The Whip and the Body (1963) never adds up to the sum of its parts. Too bad. But that’s its lasting allure.
Perhaps we can appreciate it this way: get an accomplished Italian horror film director (Mario Brava) and ask him to construct a gothic-period chiller along the lines of the successful British Hammer series. And throw in Hammer’s biggest star, Christopher Lee, as the obvious denominator.
That’s like asking an accomplished English chef to cook up his best Risotto ai Frutti di Mare. He might get close, but it won’t be close enough.
So, we have Kurt Menliff (Christopher Lee rockin’ a Beatle-esque coiffure) who has been kicked out of the casa by his father for his relationship with a servant girl and her eventual suicide. Kurt returns to reclaim his title and his former fiancée Nevenka (Daliah Lavi) who is now his brother’s wife. Menliff is later found murdered—by the same knife used in the suicide. Mmmm… Inhabitants of the castle believe Kurt’s ghost has returned to for revenge.
There’s a sado-masochistic relationship between Kurt and former fiancée Nevenka. Whips. Back lacerations. Heavy panting. Apparently, this is what the two liked to do before the old man gave Kurt the boot.
S & M as a narrative force in a 1963 gothic horror is flic is just plain interesting. It’s a motive, thematic element because, with no doubt, Kurt is a really dreadful man; what woman could possibly find him attractive? … well, perhaps a woman with similar inclinations. The plot holds.
The cast is roundly good. The surprise is Daliah Lavi who, for most of her career, just stood around looking beautiful. But here she is much better—believable.
The Whip and the Body is a refined genre: Gothic horror/ erotic romance/ psychological thriller. The parts are strong, but the center does not hold. Too often we are distracted with too-on-the-nose dialogue, plot diversions, and meandering, midnight strolls.
It doesn’t matter. Cult films can achieve greatness through effort, not accomplishment.
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