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romanorum1 The opening scene presents a gruesome hammer-murder of a prostitute and her customer in an unusual killer's POV (point of view) camera shot. Right after, an attractive young woman – Ellie Masters (Melody Patterson) – awakes from a nightmare and screams. She is the daughter of the murdered woman. Very soon, as she is without parents, Ellie is sent to an orphanage run by twisted Mrs. Deere (Gloria Grahame) and creepy handyman Tom Kredge (Len Lesser). They have the knack for capturing fugitives and keeping them in deep freeze, after they are dispatched by Kredge. Detective Calvin Carruthers (Vic Payback) supposedly wants to help Ellie. His motives are morally ambiguous, to say the least. Another strange dude is Mr. Mullins (Milton Selzer), a social worker who enjoys the favors from Mrs. Deere for looking the other way. A teen-aged girl is tied up in the attic and deprived of water for not folding her napkin. Meanwhile there is a strange dude with a chilling mask lurking about the place. What does he want? Does he want to kill Ellie, thinking that she saw him murder her mother, whom Ellie despised? Rapes and killings abound. So yes, it's a sick movie all-around, but quite interesting. Logic is left outside the door, but the ending is a real grabber. In short, this is a trash-lovers delight, with nary a sympathetic character. It was filmed by American International Pictures. Gloria Grahame was an actress from the 1940s to the 1980s; some of her movies are "It's a Wonderful Life" (1946), "The Bad and the Beautiful" (1952), and "Oklahoma" (1955). Melody Patterson had starred in the TV sitcom "F Troop" in 1965-1967. Len Lesser was featured in both movies and in TV, such as "Seinfeld." Vic Payback was in both the movie "Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore" (1974), and in the TV version, "Alice." Milton Selzer was more known for his TV appearances than film.

Michael_Elliott Blood and Lace (1971) ** 1/2 (out of 4) This AIP thriller is one of the nastiest films you're ever going to see that got a GP rating. It really makes you wonder what the MPAA members were smoking at the time of watching this. After her prostitute mother and a client are brutally beaten to death with a hammer, teenager Ellie (Melody Patterson) goes to live at a boarding house ran by the rather sadistic Mrs. Deere (Gloria Grahame). Soon Ellie begins to fear that the man who killed her mother is now after her. BLOOD AND LACE is a pretty nasty little film that plays out more like a Hitchcock thriller than just a straight horror film. The film features some pretty memorable violence, some great performances and an all around good atmosphere, which helps overcome the flaws and make it worth viewing. What surprised me the most was how brutal some of the violence was starting off with the hammer deaths. Now, we're not talking SAW material but for 1971 it's pretty strong. There's also another scene where a boy gets his hand cut off, which looked very realistic and it's certainly something one won't forget. The performances are also great with former Oscar-winner Grahame really doing a great job in the role of one of the villains. I thought she played evil with a certain charm that really made it a fun performance to watch. Patterson is completely sympathetic in her role and she has no problem making you care about her. Len Lesser is fun as another one of the bad guys and there's even a young performance from Dennis Christopher. The film also features some beautiful cinematography, a nice music score and the atmosphere is quite dark and you can feel the coldness of the freezer that plays an important role in the film. I won't give away the ending but the final ten-minutes contain some nice suspense and great fun. BLOOD AND LACE has pretty much been forgotten over the years but it's a good little thriller that has a lot of strong stuff going for it.

Cujo108 After her whore of a mother is murdered by a hammer-wielding nutjob, teen Ellie Masters is sent to live at the rural Deere Orphanage. She immediately begins plotting her getaway, as she wishes to track down the father she never knew. What she doesn't realize is that Mrs. Deere and her handyman, Tom Kredge, won't let anyone leave under any circumstances. If it comes down to murder, so be it. As she deals with this sadistic twosome, Ellie also realizes that she's being stalked by a masked creep with a claw hammer.Often referred to as the sickest PG film ever, I had wanted to see this for years. After finally happening upon a VHS copy, I was disappointed when I quickly came to the realization that it was a cut print. The opening hammer murder wasn't as explicit as I'd heard, and the scene where Bunch seduces Walter in the barn was really chopped up. Thankfully, not only does the print on Netflix look incredible, but it's also fully intact. This is such a great, truly warped little nasty. The twists just keep on coming, getting sicker and more twisted as the film progresses. The ending is a real kick in the balls.Gloria Grahame and Len Lesser own the film as the pair of crazies who will get those welfare checks at any cost. Melody Patterson is an arrogant bitch as Ellie, so I never felt much sympathy for her. Vic Tayback is the perverted detective who takes more than a passing interest in Ellie's predicament. His character made my skin crawl."Blood and Lace" is pure, untarnished nihilism on film. There's nary a sympathetic character in sight as the sleaze and melodrama run rampant. One also has to wonder if Wes Craven was inspired by this film's masked freak when he came up with the look of Freddy Krueger. The only thing I don't care for here is the music. It's overwrought in several places where something more subdued would have added to the overall effect. This is a gem that deserves a stronger reputation.

haildevilman Rated GP, that's right. What we now call PG. But you knew that.A sick little PG as well.Boarding house for wayward girls and of course the Madam has a dirty little secret or three.Gloria Grahame was the best actor here. When I found out later she was a previous Oscar winner (for The Bad And The Beautiful) I wasn't surprised. She played the role Joan Collins tried to play for years.Vic Tayback (Mel from 'Alice') showed he's got some dramatic range. He played the one likable male.I can't mention the twists at the end. See it for yourself. It's slow going in places, but worth it.