Mario Bava

Mario Bava
Bava in 1975
Born	Sanremo, Kingdom of Italy
Died	Rome, Italy
Other nameTemplate:Pluralize from text	John M. Old John Foam
OccupationTemplate:Pluralize from text	Film director cinematographer special effects artist screenwriter
Years active	1937-1980
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Children	Lamberto Bava
ParentTemplate:Pluralize from text	Eugenio BavaTemplate:Pluralize from text

Mario Bava (; 30 July 1914 – 27 April 1980) was an Italian filmmaker who worked variously as a director, cinematographer, special effects artist and screenwriter. His low-budget genre films, known for their distinctive visual flair and stylish technical ingenuity, feature recurring themes and imagery concerning the conflict between illusion and reality, as well as the destructive capacity of human nature. Widely regarded as a pioneer of Italian genre cinema and one of the most influential and greatest filmmakers of all time, he is popularly referred to as the "Master of Italian Horror" and the "Master of the Macabre".

After providing special effects work and other assistance on such productions as I Vampiri (1957), Hercules (1958) and Caltiki – The Immortal Monster (1959), Bava made his official feature directorial debut with the gothic horror film Black Sunday, released in 1960. He went on to direct such films as The Girl Who Knew Too Much, Black Sabbath, The Whip and the Body (all released in 1963), Blood and Black Lace (1964), Planet of the Vampires (1965), Kill, Baby, Kill (1966), Danger: Diabolik (1968), A Bay of Blood (1971), Baron Blood (1972), Lisa and the Devil (1974) and Rabid Dogs (1974).

According to the British Film Institute, "Bava took a vital role in the creation of the modern horror film. If there was to be a Mount Rushmore-style monument dedicated to four directors whose work pioneered a new form of big screen chills and thrills, those giant faces etched in granite on the mountainside would be: Bava, Alfred Hitchcock, Georges Franju and Michael Powell."

Family

Born to sculptor, cinematographer and special effects pioneer Eugenio Bava, the younger Mario Bava followed his father into the film industry, and eventually earned a reputation as one of Italy's foremost cameramen, lighting and providing the special effects for such films as Hercules (1958) and its sequel Hercules Unchained (1959) (both were lampooned on Mystery Science Theater 3000).

Mario Bava's son and frequent assistant director, Lamberto Bava, later became a noted fantasy and horror film director in his own right.

Biography

Mario Bava was born in Sanremo, Liguria on 31 July 1914. He was the son of Eugenio Bava (1886–1966), a sculptor who also worked as a special effects photographer and cameraman in the Italian silent movie industry. Mario Bava's first ambition was to become a painter. Unable to turn out paintings at a profitable rate, he went into his father's business, working as an assistant to other Italian cinematographers like Massimo Terzano. He also helped his father at the special effects department at Benito Mussolini's film factory, the Istituto Luce.

Bava became a cinematographer himself in 1939, shooting two short films with Roberto Rossellini. He made his feature debut in the early 1940s. Bava's camerawork was an instrumental factor in developing the screen personas of such stars of the period as Gina Lollobrigida, Steve Reeves and Aldo Fabrizi.

During the late 1950s, his eventual career trajectory as a director began when he was relied upon to complete projects begun by or credited to his colleague Riccardo Freda and other filmmakers, including The Day the Sky Exploded (1958) (the first Italian science fiction film), Caltiki – The Immortal Monster (1959) and The Giant of Marathon (1959).

Bava collaborates in I vampiri (a.k.a. The Devil's Commandment) for director Riccardo Freda in 1956, a movie now referred to as the first Italian horror film. Bava was hired as the cinematographer, even creating the innovative special effects that were needed. He also handled the cinematography and special effects on the 1955 Kirk Douglas epic Ulysses and the 1957 Steve Reeves classic Hercules, two films credited with sparking the Italian sword and sandal genre.

Bava co-directed The Day the Sky Exploded in 1958, the first Italian science fiction film, predating even the sci-fi films of Antonio Margheriti. Because he had no earlier credited experience as a director, the film was credited solely to Paolo Heusch.

File:Mario Bava.jpg

Bava in 1962

In 1960, Bava directed the gothic horror classic Black Sunday, his first solo directorial effort, which made a genre star out of Barbara Steele. His use of light and dark in black-and-white films is widely acclaimed along with his spectacular use of color in films such as Black Sabbath, Kill, Baby... Kill!, Blood and Black Lace and The Whip and the Body.

Later works

His work has proven to be very influential. Bava directed two films that are now regarded as the earliest entries in the Italian giallo genre: The Girl Who Knew Too Much (1963) and Blood and Black Lace (1964). His 1965 science fiction horror film Planet of the Vampires was a thematic precursor to Alien (1979). Although comic books had served as the basis for countless serials and children's films in Hollywood, Bava's Danger: Diabolik (1968) brought an adult perspective to the genre; the movie was influenced by Pop artists Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein. Many elements of the 1966 film Kill, Baby... Kill!, regarded by Martin Scorsese as Bava's masterpiece, also appear in the Asian strain of terror film known as J-horror. 1971's A Bay of Blood is considered one of the early slasher films, and was explicitly imitated in Friday the 13th Part 2.

