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"Vacation for a Massacre" is yet another in the long string of (mostly Italian) films that noticeably imitate the 1972 US megahit "Last House on the Left", and this film by Fernando Di Leo (director of the infamous "Slaughter Hotel")is certainly one of the best. The plot is simple and familiar: An escaped convicted murderer (Joe Dallesandro)invades the cottage of a man (Gianni Macchia), his wife (Patrizia Bhen) and the wife's sister (Lorraine de Selle), and proceeds to torment this already dysfunctional trio with rape and violence. Di Leo clearly made the most of the film's low budget by eliciting excellent performances from his cast, especially in the case of Dallesandro, who is known mostly for his constant full-frontal nudity in several Andy Warhol films, not his acting skills. While Dallesandro's work here is rather flat, Di Leo keeps Dallesandro's dialog to a minimum. This, coupled with the fact that Dallesandro has a talent for showing good expression with his eyes, and Di Leo never fails to include one of these shots when necessary to make up for other qualities lacking, makes the film succeed when, in another director's hands, it could have faltered due to a lack of directorial understanding of his actor. Macchia, who worked with Di Leo at least twice before, and de Selle, who clearly enjoys her constant nudity as well, are pros at this and their unlikeable characters are nevertheless compelling thanks to their thoughtful performances. I am not familiar with Bhen's other roles, but in the final reel she manages to deliver the necessary winning performance that is repressed in the first half of the film. Another major asset is Luis Enriquez Bacalov's eccentric, unnerving score, which ranges from classical (borrowing the theme from the superior 1971 film he scored entitled "The Designated Victim" with Tomas Milan) to near heavy-metal guitar riffs. The combination of the basic plot and Di Leo at the helm, knowing that his films are rarely pretty, ensures that the film is a gritty, sometimes necessarily unpleasant, but ultimately very satisfying exploitation film viewing experience. The English-subtitled print available on a US bootleg does not look bad at all, but I would get it on a DVD-R and not a VHS, as the disc will retain the master's tape's sharper picture quality. |