BLOOD RITES
TAG LINE : BLESSED ARE THE MEEK FOR THEY SHALL INHERIT!
RELEASED BY SCORPIO VIDEO
CATORGRY NUMBER :
RUNTIME : 67 MINUTES 22 SECONDS
AKA : THE GHASTLY ONE'S
DIRECTOR : ANDY MILLIGAN
COUNTRY : USA
YEAR : 1967
STARRING : VERONICA RADBURN, MAGGIE ROGERS, HAL BORSKE, ANNE LINDEN, FIB LA BLAQUE AND CAROL VOGEL
REVIEW
Another old flick from the sixties, 1968 to be precise, which is also known as The Ghastly Ones. Directed by Andy Milligan. Interestingly, the original VHS release on the Scorpio label has an interesting 2-sided cover, where one side has a picture of a knife and no photos, and the other side has a different front cover, complete with violent clips on the back. Presumably, they used the inoffensive cover in the video rental stores.
A trio of sisters, Victoria, Veronica and Elizabeth, receive a letter from their late father’s lawyer telling them to stay in their father’s spooky mansion on a strange island for 3 nights. Once they have done this, they will get to hear what was in his will. Later, the sisters arrive at the house with their husbands, and are met by 2 maids (Martha and Ruth)and a strange hunchback-type guy called Colin (who we saw earlier in the film killing a man and a woman).
It isn’t long before a series of murders occur. Firstly, Victoria’s husband is killed that same night, Elizabeth’s husband is out the next day collecting wood, where he is tied to a bench, disemboweled and sawn in half. A nice sequence later involves Elizabeth’s head served up for dinner, followed by Victoria’s husband being impaled on a pitchfork. One of the maids, Martha, is bumped off, as is Colin, leaving Veronica and Victoria.
In a strange twist, they confront the remaining maid,
Ruth, who admits that she is their elder sister and that she wanted to inherit
the house, so she planned to kill everyone and blame it on Colin. Cue Colin
to reappear and murder Ruth, leaving the two women shell-shocked.
WRITTEN BY TONY FRIZZELL
COVER 1
COVER 2
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