Overview
A masked killer stalks a group of glamorous models, turning a boarding house into a deadly trap.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- Graphic
- macabre
- lurid
- suspenseful
- late night horror viewing
- giallo double feature
What critics said
Critics broadly agree that the film's remarkable color photography, production design, and macabre technique outweigh its derivative plotting and weak writing.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The models, couture environment, elegant interiors, and extravagant murders make the fashion milieu central to the film's identity.
Critics repeatedly praise Bava's color photography, lighting, sets, and visual inventiveness as the film's defining strengths.
A mysterious masked figure, multiple suspects, Inspector Silvestri's investigation, and the missing diary drive the plot.
Isabella's incriminating diary disappears, while blackmail and disputed alibis complicate the investigation.
Films like Blood and Black Lace, and why
Deep Red
stylized giallo murder mystery with elaborate, color-driven set pieces and a masked killer
The Bird with the Crystal Plumage
fashion-world setting, anonymous killer, and baroque visual violence within an Italian thriller tradition
Opera
inventive horror imagery, psychological suspense, and carefully staged murders driven by atmosphere
Movie Details
- Director
- Mario Bava
- Release Date
- 1964-03-14
- Runtime
- 88 min
- Rating
- 7.3 / 10 (487)
Cast
- Cameron Mitchell
- Eva Bartok
- Thomas Reiner
- Ariana Gorini
- Dante DiPaolo
- Mary Arden
- Franco Ressel
- Claude Dantes
- Luciano Pigozzi
- Lea Lander
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Amazon Prime Video, Philo, Fandor, Shudder, Fandor Amazon Channel, Screambox Amazon Channel, FlixFling, Eternal Family, Cultpix, Amazon Prime Video with Ads, Bloodstream, Chilling, Cineverse Amazon Channel, ARROW
- Rent
- Amazon Video, FlixFling
- Buy
- Amazon Video, FlixFling
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Blood and Black Lace about?
- A masked killer stalks a glamorous fashion circle in Mario Bava’s vividly colored blueprint for the modern giallo slasher.
- What is Blood and Black Lace like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Blood and Black Lace as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is Blood and Black Lace violent?
- Yes. Ember rates the violence in Blood and Black Lace as graphic.
- What did critics think of Blood and Black Lace?
- Critics broadly agree that the film's remarkable color photography, production design, and macabre technique outweigh its derivative plotting and weak writing.
- Which films are like Blood and Black Lace?
- Films with a similar feel include Deep Red, The Bird with the Crystal Plumage, and Opera.
- How long is Blood and Black Lace?
- Blood and Black Lace runs 88 minutes.
- Where can I watch Blood and Black Lace?
- In United States, Blood and Black Lace streams on Amazon Prime Video, Philo, Fandor, Shudder, Fandor Amazon Channel, Screambox Amazon Channel, FlixFling, Eternal Family, Cultpix, Amazon Prime Video with Ads, Bloodstream, Chilling, Cineverse Amazon Channel, ARROW.
