PIC of the Week – The Vampire and the Ballerina
Article series by Ray Schillaci
Since its 1960 premiere, Renato Polselli’s The Vampire and the Ballerina has been unavailable to the public. Fans of the fanzines Famous Monsters and Fangoria were only afforded glimpses of this Giallo favorite. Finally, Shout! Factory gives us a glorious Blu to get thrilled over. For the uninitiated to the Giallo genre, be warned; bad dubbing and music scores are a staple of this genre. How could one go wrong with Black Swan crossed with a bloodthirsty vampire?
Now, it’s not exactly that, but the imagery is great. The vampire is ghastly (for the ’60s) and the ladies are lovely. Okay, so that doesn’t fly in this politically charged climate. The ladies are ghastly and the vampire is lovely…if you’re blind. This movie is so nostalgic for those of us that remember the Italian gore shows. Of course, the violence is mild compared to today, and your kids will probably be laughing,
Don’t know how much more you can ask for with a movie shot in B&W for maximum gothic effect, an old dark castle, and, oh yeah, did I mention the vampire is a 400 hundred year-old countess with a robot-like man servant? Mind you, the storyline is weak, and for classical nuts get ready to be disappointed, the dancing is to jazz music. What us horror buffs are excited about is the chance to finally see the way Polselli shot his creepy atmospheric tale not caring about a coherent storyline. Wow, that brings to mind Lynch’s last stab at the sequel to Twin Peaks. But, this damn thing looks linear compared to that mental mind meltdown.
Little mentioned in the ways of extras. New high def transfer of the film sourced from the last surviving film elements with a 1.66:1 picture ratio. Original mono and language is English – sorry no original Italian with subtitles (although, that would’ve been cool). But, there is a vintage condensed (9min 55 sec) 8MM version of the film. Remember those little silent reels? God, I’m dating myself.
Best Price – Amazon and Best Buy – $19.99
