Search - Four Times That Night on DVD

Beautiful visuals - mediocre movie - sloppy release

wdanthemanw | 08/30/2001

(3 out of 5 stars)

""Four times that night" is supposed to be Bava's, according to
the liner notes obligatory, "blue movie".
Probably in order not to make the movie too flat, the
creators adapted the conception of "Rashomon".
Unfortunately, I haven't seen the latter movie so far,
so that I cannot tell how much Bava copied from it.
Anyway, Bava presents the material, a one night stand
presented from four different viewpoints, as a light
hearted comedy. Though not particularly convincing, I
found the movie entertaining and enjoyed how Bava was
playing with his audience, especially, when the psychiatrist tells his mock version of what "really"
happened. The colourful visual style and the mastery
of the camera added further delight.
As far as the DVD is concerned, it is another sloppy
release by Image - they didn't even take the pain to cut
out those frames announcing the beginning and the end of the break when - being in a movie theatre - you are
supposed to buy your ice cream. Though the transfer is
sharp and colourful, it has been drawn from an extremely
speckled master. The audios are equally damaged.
There is NO bonus material - not even a trailer - worth
mentioning, except for the informative liner notes by
Tim Lucas.
People interested in Bava's work and intrigued by his
visual style will probably want to buy this DVD which at
least features the original version. To others, I hesitate
to recommend the DVD."

A Nice Change Of Pace For Bava

John Peterson | Marinette, WI USA | 04/15/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"For those who enjoy Mario Bava's horror films, this movie will come as a surprise. It shows a side of Bava not normally associated with him. This is a wonderful, thought-provoking film that works as a light hearted comedy and as a character study of human sexuality (which was daring for 1968). John and Tina meet while Tina is walking her dog. They go out on a date which turns into a disaster when Tina reurns home with a ripped up dress and John with scratched on the forehead. What follows are three different perspectives from John, Tina, and John's doorman who spied on them, on what actually happened, followed by a fourth perspective by a psychiatrist on what could have happened (it's up to the viewer to make up their minds).This subtitled DVD comes with Mario Bava's biography and filmography, good liner notes from Tim Lucas, and a photo and poster gallery.Recommended."

INSATIABLE

wdanthemanw | Geneva, Switzerland | 03/18/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Almost invisible for 32 years, italian director Mario Bava's FOUR TIMES THAT NIGHT is now presented by Image in the DVD standard. Shot in late 1968, at the beginning of the erotic wave that submerged the B cinema of Italia, Germany and France, this movie didn't make it in front of the italian censorship and was banned from italian and international screens until 1973. It can not be denied that FOUR TIMES THAT NIGHT delivers a certain amount of eroticism due mostly to the sculptural Daniela Giordano, Miss Italy 1966. Other problematic scenes - for the censors, I mean - include homosexual and lesbian behaviours, mostly verbal and a night in a club for special people. I suppose that the producers of FOUR TIMES THAT NIGHT, if they only had produced it two years later, would have a tremendous success because the cinematography is, as always in Mario Bava's movies, original and innovative. The first story, partly narrated " off " by Daniela Giordano is a little masterpiece that doesn't leave unharmed womanizers nor innocent sex symbols. The theme of FOUR TIMES THAT NIGHT is well known, the same story is told not from two three different points of view but rather from three different perspectives. A psychiatrist has the difficult task to propose the fourth version which could be or...not the real one. The copy presented by Image is deceiving if we have in mind the Mario Bava movies that Anchor Bay or VCI released a few months ago. White spots haven't been digitally treated and the colours are very sad. As bonus features, biography and filmography of Mario Bava and english subtitles. Less than the minimum. A DVD zone discovery."