This is really quite an odd film on many levels. Number one, it's quite fascinating, and is quite well made, but what really struck me was how it jumps around from complete horror, to being outright comedic in places.
Barbara Steele is amazing, especially when you realize that she did all her shots in one day, but then you've got Mel Welles doing his version of Falstaff or Jackie Gleason, and the chase scene is way beyond the Keystone Kops! They're almost The Three Stooges, as they go waddling around in utter disarray! No wonder Phillip can't shoot them, they're absolute idiots!! A movie you can truly watch, and say, "I don't get it," it's really not bad, but one thing for sure, the music was whack!
The genius Mel Welles as the drunken pervert slob Ladislav Groper is watching something on TV, and while you never get to see it, it sounds like a cross between that Mexican comedy TV show with the guy dressed like a big bumblebee, and an extreme "Benny Hill" episode! Whatever it is, he's sure getting a big kick out of it, and that, combined with a bit from the end of the film, is where this segment of music from the 1966 Italian movie
"La Sorella Di Satana" comes from!!
Has there ever been a film before or since where a character had this much food in his beard?
This witch monster thing is as horrific as anything we've seen lately, a really ugly woman, and
so much better than "Frankenstein's Daughter!"
Barbara Steele and a Volkawagen Bug, now that just says 1966, and it doesn't get much better than that!!
The music in the original Italian release was composed by Paul Ferris,(You can search our archives if you want to know more about Paul), and for some reason they had Ralph Ferraro redo the music for the American release. Ralph was still working as orchestrator in the movies until just a couple of years ago!!
So, there you go, "The She-Beast" and just remember, way before Arnie, Barbara Steele said, "I'll be back!"
This is really quite an odd film on many levels. Number one, it's quite fascinating, and is quite well made, but what really struck me was how it jumps around from complete horror, to being outright comedic in places. 
Barbara Steele is amazing, especially when you realize that she did all her shots in one day, but then you've got Mel Welles doing his version of Falstaff or Jackie Gleason, and the chase scene is way beyond the Keystone Kops! They're almost The Three Stooges, as they go waddling around in utter disarray! No wonder Phillip can't shoot them, they're absolute idiots!! A movie you can truly watch, and say, "I don't get it," it's really not bad, but one thing for sure, the music was whack! 
The genius Mel Welles as the drunken pervert slob Ladislav Groper is watching something on TV, and while you never get to see it, it sounds like a cross between that Mexican comedy TV show with the guy dressed like a big bumblebee, and an extreme "Benny Hill" episode! Whatever it is, he's sure getting a big kick out of it, and that, combined with a bit from the end of the film, is where this segment of music from the 1966 Italian movie "La Sorella Di Satana" comes from!! 
Has there ever been a film before or since where a character had this much food in his beard? 
This witch monster thing is as horrific as anything we've seen lately, a really ugly woman, and so much better than "Frankenstein's Daughter!" 
Barbara Steele and a Volkawagen Bug, now that just says 1966, and it doesn't get much better than that!! 
The music in the original Italian release was composed by Paul Ferris,(You can search our archives if you want to know more about Paul), and for some reason they had Ralph Ferraro redo the music for the American release. Ralph was still working as orchestrator in the movies until just a couple of years ago!! 
So, there you go, "The She-Beast" and just remember, way before Arnie, Barbara Steele said, "I'll be back!"
That's weird, the movie's actually in color and the witch's skin is a gross dark green!!
ReplyDeleteLest we forget, this film was the debut feature from wunderkind director Michael Reeves. He would go on to do THE SORCERORS with Boris Karloff and WITCHFINDER GENERAL with Vincent Price before dying of a drug overdose while still in his twenties.
ReplyDeleteI'm looking at the photo of Barbara next to the VW beetle. Well, in 1967, I had a brand new dark blue beetle and a girlfriend that looked just like that! Man, what a great year!!
ReplyDelete