Bava was disappointed with the theatrical distribution of some of his later films. His Lisa and the Devil (1972) never was selected by a distributor. Eventually, in order to get it released, the producer reedited the movie into an Exorcist clone, adding footage shot in 1975, and retitling it House of Exorcism. Bava's Semaforo Rosso (1974) never was released theatrically during his lifetime, and in the late 1990s, it also would be reedited, with new footage added, and retitled; it was released on video as Rabid Dogs. It was released on DVD in 2007, slightly altered and again retitled, as Kidnapped.

In 1977, Bava directed his last horror film, Shock. His son, Lamberto Bava, was an uncredited co-director. The elder Bava later did special effects matte work on Dario Argento's 1980 film Inferno. Bava died suddenly of a heart attack on 27 April 1980, at age 65. His doctor had given him a physical just a few days before, and had pronounced him to be in perfect health. At the time of his death, Bava was about to start shooting a science fiction film titled Star Riders, on which Luigi Cozzi had hoped to collaborate.

Filmography

Title	Year	Credited as					Notes	Ref(s)
		Director	Screenwriter	Screen story writer	Cinematographer	Other
Scipione l'africano	1937					Yes	Uncredited title designer.
Il dottor Antonio	1938					Yes	Uncredited camera assistant.
Princess Tarakanova	1938					Yes	Uncredited camera assistant.
Giuseppe Verdi	1938					Yes	Uncredited camera assistant.
Inventiamo l'amore	1938					Yes	Uncredited camera assistant.
Il socio invisible	1939					Yes	Uncredited additional photography
	1940					Yes	Uncredited camera assistant
	1941					Yes	Uncredited camera assistant
Uomini sul fondo	1941					Yes	Additional photography and special effects
Capitan Tempesta	1942					Yes	Camera assistant
La nave bianca	1942					Yes	Camera assistant and special effects
Alfa tau!	1942					Yes	Additional photography and special effects
Uomini e cieli	1943					Yes	Additional photography and special effects
Le avventure di Annabella	1943				Yes
Sant'Elena, piccola isola	1943				Yes
Montecassino nel cerchio di fuoco	1946					Yes	Uncredited additional photography
Il barbiere di Siviglia	1946					Yes	Uncredited camera assistant
Elisir d'amore	1947				Yes
Natale ai campo 119	1947				Yes
Follie per l'opera	1948				Yes
	1948				Yes	Yes	Special effects
Antonio de Padova	1949				Yes	Yes	Special effects
Miss Italia	1950				Yes
	1950				Yes	Yes	Special effects
	1950				Yes	Yes	Special effects
Canzone di primavera	1950				Yes	Yes	Special effects
Quel bandito sono io!	1950				Yes	Yes	Special effects
Vita da cani	1950				Yes
Guardie e ladri	1951				Yes
Amor non ho, pero... pero...	1951				Yes	Yes	Special effects
	1951				Yes	Yes	Special effects
	1952					Yes	Additional photography, uncredited Special effects work
Papà diventa mamma	1952				Yes	Yes	Special effects
Gli eroi della domenica	1952				Yes
Sins of Rome	1953				Yes		Uncredited as cinematographer
Perdonami!	1953				Yes
	1953				Yes	Yes	Special effects
Balocchi e profumi	1953				Yes
Villa Borghese	1953				Yes
Terza liceo	1954				Yes
Cose da pazzi	1954				Yes	Yes	Special effects
Graziella	1954				Yes
Hanno rubato un tram	1954				Yes	Yes	Special effects
Theodora, Slave Empress	1954					Yes	Additional photography and uncredited special effects artist
Buonanotte... avvocato!	1955				Yes
Non ch'e amore piu grande	1955				Yes
	1955				Yes
	1955				Yes	Yes	Special effects artist
Da qui all'ereditta	1955					Yes	Uncredited additional photography and special effects
Beatrice Cenci	1956					Yes	Special effects creator
Mio figlio Nerone	1956				Yes
Roland the Mighty	1956				Yes	Yes	Special effects
	1957				Yes	Yes	Completed the film after Freda left production. Also did uncredited special effects.
Hercules	1958				Yes	Yes	Special effects artist
Città di notte	1958				Yes
	1958				Yes	Yes	Special effects creator. While credited to Paolo Heusch, actors on set state Bava directed the film.
Toto in Paris	1958				Yes	Yes
Hercules Unchained	1959				Yes	Yes	Special effects artist
Sheba and the Gladiator	1959				Yes		Uncredited as cinematographer
	1959				Yes
Caltiki – The Immortal Monster	1959				Yes	Yes	Special effects. Took over direction from Freda.
The Giant of Marathon	1959				Yes	Yes	Bava shot some interiors 10 days prior to the films premiere.
Black Sunday	1960	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Bava developed the matte paintings and special effects uncredited.
Hercules in the Haunted World	1961	Yes	Yes		Yes	Yes	Special effects creator
Erik the Conqueror	1961	Yes	Yes		Yes	Yes	Special effects creator
	1962					Yes	Uncredited special effects creator
	1963	Yes	Yes		Yes	Yes	Special effects creator
Black Sabbath	1963	Yes	Yes		Yes		Bava is uncredited as cinematographer on some scenes.
	1963	Yes
Blood and Black Lace	1964	Yes	Yes		Yes	Yes	Special effects creator
	1964	Yes			Yes	Yes	Special effects creator
Planet of the Vampires	1965	Yes	Yes		Yes	Yes	Special effects creator
Knives of the Avenger	1966	Yes	Yes		Yes	Yes	Special effects
Kill, Baby, Kill	1966	Yes	Yes
Dr. Goldfoot and the Girl Bombs	1966	Yes			Yes	Yes	Special effects creator
Danger: Diabolik	1968	Yes	Yes		Yes	Yes	Special effects creator
Five Dolls for an August Moon	1970	Yes			Yes	Yes	Special effects creator and film editor
Hatchet for the Honeymoon	1970	Yes	Yes		Yes
Roy Colt & Winchester Jack	1970	Yes			Yes	Yes	Special effects creator
Four Times That Night	1971	Yes			Yes	Yes	Special effects creator
	1971	Yes	Yes		Yes	Yes	Special effects creator
Baron Blood	1972	Yes	Yes
Lisa and the Devil	1974	Yes	Yes	Yes
Shock	1977	Yes			Yes		Bava is uncredited as cinematographer
Inferno	1980					Yes	Bava created some optical effects, painted maquettes, and other trick shots.
Rabid Dogs	1998	Yes			Yes	Yes	Uncredited cinematographer and on screen as the man in the parking lot.

