- Actors: Robert Hossein, Romina Mondello, Riccardo Serventi Longhi, Gabriella Giorgelli, Umberto Balli
- Directors: Sergio Stivaletti
- Writers: Dario Argento, Daniele Stroppa, Gaston Leroux, Lucio Fulci
- Producers: Dario Argento, Fulvio Lucisano, Giuseppe Colombo
- Format: PAL
- Language Italian
- Region: Region 2 (This DVD may not be viewable outside Europe. Read more about DVD formats.)
- Number of discs: 1
- Classification: 18
- Studio: Film 2000
- DVD Release Date: 15 Mar 2004
- Run Time: 98 minutes
- Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
- ASIN: B0001FYQC2
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 34,921 in Film & TV (See Top 100 in Film & TV)
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:VHS Tape
A mysterious wax museum is filled with controversy when people go missing and die. Not-soon-after we see new wax figures inside. Coincidence?
You'd think that combining the talents of Lucio Fulci and Dario Argento that they'd make a good horror film, but not in this case. The story was written by the two great directors, but it's just too bad Dario couldn't step behind the camera, because I think it would have been a better film.
The plot is just about a new wax mesuem opening in a small town. A man is dared to stay the night there and end up dead the next day. More people turn missing and the wax masuem may be the key to it all.
This movie basically borrows from many other films. It has a lot of similarities to films like Phantom of the Opera and, yes, even Terminator . I thought the acting was decent and so was the directing. It had a good amount of gore in certain parts of the movie, but not a lot. There were some good computer-generated effects in parts of the film as well. I thought that was one of the stronger points of the movie.
The story is predictable and cliched from the start. I would have given the movie a lower-rating, but I found it to be interesting and I liked some of the effects. The ending, however, was one of the silliest ending's I've ever seen. That's where the Terminator reference comes in .
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
*POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD!*
Though a tad kitschy at times, "Maschera di cera" (The Wax Mask) proved more interesting than expected. This Italian costume horror piece based on a story by Gaston Leroux has good suspense moments, lots of creepy elements, a complicated-enough story and an interesting cast, performing well. In the beginning, one has an inkling as to who is behind everything, but this doesn't spoil the movie (in fact, we are sort of hoping for this person to be the evil genius). We gradually get to know more about people's backgrounds and their motivations, just like the reporter character (played by Riccardo Serventi Longhi) who investigates the mysterious murder and disappearance cases. The link between him and the possible crime scene is the beautiful Sonia Lafont (Romina Mondello) who got employed there, again for a logical reason (given the killer's background). All twists and turns in the story make good sense, except for the ending, which is in itself an intriguing open ending that nicely matches a horror movie (expressing the "I will be back, I haven't been defeated" message), but raises the necessary questions. Are we to understand the person walking out of the burning building at the end can shift shape easily, or that he was really dead all that time (how could one possibly fake being human with no more than a metal skeleton and a layer of wax?), or that some murders were committed by his helpers instead of by him? The whole thing about the wax figures not being actually dead is very implausible too). Apparently we are supposed to suspend a good deal of disbelief here (as the genre requires generally), but still it bugged me I couldn't make good sense of the ending while the rest of the story was understandable enough for me. I found the costume setting very agreeable - if well done, it compensates for many things, like the kitschy display of bare-breasted young ladies and prostitutes on the job (including sadomasochist action). However, these erotic details have certain functions in the story, which makes them excusable, like the occasional blood and gore, which is virtually indispensable in horror. Contrary to my initial belief, this film proved worthy of multiple watching. For a Robert Hossein fan like me it is canonical by definition, but apart from that I would definitely recommend it to any fan of costume drama with a horrifying touch to it.
