Sightlines · reception

How Black Sabbath was received

1963 · Mario Bava · Black Sabbath on Sightlines

The arc

Released in the US by AIP in a heavily re-edited, reordered, and rescored cut, it was treated as just another drive-in Karloff picture; decades later the restored Italian version cemented it as one of Bava's masterpieces and the gold standard of horror anthologies.

What’s debated

The eternal fan debate is AIP cut vs. Italian cut — story order, Les Baxter vs. Roberto Nicolosi's score, and the sanitized 'Telephone' segment — plus the ritual argument over which of the three tales is best.

Its footprint

Its biggest cultural echo is musical: Black Sabbath took their name from the film, effectively christening heavy metal. Tarantino has also said Pulp Fiction aimed to do for crime what this film did for horror.

Where it stands

A cornerstone of Italian horror and a perennial October watchlist staple — the gateway Bava film cinephiles insist you see.

Did you know? The band Black Sabbath named themselves after the film: seeing crowds line up across from their rehearsal space to watch it, Geezer Butler reasoned people would pay to be frightened, and the group renamed themselves accordingly.