Sexyloutak Absolutely the worst movie.

Siflutter It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

Scarlet The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

Francene Odetta It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.

acidburn-10 I don't know why it took me so long to see this little gem, considering that firstly it was made by one of my favourite Italian directors Mario Bava and that it's considered one of the most important Giallo films and now that it has been released on Arrow films with a restored print, instead of trying to view with a not so great picture quality, and after viewing it I was pleasantly surprised by firstly at how beautiful it looked in its rich vivid colours and considering it was made in 1963, it doesn't look dated at all and very stylish.The storyline here is that on one stormy night a young model is murdered outside a lavish fashion house where she works with a group of other young models and this sparks a chain of events when her diary goes missing which reveals the sordid details of what's going on with the people who work there and not long after more women start to get murdered.This movie is definitely entertaining and relies heavily on its camera-work, set designs, artwork and lighting, all of which creates the perfect atmosphere. I have no complaints with this, only that I would say that the first half of the movie where the majority of the murders takes place is definitely stronger than the second half, which does have a neat little twist at the end which most Giallo's have and given that this movie was the one that started that started that trend, so that was pretty neat and makes this one of the strongest and influence shall of the genre.With a strong cast including Cameron Mitchell and Eva Bartok, 'Blood And Black Lace' is a very beautiful and violent movie where Bava really excels himself as a director and showing off his unique visual style on what otherwise would be a sub-standard script, and okay this may not be the best or most riveting of the genre, but it is very decent and it does pull you into this manic world that Bava has created within this universe.

Mark Turner I can't say this loud enough. This is one of the most gorgeous films I've ever seen released on blu-ray. Seriously it is a visual delight. Let me put it this way and this is no fault in the film. I had to start watching this film 4 different times. I made the mistake of doing so late at night and was so tired I'd fall asleep. Again, this was no fault of the film. And each time I went back, including the final time, I always started at the beginning. Not to remind me of what happened but because I so enjoyed the look of the film. It is beautiful! So let's get the story out of the way first shall we? The film opens with the murder of Isabell, a model who works in an haute couture fashion house on her way home on a dark and stormy night. Her body shows up the next day in a studio closet. As the police begin to investigate the number of suspects grows rather than dwindle. It seems most of the other models had some reason or another to fear Isabella. The owner, the studio's manager, friends and other co-workers as well.A diary that Isabella kept is also discovered but before it can be taken to the police it is stolen. The woman, another model, who stole the diary is tortured and also found murdered. Each time we see the murderer he/she is clothed in a black coat, black gloves and a full face mask. The identity of the murderer as well as who will survive are not revealed until the end of the film.Yes, the story can seem fairly simple. But the twists and turns presented in the backstage issues among the cast make it as much a melodrama as a near perfect giallo film.For those who don't know what giallo is it is a genre of Italian film named so because they presented whodunits, murder mysteries that were similar to the style of writing found in books published in that country that were published with a bold yellow border, giallo meaning yellow in Italian. Those books which featured the writings of Edgar Wallace, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Agatha Christie and more were quite popular. The films were mostly whodunits as well but had several items that became running themes, among them a killer whose face is not seen who wore black gloves. The amount of violence was also fairly extreme for the time and was a noted feature.So what makes this one stand out? The director of the film was Mario Bava, a noted Italian director who came from a cinematographer background. For Bava the look of the film was as important as the story being told if not more so. It shows in this film. The colors used here virtually leap from the screen. Bava used extremes in color to highlight various scenes with the murders taking place in a highly stylized use of lighting and color that I've not seen before. It helps the story rather than hinder it. It catches your eye and makes you watch just to see the images on screen.It was also one of the first of the giallo films, some calling it the very first made although there were a few others that qualified. While it was released in 1964 it holds up to today's standards. Younger viewers might think it is ripping off any number of slasher films they've witnessed but the fact is it was there long before the rest. The film led the way for directors that followed, including the most famous of these other than Bava, Dario Argento. Having worked with Bava the influence he had on Argento is obvious.It's hard to describe just how amazing this film is visually. I know, I keep raving about it but it really is that great. From the opening credits my eyes went wide watching what was on the screen. I kept asking myself how I had never seen this movie but then I thought what sort of condition would it have been in had I seen it years ago? Arrow Video has done an amazing release with this one offering it in a 2k transfer and in 1080p. Until you watch it you won't realize just how amazing the film looks because of this.Not only have they done a great job with the presentation of the actual film the extras are so good that even I watched them. And keep in mind, I'm not one to watch all of the extras on every film. But Arrow does such a great job of it that I can't help myself. Space doesn't allow me to go into detail what they've rounded up but trust me, it is well worth it.Arrow Video has pulled out all stops on this release and it shows. Fans of the film will go insane over the combination of extras combined with the gorgeous presentation. Horror fans may end up discovering a treat that they somehow missed like I did. And collectors will find this a must have for their shelf, an original film that delights all of the senses. For some it might seem dated but for those willing to take the trip this is one Italian film that should be required viewing for film fans and one that I know I'll be watching more than once.