Though a tad kitschy at times, "Maschera di cera" (The Wax Mask) proved more interesting than expected. This Italian costume horror piece based on a story by Gaston Leroux has good suspense moments, lots of creepy elements, a complicated-enough story and an interesting cast, performing well. In the beginning, one has an inkling as to who is behind everything, but this doesn't spoil the movie (in fact, we are sort of hoping for this person to be the evil genius). We gradually get to know more about people's backgrounds and their motivations, just like the reporter character (played by Riccardo Serventi Longhi) who investigates the mysterious murder and disappearance cases. The link between him and the possible crime scene is the beautiful Sonia Lafont (Romina Mondello) who got employed there, again for a logical reason (given the killer's background). All twists and turns in the story make good sense, except for the ending, which is in itself an intriguing open ending that nicely matches a horror movie (expressing the "I will be back, I haven't been defeated" message), but raises the necessary questions. Are we to understand the person walking out of the burning building at the end can shift shape easily, or that he was really dead all that time (how could one possibly fake being human with no more than a metal skeleton and a layer of wax?), or that some murders were committed by his helpers instead of by him? The whole thing about the wax figures not being actually dead is very implausible too). Apparently we are supposed to suspend a good deal of disbelief here (as the genre requires generally), but still it bugged me I couldn't make good sense of the ending while the rest of the story was understandable enough for me. I found the costume setting very agreeable - if well done, it compensates for many things, like the kitschy display of bare-breasted young ladies and prostitutes on the job (including sadomasochist action). However, these erotic details have certain functions in the story, which makes them excusable, like the occasional blood and gore, which is virtually indispensable in horror. Contrary to my initial belief, this film proved worthy of multiple watching. For a Robert Hossein fan like me it is canonical by definition, but apart from that I would definitely recommend it to any fan of costume drama with a horrifying touch to it.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
7 reviews
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Wax Mask
20 Aug 2000
Format:DVD
Originally intended for Lucio Fulci to directed,his untimely death stopped him from doing so. Dario Argento handed the project over to his fx man Sergio Stivaletti,who I might say did one hell of a fine job for his debut as a director. Lush in atmosphere,Stivaletti gave me the impression of paying homage to his mentor Argento. Image Entertainment has released on good gem that was previously unavailble to us here in North America. I do highly recommend this one,it's worth every penny spent.
4 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Far better than expected expoloitation trash
8 Mar 2001
Format:DVD
This is pretty much a remake of "House of Wax" but updated with CGI effects and liberal doses of nudity and gore. Suprisingly well done, stylish, lowbrow, sleazy and lots of fun. It maintains an engrossingly weird and dream-like atmosphere--from the lovely opening shot of fireworks bursting over the Eiffel Tower to the bizarre Terminator-eque finale in, of course, a burning wax museum. Costumes, cinematography, art direction and music are first rate and some amusing plot twists occur (courtesy of Lucio Fulci and Dario Argento). Highly recommended to fans of Hammer films and European horror.
The DVD is non-anamorphic widescreen. Clean print. Nice, solid transfer. No extras aside from a small effects photo gallery but don't let that deter you.
The DVD is non-anamorphic widescreen. Clean print. Nice, solid transfer. No extras aside from a small effects photo gallery but don't let that deter you.
4 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Fair mix of classic horror with modern style.
9 Sep 2000
Format:DVD
Wax Mask has a lot to live up to. Not only is it a retelling of an already classic horror story and film (House of Wax 1953), but it has the cold, mechanical, blood drenched hands of two masters of Italian horror, Dario Argento and Lucio Fulci, dipped in to it. Sergio Stivaletti, special effects man on such films as Argento's Phenonena, Opera, Stendhal Syndrome, and Demons (by Lamberto Bava), and Dellamorte/Dellamore (by Michele Soavi) makes his feature debut as a director. Stivaletti doesn't showcase any revelatory talent, just competent skill learned from his years of working with great Italian horror directors. He has absorbed the style, but doesn't add anything new to it.
As far as the typical stumble in plot, occasional flat acting (two things one accepts in Italian horror), a miscast lead actor, and a horrible, but mercifully brief, finale, the film is average, well paced, and thoroughly entertaining. It has modern touches in gore, CGI effects, and some titllation, while maintaining classic horror elements like looming shadows, mad doctor laboratories, and so on, making an intriguing mix of old and new.
The DVD looks quite good, a fine transfer with sharp image and great color hues (Stivaletti saturates colors very vividly throughout the film). The only extra is a short slide show of behind the scenes photos. Fans of Italian horror should be well entertained with this modestly priced disc. A C+. As far as this genre goes, you can certainly find better, but most of all, you can find a whole lot worse.
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