Influence and legacy

Although most of Bava's films as director failed to achieve major commercial success upon release, many eventually found acclaim as cult classics, with their content and production values being favourably compared to the works of Alfred Hitchcock. Despite his reputation as a talented artist during his lifetime, Bava's shy, self-deprecating demeanour prevented him from taking advantage of opportunities that would have furthered his international standing within the industry, and he declined multiple opportunities to work in Hollywood.

Bava's son Lamberto worked for fourteen years as his father's assistant director (beginning with Planet of the Vampires), and became a horror film director on his own right. On several of Mario's movies, Mario was credited as John M. Old. Later, Lamberto was sometimes credited as John M. Old Jr. When Lamberto screened his debut film Macabre for his father, Mario commented jokingly to Lamberto: "I am very proud of you. Now I can die in peace". (He actually did die less than two months later.)

Several books have been published about Bava: Mario Bava by Pascal Martinet (Edilig, 1984) and Mario Bava edited by Jean-Louis Leutrat (Éditions du Céfal, 1994) in French; Mario Bava by Alberto Pezzotta (Il Castoro Cinema, 1995) in Italian; The Haunted Worlds of Mario Bava by Troy Howarth (FAB Press, 2002) and most recently, the massive critical biography Mario Bava: All the Colors of the Dark by Tim Lucas (Video Watchdog, 2007; Template:ISBN).

A documentary, Mario Bava: Maestro of the Macabre, was released in 2000.

Bava's directing style influenced entire generations of filmmakers, including Joe Dante, Martin Scorsese, Quentin Tarantino, Francis Ford Coppola, John Landis, and Tim Burton. Bava and his works have also influenced Dario Argento, Lucio Fulci, Federico Fellini, John Carpenter, David Lynch, Nicolas Winding Refn, Roger Corman, Edgar Wright, and Jennifer Kent.

Movie-mocking TV series Mystery Science Theater 3000 concluded its original ten-season run in 1999 with Danger: Diabolik.

See also

• European art cinema
• Exploitation film
• Cinema of Italy

Bibliography

• Kinnard, Roy; Crnkovich, Tony (2017). Italian Sword and Sandal Films, 1908-1990. McFarland. ISBN 978-1476662916.
• Curti, Roberto (2013). Italian Crime Filmography, 1968-1980. McFarland. ISBN 978-0786469765.
• Curti, Roberto (2015). Italian Gothic Horror Films, 1957–1969. McFarland. ISBN 978-1-4766-1989-7.
• Curti, Roberto (2017). Italian Gothic Horror Films, 1970-1979. McFarland. ISBN 978-1476629605.
• Curti, Roberto (2017b). Riccardo Freda: The Life and Works of a Born Filmmaker. McFarland. ISBN 978-1476628387.
• Curti, Roberto (2019). Italian Gothic Horror Films, 1980-1989. McFarland. ISBN 978-1476672434.
• Hughes, Howard (2011). Cinema Italiano - The Complete Guide From Classics To Cult. London - New York: I.B.Tauris. ISBN 978-1-84885-608-0.
• Lucas, Tim (2013). Mario Bava - All the Colors of the Dark. Video Watchdog. ISBN 978-0-9633756-1-2.

External links

• Mario Bava at IMDbTemplate:Edit at Wikidata
• Color Me Bava on Fandor's official YouTube channel
• Great Directors article on Senses of Cinema