Italian Gothic Horror Films (1980-1989)

by Roberto Curti

ian “high cinema” directors,” Claudio Fragasso

  Anzellotti; Dialogue editor: Christopher Cruise;

  explained about his directorial debut, the little-

  1985: Monster

  3

  seen Passaggi (977, shot on Super8) and his

  memorable appearance (as himself ) in Alan

  sophomore effort, Difendimi dalla notte (98),

  Rudolph’s cult film Roadie (980), starring Meat

  both “intellectual films” with ambitions. “In

  Loaf.

  Italy, to be considered important, you must

  Working as line producer for Sarlui’s com-

  shoot something like that.” But Fragasso even-

  pany—and as his front for the Spanish red tape,

  tually followed his heart, which was deeply

  for the film to be categorized as a Spanish pro-

  rooted in genre cinema. By the mid–980s, at a

  duction and benefit from the country’s law fa-

  little over 30, he was a veteran in the Italian

  cilitations—was also Carlos Aured, the helmer

  genre film industry. He had been cranking out

  of several Paul Naschy films who gave up direct-

  scripts since the mid–970s, and in the early

  ing after his film Atrapados en el miedo but

  980s he had worked on several films with

  stayed in the movie business assuming produc-

  Bruno Mattei, ranging from sleazy women- in-

  tion duties. Monster Dog was part of a two-

  prison flicks to gory horror movies, which he

  picture deal that comprised also Deran Serafian’s

  usually scripted and de facto co- directed (see

  Alien Predators (a.k.a. The Falling). Both pictures

  entry for L’altro Inferno). However, for his third

  were shot back- to-back, but Serafian’s film went

  official venture behind the camera the Italian

  way over schedule and left Aured with a pile of

  filmmaker moved to Spain.

  unpaid debts, causing him to quit the movie

  The offer came from Dutch producer Ed-

  business.3

  uard Sarlui, who contacted Fragasso upon watch-

  Monster Dog was shot in five weeks4 in Tor-

  ing his post- atomic extravaganza Rats—Notte di

  relodones, just outside of Madrid. The director

  terrore (984, signed as “Vincent Dawn” and co-

  was thrilled to work with Cooper and claimed

  directed with Mattei). “He told me he wanted me

  they had become friends who used to watch

  to make another movie with animals … after

  horror movies together at night. Aured as well

  “Rats” now it was time for “Dogs,” Monster Dog

  recalled the star’s low profile and amiability. “I

  (laughs).”2 Sarlui was looking for low- budget hor-

  went to meet him at the airport and failed to

  ror films to distribute on the home video market

  recognize him! He was wearing white slacks and

  through his company Continental Motion Pic-

  a jumper, looking like an Englishman dressed

  tures, an umbrella organization registered in

  for cricket! He didn’t give us any problems. He

  Panama but selling features in the U.S. through

  only made two ‘demands’—to have a supply of

  American Cinema Service and in Italy through

  cold Coca- Cola on set and a VCR in his room

  Eureka Film International of Rome. For the

  so he could watch old Western movies; he was

  script, Fragasso and his wife Rossella Drudi (who

  crazy about Westerns. On weekends, he used to

  co- authored it uncredited) took inspiration from

  spend all his time playing golf.” Fragasso and

  the new wave of American werewolf movies, such

  Drudi even claimed that Cooper used to play

  as The Howling and An American Werewolf in

  golf in a miniature golf course in his Madrid

  London, and added a mystery twist to the story,

  apartment. The singer was known to all as “The

  a bit in the vein of the Amicus werewolf whodunit

  American” during shooting, being the only for-

  The Beast Must Die (974, Paul Annett).

  eign member in an all- Spanish cast which fea-

  Fragasso had an unlikely lead at his dis-

  tured Victoria Vera (soon to become a promi-

  posal: singer Alice Cooper, then undergoing a

  nent film and stage actress) and genre regulars

  bad stretch after his peaks of popularity in the

  such as Ricardo Palacios, Emilio Linder and

  previous decade with such albums as Billion

  Barta Barri.

  Dollar Babies and Welcome to My Nightmare.

  Cooper’s presence pushed Monster Dog in

  Cooper was detoxing from alcohol abuse and

  a direction akin to those horror films centered

  needed a project to focus on after the fiascos of

  on rock bands such as Terror on Tour (980, Don

  his latest, new- wave spiced records. The singer

  Edmonds), Rocktober Blood (984, Ferd & Bev-

  had always liked to associate himself with a

  erly Sebastian) and Hard Rock Zombies (98,

  macabre and horror imagery, from the use of a

  Krishna Shah). The film opens with a music

  fake guillotine on stage to such songs as “Ballad

  video, in which Cooper’s alter ego Vincent

  of Dwight Fry,” whose title paid reference to the

  Raven sings the song “Identity Crisises” (spelled

  930s actor (Dwight Frye, not Fry, incidentally)

