Vicente Aranda

"La Novia Ensangrentada" (The Blood Spattered Bride) mixes artistic lesbian vampires with gory mutilation to great effect. The story, based on Sheridan Le Fanu's, Gothic masterpiece "Carmilla" is given a (then) modern setting and sees a newlywed husband (Simón Andreu) and his bride Susan (Maribel Martín) honeymooning in an ancient mansion. The husband's insatiable sexual demands are soon driving Susan to distraction and falling prey to the ghostly vampiric lesbian attentions of the beautiful and mysterious Carmilla Karnstein (Alexandra Bastedo). The film has a number of pacing problems but this is more than made up for by the haunting atmosphere and creepy imagery delivered by vetran director Vicente Aranda. The mansion, the surrounding forest and Carmilla's tomb are cleverly and broodingly realised against a superb autumnal palette of colours. There is a rather obvious battle of the sexes subtext running throughout the film as the husband and Carmilla battle for control of Susan. Overall "La Novia Ensangrentada" makes for a nice slice of lesbian vampire Eurotrash that is full of atmosphere, blood and nudity.… (mere)