Director: Corrado Farina
Year: 1971
Country: Italy
Alternate Titles: ...hanno cambiato faccia
Genre: Vampire
Plot:
Called away for an important meeting, an automobile agency executive goes to meet his mysterious boss at his house in a remote village, and when he arrives, the boss tries a series of unusual recruitment tactics to ingratiate him into the company with disastrous consequences.
Review:
For the most part, this was a really solid and likable genre effort. Among the better elements to be had here is the immensely effective and enjoyable atmosphere that makes for a pleasingly fun Gothic horror experience to enhance the bizarre scenario depicted. The allegory about the source material this is mimicking come across from the beginning with the one character summoned to a remote, nearly-inhospitable mountainous locate and try to get access to a mysterious boss living there who has a hypnotic form of control over his assistants in charge of maintaining his factory which begins an uneasy relationship with the executive called to visit as he tries to make sense of everything. Although distracted by his duties, the whole location here is given a great touch with the eeriness of his arrival while the village is covered in a heavy, impenetrable fog that makes for an otherworldly sense of atmosphere, complete with the indifference of the village, who barely notice or react to his presence.
Upon arriving at the villa, things start to pick up as the whole thing is drenched in a heavy-handed commercialization plot that doesn’t have much in the way of interest but is still intriguing enough to be unique in its approach. Going forward with his bizarre idea of using a more modern form of bloodsucking by employing soul-draining commercials and adverts rather than the more literal interpretation of the news, there’s a decidedly intriguing notion of what’s going on here as an allegory on the topic of capitalism with the vampires moving on with the times to explore taking money by virtue of their gas company’s commercials and their blood when they’re drained dry. It’s an unusual take that gives this some fantastic ideas at times, with how these elements are going to be brought together, but it’s also unconventional enough that it could be hard to get into what’s going on.
When it sticks to the more traditional elements featured here, it’s a bit hit or miss but generally comes together well. The weirdness of how the villa operates and the eccentric nature of how the vampire lords over his assistants by using guards in mini-trucks and matching suits shepherding guests to the castle, the contrast between the crumbling Middle Eastern village against the ultra-chic interiors of the hosts’ house, and the series of commercial adverts played whenever the guest is about to experience some new part of the house. This all goes nicely alongside the few traditional vampire elements like the Gothic crypt with the vampire’s coffin or the final confrontation that highlights these factors rather well, but it might turn out to be too little too late for those who are wanting and expecting more traditional genre fare here, since little of it comes together with any kind of sense behind it. Far too much of this one has bizarre questions at the end of it all, also lowering this one overall.
Overview: ****/5
An immensely enjoyable, unconventional vampire effort, there’s a lot to like here as it tries to go for a different type of genre fare than would be expected, which may or may not be to an individual’s preference. Those with an appreciation for the content produced here, who enjoy unconventional European cinema, or who are curious about it, will have a lot to like, while most others will want to heed caution.
This review is part of our ongoing series of reviews for Italian Horror Month, every November on the site:
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