Black Sabbath (1963)
First time watch of my Arrow Video Blu-Ray on a HD TV with my new Blu-Ray player. As stunning a horror cinema experience as I imagined it would be. That every segment is a quality film in its own right only shows how visionary and good a directer Mario Bava was. Looking at other anthology films, even considering the impact that contributions from different directors can have on varying quality, this is no mean feat. Following the success of Black Sunday Bava could have easily indulged in this opportunity to make an anthology film and forgotten about the viewer but as the finished film shows Bava certainly did not.
Contemporary anthology films like VHS (no matter how good some segments are) could learn a lot from Black Sabbath; you don't have to try so hard to be edgy and shocking; opening sequence of the original VHS and 90% of ABC's of Death, I'm looking at you, to create an impact on the viewer. Bava effortlessly does so in his anthology segments by creating a strong, suspenseful and eerie atmosphere through both mesmeric visuals, strong writing, and characters you can, to a degree, relate to. This builds to a truly effective penultimate story;
The Drop Of Water, that ranks among the most chilling cinema experiences I believe a horror fan can uncover and for this viewer, is both a mini masterpiece in its own right and arguably, the pinnacle of Mario's work.
A 10/10 from me.
