A corpse on the floor in under two minutes. Children gleefully chuckling at the sight of death. Europe. That only can mean one thing–Mario Bava’s back in town, and we’re not getting out of this one without a whole lot of death.
The original “Kill Baby Kill” came out in the depths of 1966, if you can believe that one, so it’s sort of a surprise to see it up and around. At least, until you see it.
And when you see it, what you’ll see is a rash of deaths going on in a middle-of-nowhere European town. A visiting coroner and his assistant determine that the deaths are self-inflicted, but what’s even stranger about all this is that every one of the dead has had a coin inserted in their heart, post-mortem, as a way to ward off evil spirits.
Now… when you watch this, you have to bear one thing in mind. This movie is forty one years old. There is a distinct possibility your PARENTS were not born when this movie first showed. But it has aged well. This doesn’t look like a forty one year old movie–in fact, it almost looks like something independent filmmakers might have done. Why?
Because it’s dependent on its script for its shock value. The story, not the splatter, generates the fear and suspense! It’s all the small things, glimpses of strange things in the night, half-remembered bits of exposition, and everything like that that makes “Kill Baby Kill” a force of its own.
Which isn’t to say everything about it’s that good. There’s some freaky imagery here that can make things a bit difficult to follow. There’s also some slow parts–being dependent on script for scares can make things a bit slow while building up to something new and interesting.
But all in all, “Kill Baby Kill” is going to prove to be an interesting out-of-left-field addition to your movie lineup.
