La frusta e il corpo (1963)

Director:

Mario Bava

Writers:

Ernesto Gastaldi (screenplay)
Ugo Guerra (screenplay)

Release Date:

10 December 1965 (USA)

Genre:

Horror

Tagline:

The most deliriously romantic horror picture ever made!

Plot:

In the 19th century, a sadistic nobleman terrorizes the members of his family. He is found dead, but his ghost soon returns to haunt the residents of his castle.

Plot Keywords:

Castle | Ghost | Dagger | Sadist | Abused Woman

Cast

Daliah Lavi	...	Nevenka Menliff
Christopher Lee	...	Kurt Menliff
Tony Kendall	...	Christian Menliff
Ida Galli	...	Katia (as Isli Oberon)
Harriet Medin	...	Giorgia (as Harriet White)
Gustavo De Nardo	...	Count Menliff (as Dean Ardow)
Luciano Pigozzi	...	Losat (as Alan Collins)
Jacques Herlin	...	Priest

Also Known As:

Le corps et le fouet (France)
Night Is the Phantom (UK) (dubbed version)
Son of Satan
The Body and the Whip
The Way and the Body
The Whip and the Body
The Whip and the Flesh (International: English title)
What (USA)

Runtime:

France:85 min | Italy:91 min | UK:78 min | USA:87 min | West Germany:86 min

Country:

Italy | France

Language:

Italian

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.75 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Germany:12 (re-rating) (2005) | Australia:MA (2009) | Argentina:16 | France:-18 | Italy:VM14 | USA:Unrated | West Germany:18 | UK:X

Filming Locations:

Tor Caldara, Lazio, Italy

Company:

Francinor-PIP

Trivia:

Christopher Lee's voice was dubbed by another actor even though the film was shot in English.

Quotes:

Kurt Menliff: [to Nevenka] You haven't changed, I see. You've always loved violence.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Bones (2001)

Christopher Lee in one of His Best roles of his career

La Frusta E Il Corpo/The Whip & The Body(1963) is an excellent gothic masterpiece that was ahead of its time in 1963 due to the strong imagery of erotic violence. Christopher Lee plays his most evil and sadistic character up to date(I have not seen his film, The Bloody Judge(1969)). His performance proves that he had an awesome presence within him. One theme that regularly occurs in many of Bava's films is the notion of the double that is present in movies like The Mask of Satan(1960), Kill Baby Kill(1967), and The Hatchet for the Honeymoon(1969). This is a great film that is overlooked by many Mario Bava supporters as it is also his best. The best parts of the film was the use of color and how he utizied color in the beautiful film. This movie is one that hopefully in the near future will get the video treatment that it deserves.