1648: the Crimson Executioner is sentenced to death for his bloody reign of torture and murder, the maniac having taken it upon himself to act as judge, jury and executioner; before being sealed in an iron maiden, one of his own cruel devices, he swears to avenge himself. A few centuries later, a book publisher scouting for locations takes his photographic team and several sexy models to an old castle to shoot some covers, the group unaware that the current owner of the property, reclusive actor Travis (played by Mr. Universe 1955, Mickey Hargitay), is on the prowl, believing himself to be the reincarnation of the Crimson Executioner.In Bloody Pit of Horror, director Max Hunter (AKA Massimo Pupillo) has created a hugely entertaining camp classic, a film full of brutal, sadistic, misogynistic violence (the film is loosely based on the works of the Marquis de Sade), but one so thoroughly cheesy in its execution (pun intended) that it is impossible to be horrified or offended by it. With cheesecake models strutting around in their underwear, a killer who looks supremely daft, whether in his Crimson get-up or his very fetching rainbow-coloured dressing gown, and some truly unconvincing scenes of torture, the film is a hoot from start to finish—pure gold for fans of '60s exploitation trash.The most ludicrous moment is undoubtedly when exotic model Kinojo (Moa Tahi) is caught in a wire web with crossbows aimed at her body and a huge, ridiculous-looking spider dangling in front of her; it's a fiendish trap worthy of Jigsaw himself. Sleazier scenes include a spreadeagled woman stretched on a rack, two babes in their underwear on a rotating device with blades cutting into their beasts, a girl having molten tar poured on her bare back, and publisher's assistant Edith (Luisa Baratto) being stripped to her knickers and strapped to a brazen bull (a nasty piece of torture equipment that slowly cooks the victim). The Crimson Executioner also kills off a few of the men, slicing the first with a multi-bladed pendulum, impaling one through the neck with a spear, and roasting another alive in a cage suspended over a fire.Meanwhile, hero Rick battles Travis's many stripy t-shirt-wearing henchmen (?!?!) in an effort to make it to the dungeon and save the life of at least one of the women. A rousing, poorly choreographed fight scene between Rick and Travis ends on a suitably silly note, the Crimson-hooded killer getting impaled on one of his own torture devices, a rather amusing straw dummy equipped with poisoned spikes.7.5 out of 10, rounded up to 8 for the absolutely hilarious, presumably unintentionally homo-erotic scene in which narcissistic Travis lovingly oils up his own chest. What a tart!

The Crimson Executioner is back to seek revenge in the guise of a shirtless, tight pants wearing Mickey Hargitay in a horror cult classic both bloody and truly frightening. Murder came easy for his predecessor who combined it with a ton of torture. "His noble crusade against sin lives again-Through me!", Hargitay bellows, and while the bad dubbing is truly laughable, the scares are frequent. Much of the plot is straight out of Edgar Allan Poe, more from the cult horror classic "Black Sunday", and a bit of a T&A exploitation. Chlostrophobic sufferers are better to avoid this, as are arachnaphobes and those afraid of sharp objects, fire and extremely cold eater. The torture devises are clever and macabre, with one rotating devise slowly slicing up the breasts of two young women and a descending canopy bed lowering over the hero with sharp objects protruding towards him. The acting is certainly horrid, but this is so difficult to turn your head away if you can stand it. Hargitay's gift here is obvious, but it isn't his thespian talents. Some audience members may find their faces turning as red as his painted on pants. Any similarly between this and the real Marquis De Sade is as close to reality as Bugs Bunny is. I give this a higher rating simply because of the pure gall and nothing more.

When a group of photographers and models sneak into an apparently abandoned castle to do a photo-shoot, they are immediately asked to leave by the castle's inhabitant, Travis Anderson (Mickey Hargitay). But when he recognises his ex-fiancé Edith (Luisa Baratto) amongst the group, he changes his mind and gives them the freedom of the castle. Lurking in the castle's dungeons, where the group have set up, is the preserved body of an executed serial-killer named The Crimson Executioner, and when his coffin is disturbed, his spirit is released and enters the body of Travis. Soon enough, bodies are dropping like flies while the 'hero' Rick (Walter Brandi), desperately attempts to save them.Former Mr. Universe Mickey Hargitay made a moderately successful career for himself after appearing in the excellently madcap Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? (1957) with his wife Jayne Mansfield. He was mainly employed in B-grade Italian horror movies such as the twisted Delirium (1972), and he is just about the only good thing is Bloody Pit of Horror, also known as The Red Hangman, A Tale of Torture, and most hilariously, Some Virgins for the Hangman. Although his role is completely ridiculous, he has a hulking presence that brings a likability to Travis, even when he is wide-eyed, tightening the hold of a rack. Plus I couldn't imagine anyone else being able to pull off those red, spandex pants.The sets have a bright, technicholour warmth about them, reminiscent of some of the classic Hammer horrors and Roger Corman's Poe adaptations, that give the film a nicely Gothic, if slightly camp, feel. But ultimately it is as effective as wrapping a ribbon around a turd, failing to cover up the sheer atrocity of its direction. It is so over- the-top and silly that the film ends up feeling like a cartoon, containing torture scenes that include a woman stuck in a giant web with a spider so badly constructed, I don't know if it was meant to be real or not. That said, I still found this quite fun, but I don't feel good about it.www.the-wrath-of-blog.blogspot.com

It's really hard to score THE CRIMSON EXECUTIONER. On one hand, it's a horribly made little film that is embarrassingly bad. On the other, it's so terribly funny because it is so bad! The film begins with some really obnoxious people breaking into an old castle to take some publicity pictures. However, it turns out the place is NOT unoccupied and the crazy owner tells them to get lost. Oddly, however just moments later he asks them to stay. So, they do and over the course of an evening, the crew members and models are killed off one at a time by the crazy homeowner--who thinks he's the reincarnation of a sicko named the Crimson Executioner. Actually, the guy's outfit makes him look a lot like Diabolik from another Mario Bava film, but that's neither here nor there.The film is filled with lots of sadistic torture and is reminiscent of the German film, THE TORTURE CHAMBER OF DR. SADISM (talk about a great title). However, unlike the German film, this one is much sillier and the horrible punishments really don't look all that realistic--just cheesy. But, because it is made so poorly (with horrible dialog and action throughout), it is worth seeing to have a few laughs. Otherwise, if you do skip it, your brain might appreciate it!