Vier Mal heute Nacht (1971)

Vier Mal heute Nacht: Directed by Mario Bava. With Daniela Giordano, Brett Halsey, Dick Randall, Valeria Sabel. A night of attempted seduction is recalled from the perspectives of the woman, the man, a lecherous doorman and a psychoanalyst.

“Master director Mario Bava is best known for his horror films, and thatu0026#39;s hardly surprising as films such as Blood and Black Lace and Black Sabbath certainly represent the best of his oeuvre – but he also made a few films outside of the horror genre, and Four Times That Night is surely one of the best. I canu0026#39;t say Iu0026#39;m a big fan of sex comedies, as while I enjoy seeing sex in movies; I tend to prefer it with a little more sleaze than what films like this tend to offer. However, by taking his central plot theme from the Akira Kurosawa masterpiece u0026#39;Rashomonu0026#39;, Bava has made a sex comedy that is interesting for the way it pans out, rather than because of the sex theme. The plot follows Gianni and Tina; a man and a woman that meet in a park. They end up going on a date together, but it ends mysteriously when Tina returns home with a ripped dress and Gianni is sporting a nasty looking scratch on his forehead. Both Tina and Gianni give their version of what happened on that night, and the story is given a third angle from Gianniu0026#39;s doorman.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eItu0026#39;s clear that this film is never going to be as deep or as fascinating as Kurosawau0026#39;s masterpiece, but as a slice of light entertainment; it works fine. Bava is famous for his use of lighting and technique in order to create atmosphere for his horror films, although this movie doesnu0026#39;t allow him to do that. That being said, Bavau0026#39;s fingerprints are all over the film; as the garish use of colour features prominently, and the seventies style is what helps to elevate the film above the usual level of a gentle sex themed comedy. The film benefits from the presence of Daniela Giordano; the sexy female lead whom Bava makes best use of at all opportunities. She is joined by Fulci muse Brett Halsey, as well as Dick Randall; a man more famous for his producing credits. Bava attempts to give the film some substance by way of a psychologist explaining how different people view the same events from different perspectives…but I find it hard to believe that three people could view the same event in such wildly differing ways. One slight criticism of the film is that itu0026#39;s not very funny…but itu0026#39;s fun enough, and worth seeing.”