In Hatchet For The Honeymoon, Mario Bava, father of the giallo, attempts to redefine the genre he practically created by radically altering the format: whereas most giallos try to keep the viewer guessing at the identity of the killer until the end, Hatchet immediately reveals its murderer to be wealthy businessman John Harrington (Stephen Forsyth), a self proclaimed madman who has a thing for butchering new brides with his oh-so-shiny cleaver; the trouble is, he has no idea what has caused this particular compulsion.
The question Bava is posing to his audience is no longer 'WHO is committing the murders?', but rather 'WHY are they being committed?'.
Clues come in the form of brief flashbacks, which are revealed to Harrington after each successive kill. Can our hatchet wielding loony drag enough information from his subconscious to finally unravel the mystery; will inquisitive copper Inspector Russell (Jesús Puente) crack the case before many more brides go missing; or can you, the viewer, beat both of them to solving the puzzle.
Unfortunately, no matter how innovative this approach may seem, Bava's little experiment is not a great success: with the identity of the killer known to the viewer from the outset, any opportunities to create suspense are few and far between: apart from one well orchestrated sequence, in which Harrington tries to shoo the nosey policeman from his home whilst blood from his murdered wife drips dangerously nearby, the film is practically tension free. In a final bid to add a little life to all of the death, the director eventually changes tack and introduces a supernatural angle to the story that proves to be pretty entertaining, if only for its sheer incongruity: the ghost of Harrington's wife pops up to drive her hubby even crazier than before!
If you are keen to acquaint yourself with Bava, or the giallo genre in general, Hatchet for The Honeymoon probably isn't the greatest place to start: although the director makes good use of shadows and colour, this is far from his most striking work; there is nothing to rival the glorious excesses of a Fulci or an Argento; the women are attractive, but fail to realise the importance of getting nekkid; and the death scenes are noticeably devoid of inventive gore.
The question Bava is posing to his audience is no longer 'WHO is committing the murders?', but rather 'WHY are they being committed?'.
Clues come in the form of brief flashbacks, which are revealed to Harrington after each successive kill. Can our hatchet wielding loony drag enough information from his subconscious to finally unravel the mystery; will inquisitive copper Inspector Russell (Jesús Puente) crack the case before many more brides go missing; or can you, the viewer, beat both of them to solving the puzzle.
Unfortunately, no matter how innovative this approach may seem, Bava's little experiment is not a great success: with the identity of the killer known to the viewer from the outset, any opportunities to create suspense are few and far between: apart from one well orchestrated sequence, in which Harrington tries to shoo the nosey policeman from his home whilst blood from his murdered wife drips dangerously nearby, the film is practically tension free. In a final bid to add a little life to all of the death, the director eventually changes tack and introduces a supernatural angle to the story that proves to be pretty entertaining, if only for its sheer incongruity: the ghost of Harrington's wife pops up to drive her hubby even crazier than before!
If you are keen to acquaint yourself with Bava, or the giallo genre in general, Hatchet for The Honeymoon probably isn't the greatest place to start: although the director makes good use of shadows and colour, this is far from his most striking work; there is nothing to rival the glorious excesses of a Fulci or an Argento; the women are attractive, but fail to realise the importance of getting nekkid; and the death scenes are noticeably devoid of inventive gore.