  “Identity Chrises” in the end credits) and turns

  who played Renfield in Tod Browning’s Dracula

  up as the various characters mentioned in the

  (93). It wasn’t Cooper’s first stint at acting, as

  lyrics like a quick- change artist such as the fa-

  he had appeared in several films, including a

  mous Leopoldo Fregoli (“Sometimes I’m James

  32 1985: Monster Bond/Sometimes I’m Billy the Kid/Sometimes

  Spain. Originally the transformation would have

  I feel like Sherlock Holmes/Sometimes I feel like

  to take place gradually, through various stages,

  Jack the Ripper… ”). The result is as naïve as

  and the monster was designed by Roman art di-

  some Italian music videos of the early 980s, and

  rector Antonello Geleng, following Fragasso’s

  curiously recalls the one Michelangelo Anto-

  suggestion to make it look like a prehistoric an-

  nioni shot in 984 for Gianna Nannini’s song

  imal or a panther, however more feline than a

  “Fotoromanza.” Since the record company and

  dog. But De Marchis’ creature didn’t look at all

  the artist are (comprehensibly) unhappy with

  like Geleng’s design. Moreover, the puppet

  the result, the film has Raven and his crew move

  (which could be maneuvered through wires and

  conveniently to an old dark house in the middle

  a cart) was ready only on the last week of filming,

  of nowhere to reshoot the video, an idea with

  as the director explained. “In a scene (which was

  some points in common with Luigi Cozzi’s Pa-

  then cut) the monster breaks through a door and

  ganini Horror (989) and w
hich provides the

  holds the head of one of the actors in its jaws.

  film with a suitable old- style Gothic mood.

  This was the first time that the puppet was used,

  Fragasso embraces the music video- inspired

  but unfortunately it broke immediately, forcing

  style of many early to mid–Eighties horror films

  us to move it manually in the following scenes.”6

  to have the film look American and up- to-date,

  This pushed Fragasso and Drudi to do some last-

  with dry ice aplenty and lots of silhouette shots

  minute rewriting, while for the big climax they

  in the exterior night scenes to make up for the

  had to rely on facial make- up and rubber masks

  scarce budget. He even inserts two more music

  were used, to less than impressive results.

  videos in the film: “See Me in the Mirror” has

  It wasn’t the only issue that plagued the

  Cooper reprising his typical vampire look (dressed

  filming. The director and production manager

  in black, with heavy eye makeup and gloomy

  Roberto Bessi—the third and last Italian in the

  grin), while the ending features a reprise of the

  crew, working with Sarlui for the second time

  “Identity Crisises” video with excerpts from the

  after Warrior of the Lost World (983)—had to

  story, presumably to pad out the running time.

  deal with incompetent crew members and face

  But Fragasso even throws in some Spaghetti

  many issues. Moreover, Fragasso (who is credited

  Western- inspired scenes along the way, with an

  in the film with his Anglicized pseudonym Clyde

  armed confrontation between Vince and some

  Anderson) blamed Sarlui for having arbitrarily

  armed thugs, and during the third act the director

  recut the movie:

  seems possessed by the spirit of Sam Peckinpah,

  They did me wrong because about 20 minutes of film

  turning Monster Dog into a sort of remake of

  were cut. What is now circulating on VHS and DVD

  Straw Dogs (97), with rednecks with bandoliers

  is not the film that I shot. It’s a film that I do not dis-

  and guns moving around the house and shooting

  own, it didn’t come out as I wanted but the fault is

  at the protagonists, and bullet- ridden bodies

  above all of the editing. When a director signs a deal

  falling to the floor in slow- motion.

  with the Americans you never have the final cut, so

  The result is less than earth- shattering, and

  your ideas for the editing need not necessarily be

  some naivetés in the plot are annoying: for in-

  considered. In this case, in fact, the final edit was

  stance, when Vince Raven leafs through an old

  made by the producer. The deleted scenes are the

  book called Werewolves: Myths, Legends and Sci-

  best, all those of the transformation, all the splatter

  entific Reality, we get to see a full- page still of

  ones… . It’s a pity but it is also true that in 984/8

  extreme splatter began to disappear.7

  Lon Chaney, Jr., from The Wolf Man (94), an

  unlikely choice for a presumably decades- old

  These cuts remain unconfirmed and there is no

  tome, and one that sabotages any attempt at old-

  evidence of extra gory scenes left out of the film.

  style Gothic atmosphere. The film suffers from

  However, in the featurette Lord of the Dogs, in

  low- par special effects too: there is never a full

  the American Blu- ray release of the film, Fra-

  graphic werewolf transformation, and in the cli-

  gasso and Drudi’s recollection of the cuts was

  max we get to see some facial hair make- up plus

  slightly different:

  a rubber, deformed dog- head mask.

