’ve watched it. I like the release for the film, as all I had before was this movie as an extra on an old Blue Underground Blu-ray I had never watched, but the movie wasn’t exactly what I expected it to be. I do know some of you do love it for what it is and if you do, then you’ll like the release. Was a little too “Jess Franco-ish” for me.

Extras

– BRAND NEW 4K RESTORATION from the original camera negative
– English and Spanish language tracks with optional English subtitles
– Audio commentary by Kat Ellinger and Samm Deighan from the Daughters of Darkness podcast
– Two-part interview with actor Simon Andreu
– Interview with cinematographer Fernando Arribas
– Interview with Jonathan Rigby, author of the book Euro Gothic: Classics of Continental Horror Cinema
– Three never-before-seen alternate scenes, and an alternate ending
– Multiple trailers and radio spots

Quality of Transfer: 90%