Bluebeard ** (1972, Richard Burton, Raquel Welch, Joey Heatherton, Virna Lisi, Nathalie Delon, Sybil Danning) – Classic Movie Review 10,321

Director Edward Dmytryk’s 1972 serial killer crime thriller Bluebeard stars a tired-looking Richard Burton, who has a monotonous go at playing Bluebeard, Baron Kurt Von Sepper, the Austrian aristocrat who likes to murder his mistresses and keep them in the cellar.

This intended black comedy-toned version of the ladykiller tale is transferred to Austria but it is filmed in Hungary. Just before the grisly deaths tip it over into the unpleasant there is the odd laugh and attractive appearances by some of the co-stars: Raquel Welch, Joey Heatherton, Virna Lisi, Nathalie Delon and Sybil Danning.

The kitschy tone isn’t quite right for the material, and Burton doesn’t seem to have the heart or lightness of touch for it. It is nicely shot in Technicolor by Gábor Pogány and has a good score by Ennio Morricone. There is some lesbian sex between Sybil Danning and Nathalie Delon in the mix.

It is a remake of Bluebeard (1944), The Madonna’s Secret (1946), Bluebeard [Blaubart] (1951) and Claude Chabrol’s Landru (1963).

Also in the cast are Marilù Tolo, Karin Schubert, Agostina Belli, Edward Meeks, Doka Bukova, Jean Lefebvre, Erica Schramm, Karl-Otto Alberty, Kurt Großkurth, Sándor Szabó and Mathieu Carrière.

Burton’s wife Elizabeth Taylor celebrated her 40th birthday with a lavish party while this film was shooting in Hungary.

© Derek Winnert 2020 Classic Movie Review 10,321

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