Review of Eyes Without a Face (1960) by Michael O — 02 Oct 2008

Horror movies in the old days had a tendency of being made by artful directors. Classic horror was a moral playground for brave filmmakers to explore without as many restrictions. After all it's only a horror film.

There's a serial killer, sure, but there's a message behind his slayings.

This film is like a Cocteau dream shot from the eyes of a clinical prankster. There are airs of poetry when Catherine tends to the dogs in her mask or when she calls her fiancee. The final scene with the birds trailing behind her. All good stuff, the images have a lot to say underneath.

Now the scenes of the operations the girls' father performs are another story. Maybe there's something else to it. All I got was the first visceral impact of the cutting and the lifting and the scalpels and the forceps and the blood.

Fucking horrifying stuff. Truly amazing.

I cant wait to see a film like this in modern horror. Do I have to go out and make it or what?