  When I did my cut, the director’s cut, I came back to

  According to Fragasso, the F/X caused

  Italy and what happened later was a big mess in my

  many delays during the shooting and turned out

  opinion. When I saw the movie, I didn’t recognize it.

  a disappointment; namely, there were problems

  The movie was supposed to be longer, it had 20 min-

  with the mechanical werewolf built by Carlo De

  utes cut out and this kind of ruined the atmosphere

  Marchis, an Italian technician who lived in

  that I wanted to create. I had counted on that. The

  1985: Monster

  33

  editing was a bit slower in my cut. They wanted to

  were people who worked on the original Alien, and

  make it faster, but they made it more confusing. It

  I was going, “Gee, I hope this isn’t too good.” But it

  was a pity anyway because I wanted to create a par-

  ended up being just as bad as I thought. I get to kill

  ticular atmosphere, but I would need  or 20 more

  like eight people in it, and I turn into a giant dog …

  minutes of the footage I shot to give it that look. Then

  so it’s good.9

  they did some clumsy things trying to fix the movie,

  but without the director you can’t understand what

  Fragasso went on to direct more horror

  is right to do. They only messed it up and it’s a real

  films, some with Mattei, with whom he also

  shame [Fragasso].

  filmed the additional scenes for Fulci’s Zombi 3,

  It was completely different, there was different ed-

  and some by himself, such as the ultraviolent

  iting and many sequences were cut, they edited them

  zombie yarn After Death (Oltre la morte) (989).

  in a way that makes the story confusing. The movie

  The latter was produced by Filmirage, who also

  had a different meaning than before. We were very

  financed Fragasso’s La casa 5 and the infamous

  upset, both of us. Some very nice things that Claudio

  Troll 2 (both 990). For Troll 2, the director came

  shot were cut [Drudi].8

  up with the a.k.a. “Drako Floyd”0 so that Sarlui,

  who was involved in the financing and had had

  The presence in the end credits of no less

  arguments with him on Monster Dog, wouldn’t

  than four “additional editors” might as well

  know that it was Fragasso directing the picture.

  suggest tampering on the part of Sarlui. By com-

  As for Cooper, in 987 he turned up for a special

  paring the different versions of the film, it appears

  appearance, as one of the homeless people pos-

  that the producer trimmed a handful of minutes

  sessed by a devilish entity, in another horror

  for the American release, namely surrounding

  film, John Carpenter’s Prince of Darkness. Mean-

  contextual footage consisting of dialogue ex-

  while his career as a singer and recording artist

  changes—such as one between the sheriff (Ri-

  had gained momentum again, climaxing in the

  cardo Palacios) and his deputy (Luis Malu-

  989 album

  enda)—but leaving all the existing gore intact. A

  Trash, his biggest hit in years.

  Cooper’s two songs were composed spec
if-

  Japanese version, with a different audio mix and

  ically for the film and were arranged by Spanish

  the extra bits, runs a full 88 minutes. In a typical

  composer and arranger Teddy Bautista (who in

  practice in European productions, Monster Dog

  the 960s had been playing in the progressive rock

  was shot without direct sound and the characters

  band Los Canarios) and were played by the band

  were redubbed later in post- production. Cooper’s

  Dichotomy. They remained unreleased until 999,

  voice was provided by Ted Rusoff.

  when they ended up in the 4-disc box- set The Life

  Despite reference books and IMDb claim-

  and Crimes of Alice Cooper. A numbered edition

  ing that it debuted in Italy in December 984,

  of 00 copies of a 7-inch single with the two songs

  Monster Dog wasn’t even submitted to the rating

  from the film was released in 202.

  board for a screen certificate and surfaced to

  home video some years later. The U.S. prints fea-

  ture a 98 copyright. Overseas it premiered on

  Notes

  video in 986, while in 988 it was released the-

  1. Berger, “Claudio Fragasso’s Gore Wars,” 7.

  atrically in Spain. According to the official Span-

  2. Caddeo and Lopéré, “Passion devoreuse,” 74.

  ish sources (which list it as a 98 production ti-

  3. Mike Hodges, “Aured Rises from the Tomb,” Fan-

  goria #89, January 2000, 7.

  tled Leviatán, 00 percent Spanish, and credit

  4. Palmerini and Mistretta, Spaghetti Nightmares, 76.

  Carlos Aured as scriptwriter), it was seen by an

  5. Hodges, “Aured Rises from the Tomb,” 7.

  audience of 3,438 spectators and grossed the

  6. Caddeo and Lopéré, “Passion devoreuse,” 7.

  equivalent of today’s 28,737.3 euro.

  7. Ibid.

  8. Claudio Fragasso and Rossella Drudi interviewed,

  Over the years, Alice Cooper often referred

  in Federico Caddeo, Lord of the Dogs, featurette included

  to his participation in Monster Dog in amused

  as extra in the U.S. Kino Lorber Blu- Ray release of Monster

  terms. In a February 987 interview he explained:

  Dog.

  9. Les Wiseman, “Coop Among Chickens,” Vancouver,

  I always wanted to do a really cheap splatter movie—

  February 987.

  one that would make me really big in somewhere like

  10. The pseudonym was conceived by Rossella Drudi,

  who took inspiration from the Dragon sign in the Chinese