Ecologia Del Delitto (aka Bay Of Blood) (1971)

A sleepy bay is surrounded by acres owned by a Countess (Isa Miranda), who rebuffs a realtor (Chris Avram) when he attempts to get her to sell the land which he plans to redevelop into a profitable tourist spot. When she is later found brutally murdered, it has a domino effect as a series of violent killings follow. Directed by Mario Bava (LISA AND THE DEVIL), who was also the cinematographer. Although greatly admired by horror buffs, this influential giallo is my least favorite of Bava's output. It's essentially a mindless slasher movie in the same vein of the FRIDAY THE 13TH franchise. Oh, it has an ecological theme, it's better acted (some notable Italian actors) and directed with much more panache than the 13TH movies but still. While a few of the actors are able to create characters (like Laura Betti's Tarot reader, Leopoldo Trieste's insect fancier and Claudine Auger's Lady MacBeth), most of the characters are ciphers being set up to get killed for our delectation. Almost all of the ensemble cast are dead by the end of the film and I found the ending more silly than clever. With Luigi Pistilli, Claudio Volonte, Brigitte Skay and Anna Maria Rosati.