kapelusznik18 ****SPOILERS****Filmed in lush and dazzling colors and mostly, some 90% of it, at night the late Mario Bava's "Blood and Black Lace" set the slandered for all the likewise Italian as well as US & European Giallo slasher movies that was to follow it. Set in an Italian boarding house for fashion models run by Contessa Cristina Como, Eva Bartok, and her American lover Max Marian,Cameron Mitchell,a crazed and masked killer targets the woman staying there starting with Isabella,Francesca Ungaro,whom he strangles to death within the first 10 minutes of the movie. As we soon find out it was Isabella who knew the killer's identity who she was blackmailing for embezzlement money of the boarding house's way of doing business.The film goes on to have the masked killer knock off some half dozen of the woman at the boarding house until with almost a half hour to go in the movie to no one's surprise-It was very obvious right from the start- that his identity is revealed as well as the person-Which wasn't that obvious- who's involved in his string of murders! Trying to throw the police off his scent the killer forces his accomplice to murder another one of the women, by drowning her in a bathtub and slashing her wrist, staying at the boarding house, to provide him with an alibi and then have him or her killed so to have the police case on his crimes closed. It was too bad for him that it didn't quite work out that way and it was that mistake, in his accomplice surviving, that ended up doing him in! ***SPOILERS**** It was police Inspecter Silverster, Thomas Reiner, who smelled a rat in all these killings and the real reason for that is the late Isabella's secret red diary that a number of pages had since gone missing. It was what's in it that implicated a number people who were embezzling the funds of the boarding house and the fashion salon connected to it which lead to the killer's murderous rampage. This at first was just a simple money issue that escalated into serial murder and ended up with the deaths, by them killing each other, of those involved in it.

Leofwine_draca Mario Bava's acclaimed masterpiece of murder and mayhem is widely considered to be the first real "giallo" film. That is, the sub-genre of films which consist of a series of murders perpetrated by a masked villain who is unmasked at the end of the film. These films always have detectives investigating the cases too, and Dario Argento was very fond of this particular type of movie. However, BLOOD AND BLACK LACE is the one that started it all back in the early sixties.Any fan of murder mysteries should watch this film as the twists and turns are very good, enthralling even, and keep the viewer's mind working overtime to figure out who the killer actually is. There's a fair share of red herrings and suspects to contend with, all lensed with Bava's famed stylish camera-work and brimming with sinister atmosphere - the screen is almost always full of shadows, where killers lurk unseen. Watching this film today, I'm reminded of many later films which consciously or not resemble this movie. The killer's blank white face is very similar to that of Michael Myers in HALLOWEEN, except more effective because there are no features, there is no face - it's just blank and expressionless, devoid of humanity. This makes the killer a very frightening and mysterious one indeed.The cast all give it their best and are commendable. The women do their bit and act terrified accordingly. The men are all shifty and suspicious looking, so it's very difficult to spot who exactly is the murderer. The murders are violent and almost always include the victims in their underwear, perhaps giving the title meaning and at least providing some lurid attractiveness - while not gory, we still see the agony of death, the throes of pain. They're very brutal for the time too.A quiet yet effective score provides some suspense, as well as the dark and shadowy sets. The plot weaves all over the place, yet it never becomes absurd or over the top - instead, remaining believable and exciting. BLOOD AND BLACK LACE is really a great Italian thriller, made by one of the masters of horror, and should be seen by any self-respecting mystery, thriller or giallo fan.