IMDb RATING
6.2/10
8.8K
YOUR RATING
A 17th century Hungarian countess embarks on a murderous undertaking, with the belief that bathing in the blood of virgins will preserve her beauty.A 17th century Hungarian countess embarks on a murderous undertaking, with the belief that bathing in the blood of virgins will preserve her beauty.A 17th century Hungarian countess embarks on a murderous undertaking, with the belief that bathing in the blood of virgins will preserve her beauty.
- Awards
- 1 win & 1 nomination
Andy Gätjen
- Miklos
- (as Andy Gatjen)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaJulie Delpy revealed in a 2014 interview with entertainment reporter Darby Maloney that the film was a huge success in France, so successful that she is practically guaranteed financial backing from French financiers for any project she wants to pursue in the future.
- GoofsAt about 1h15m, the fifth book on the shelf is the "Dictionnaire De Boyer". Abel Boyer did write a French-English dictionary, but he was born in 1664 and Countess Báthory died in 1614.
- Quotes
Gyorgy Thurzo: Love is a myth, to keep the minds of young peasants and virgins occupied with a dream.
- ConnectionsVersion of Lust of the Vampire (1957)
- SoundtracksCouranta VI
Solinger Streichquartett
Written by Isaak Pesch
From the album "Telemusik"
© & ® Peter Lamprecht
Courtesy of Solinger Streichquartett/Peter Lamprecht
Featured review
Well, actually, in the Little Carpathians, apparently, which are not part of Transylvania, or so Wikipedia tells me.
I really enjoyed this film (at home on pay-per-view)though I think it is intended for a pretty narrow audience. As others have noted, the dialogue is amazingly stilted (very literary, rather like a French novel of the 17th or 18th century) and delivered in near-monotone. I kept feeling that the whole movie had been dubbed into English. On the other hand, I found the acting very fine, and I admired the insistence on presenting these characters as not at all like you, me, or the folks in the latest TV drama. The Countess in particular is a strange, unique portrait--her piety, her desire for amorous adventure, her pride, her intelligence. And that's before you get to the blood-of-virgins part.
The film proposes that what we are seeing before our eyes is not the truth about the Countess. We are watching a fantasy of a noblewoman enacting a tale "told by the victors"--by the men who were enriched by her downfall and relieved, too, to be rid of the very possibility of an intelligent woman. The tale is told, too, by the peasants and others whose sons are fighting in her army. Yet the man who questions the gory story is her lover, and he too may be deceived. There is no simple answer to the question, what really happened?--no resolution.
In short, it's an intellectual (and visual) treat, but it won't affect your blood sugar.
I really enjoyed this film (at home on pay-per-view)though I think it is intended for a pretty narrow audience. As others have noted, the dialogue is amazingly stilted (very literary, rather like a French novel of the 17th or 18th century) and delivered in near-monotone. I kept feeling that the whole movie had been dubbed into English. On the other hand, I found the acting very fine, and I admired the insistence on presenting these characters as not at all like you, me, or the folks in the latest TV drama. The Countess in particular is a strange, unique portrait--her piety, her desire for amorous adventure, her pride, her intelligence. And that's before you get to the blood-of-virgins part.
The film proposes that what we are seeing before our eyes is not the truth about the Countess. We are watching a fantasy of a noblewoman enacting a tale "told by the victors"--by the men who were enriched by her downfall and relieved, too, to be rid of the very possibility of an intelligent woman. The tale is told, too, by the peasants and others whose sons are fighting in her army. Yet the man who questions the gory story is her lover, and he too may be deceived. There is no simple answer to the question, what really happened?--no resolution.
In short, it's an intellectual (and visual) treat, but it won't affect your blood sugar.
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Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Official sites
- Languages
- Also known as
- Bathory
- Filming locations
- Burg Kriebstein, Kriebstein, Saxony, Germany(exteriors: Countess Bathory's castle)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- €5,700,000 (estimated)
- Gross worldwide
- $784,522
- Runtime1 hour 38 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.35 : 1
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