Twitch of the Death Nerve aka as the Bay of
Blood
Mario Bava
R4 DVD
Stomp Visual
Most people haven’t heard of Mario Bava’s Twitch of the Death Nerve aka as the
Mario Bava has created a powerful and shocking film. It has an
incredible mood created by innovative film techniques and a superb soundtrack.
It begins with a very gothic type setting. An old house, fog, night and an
elderly woman in a wheelchair. She is suddenly killed and before you get a
chance to react, her husband is also stabbed to death and his body removed by
an unknown person.
This begins a
violent domino effect, where we are carried through a range of thirteen rather
brutal killings, these range from axes to the face to a rather outrageous spear
through the stomach for a couple making out.
What is unusual is
that this film has a depth and character not present in many of the Eighties
slasher classics. It explores the motivation of the killers. Rather than one
mad serial murderer with whom you can discern little motivation, in Twitch of
the Death Nerve you have a large number of people driven by greed who each,
twisted by a huger for land and money, become bestial murderers. This portrayal
gives a depth to the film and a certain reflection of human character and
motivation. While certainly there is a reveling in the power of each killing,
there is also a meaning which is missing in later more derivative productions.
Each murder is
carefully framed and presented and so not only have a shock value, but a
relevance to the twisted tale as it unfolds.
This is a powerful atmospheric film which stands the test of time
incredibly well. The present DVD edition has
been given a new widescreen (1.78.1) anamorphic transfer and it looks superb.
The colors are truly impressive, the image is clear and this is only a small
amount of flickering or damage. For a film of such age we are very lucky to
have such a high quality edition. The sound is Dolby Digital mono and while
quite clear the dialogue is low in comparison to the music. Twitch of the
Death Nerve was not mixed well, however this is the fault of the
original production and not much can be done. It is the best we can hope for
and certainly better than any edition that has come before, widescreen and
uncut !!
This disc has some
nice extras, a special menu that allows you to view any of the film's murders;
a theatrical trailer; two radio spots, a photo and poster gallery and a Bava
biography and filmography.
This truly is a
classic.