BLACK SABBATH—Imminent Doom meets Emergent Style in this atmosphere-saturated 1963 treat, a horror harvest from Italy “hosted” by Boris Karloff, who also stars in one of a trio of tales. Mario Bava directed, co-wrote the script (with Marcello Fundato and Alberto Bevilacqua) and served on the camerawork with Ubaldo Terzano. Black Sabbath is the US title & version released the following year. The Italian version I tre volti della paura translates as “The Three Faces Of Fear”. That original cut runs 92 minutes, the English dubbed/US softened cut is shorter by a little over three. The editing of the versions results in different lengths for each of the three segments. Italy’s was scored by Roberto Nicolosi; music on the US end was done by Les Baxter: each have flavor. The debit to the Italian take is that Karloff’s wonderful voice is dubbed. Pick your paisan.

The Telephone/Il telefono  places comely call girl ‘Rosy’ (Michelle Mercier) at unseen peril in her luxury apartment, taunted by repeated phone calls that threaten her with murder. Spurned playmate ‘Mary’ (Lidia Alfonsi) shows up to provide innuendo and suggest motive. Expressive lighting adds a current of immediacy to this tighten-the-screws episode. With Milo Quesada.

The Wurdulak/I Wurdulak  places traveler ‘Vladimir’ (Mark Damon) in isolated Old World countryside with domineering ‘Gorka’ (Karloff) and his cowed family (Susy Andersen, Glauco Onorato, Massimo Righi, Rika Dialyna), wondering who will be the next victim of the area’s fiendish blood-drinker. Twice as long as the other segments, this one drags a bit in the middle, but jumps back to life (or living death) for a suitably bleak denouement. Karloff is outstanding, and though the Italian version skips that signature voice, his physical performance comes thru with undiminished power.

A Drop Of Water/La goccia de d’acqua  goes full frontal ghoulish as uncaring nurse ‘Helen’ (Jacqueline Pierreux) pays a stiff price for theft, stealing a bauble from the corpse of a woman she was charged to care for. Terrific use of sound, sets, makeup and camera make this a ghost-musting winner. With Milly Monti and Harriet Medin.

On release in Italy in ’63 the omnibus bombed at the boxoffice. Next year in the States, it seems to have racked $419,000 in rentals to theaters, which indicates a gross of around $900,000. Cult status developed; it’s highly regarded today.

* Boris, back in Black—The Black Cat (1934), The Black Room (1935), Black Friday (1940), The Black Castle (1952). Black Sabbath was one of four creep crawls the 75-year-old icon dignified in 1963, adding a touch of Old World class to The Comedy Of Terrors, The Raven, and The Terror.

Mark Damon’s acting career didn’t reach sterling heights but he later became an enormously successful producer.