Sunday, August 17, 2014

Bell From Hell (1973)

aka La campana del infierno

John is released from an asylum, jumps on a motorcycle, and visits an old man sitting in the woods.  Who? Why? Where? No idea.  Then he takes a job at a slaughterhouse prior to heading home. In a bit of foreshadowing, John quits after a few days stating he's learned enough.

He heads home to the estate left to him by his mother, where his Aunt and three cousins have been living. John believes they orchestrated his being committed to the asylum so that they could live a life of luxury in his mansion.

John's a bit of a jerk, with practical jokes consisting of make up so that his eyes appear to have been gouged out. Yes, you're so funny John.  He also tells a visitor that his Aunt believes she can see the ghosts of his three cousins, knowing that the girls will be returning shortly from their excursion. Sure enough, as they come in out of the fog, the man bolts believing that he is also seeing three ghosts.

This is one of those slow moving films that I don't enjoy. John is creepy and torments his relatives.  But it's not a good revenge movie because it's not clear if they really had John locked up.  One thing of note is on the final day of filming, the director either fell or jumped from the bell tower, and died.

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