Bloodstained Italy: Obscene Desire / The Bloodstained Lawn / Death Falls Lightly – Vinegar Syndrome (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Dates: Italy/Spain, 1978 (Obscene Desire), Italy, 1973 (The Bloodstained Lawn), Italy, 1972 (Death Falls Lightly)
Directors: Giulio Petroni (Obscene Desire), Riccardo Ghione (The Bloodstained Lawn), Leopoldo Savona (Death Falls Lightly)
Cast: Marisa Mell, Chris Avram, Lou Castel, Laura Trotter, Paola Maiolini, Javier Escrivá, Víctor Israel (Obscene Desire), Marina Malfatti, Enzo Tarascio, Daniela Caroli, George Willing, Claudio Biava, Barbara Marzano, Dominique Boschero, Lucio Dalla, Nino Castelnuovo (The Bloodstained Lawn), Stelio Candelli, Patrizia Viotti, Veronika Korosec, Rossella Bergamonti, Tom Felleghy, Antonio Anelli, Marcello Di Martire, Mathily Doria, Fernando Cerulli, Franco Marletta, Lella Cattaneo, Alessandro Perrella, Carla Mancini (Death Falls Lightly)

Release Date: September 23rd, 2025
Approximate Running Times: 94 Minutes 41 Seconds (Obscene Desire), 86 Minutes 14 Seconds (The Bloodstained Lawn), 89 Minutes 8 Seconds (Death Falls Lightly)
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC (Obscene Desire, Death Falls Lightly), 2.35:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC (The Bloodstained Lawn)
Rating: NR
Sound: DTS-HD Mono Italian (All Films)
Subtitles: English (All Films)
Region Coding: Region Free
Retail Price: $69.98

Obscene Desire: "a young American woman, Amanda, moves to a large and creepy countryside villa with her newlywed Italian husband. Soon enough, strange and seemingly supernatural events begin to befall the property, as a black-gloved killer simultaneously picks up and murders prostitutes. What do these otherworldly occurrences and the vicious killings have in common? And what sinister plans have been hatched for Amanda?" - synopsis provided by the distributor

The Bloodstained Lawn: "a group of hippie drifters find their way to the luxury and ultra-modern country home of Dr. Antonio and his wife, Nina Genovese. While the seemingly charming couple's offer to let the aimless youngsters hang out at their property appears initially motivated by the couple's fascination with the lifestyles of the free love generation, when members of the group begin vanishing, it becomes clear that something much more sinister - and deadly - is afoot." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Death Falls Lightly: "a wealthy businessman Giorgio Darica's wife is murdered by an unknown assailant. Fearing that he will be fingered as the prime suspect, due to their failing marriage and his well-known philandering, his advisors suggest that he go into hiding at a shuttered hotel until the police can investigate more thoroughly. Taking along his mistress, Giorgio assumes he'll be in for a secret romantic getaway, but is soon besieged by supernatural visions which seem to be drawing him into the hotel's own dark and murderous past, threatening to drive him mad." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4/5 (Obscene Desire, The Bloodstained Lawn, Death Falls Lightly) 

Here’s the information provided about the transfers, "All films newly scanned and restored in 2K from their 35mm original negative."

Here’s more information about Obscene Desire, “Following the completion of Obscene Desire, its producer recut certain portions of the film, including a portion of its ending, without the involvement of its director, Giulio Petroni, who disowned the film as a result.

Using a variety of film elements, we have been able to restore the film’s ending as originally intended. We are proud to present Obscene Desire in as close to a director’s cut as possible.”

Obscene Desire comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 40.4 GB

Feature: 25.8 GB

The Bloodstained Lawn comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 32.8 GB

Feature: 23.5 GB

Death Falls Lightly comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 31.6 GB

Feature: 24.3 GB

Although all three transfers have some source debris, it is always minor and never intrusive. Flesh tones look healthy, colors look correct, image clarity and black levels are generally strong, compression is solid, and the image always looks organic.

Audio: 3.75/5 (Obscene Desire, The Bloodstained Lawn), 4/5 (Death Falls Lightly)

Each film comes with one audio option, a DTS-HD mono mix in Italian with removable English subtitles. All audio tracks sound clear and balanced, and range-wise they are satisfactory.

Extras:

Extras for Obscene Desire include a theatrical trailer (2 minutes 58 seconds, Dolby Digital mono Italian with removable English subtitles), alternate and extended scenes from the Spanish version (13 minutes 26 seconds, Dolby Digital mono Spanish, no subtitles), an archival interview with director/writer Giulio Petroni tiled Disowned Desires (14 minutes 36 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), an interview with director Pupi Avati titled A Question of Faith (11 minutes 38 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), an interview with censorship expert Alessio Di Rocco titled A Controversial Desire (20 minutes 33 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), an interview with daughter of Giulio Petroni and script supervisor, Silvia Petroni titled The End of it All (21 minutes 26 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with grandson of Giulio Petroni and film historian, Eugenio Ercolani titled Dissecting the Desire (44 minutes 7 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), and an audio commentary with film historians Eugenio Ercolani and Troy Howarth.

Extras for The Bloodstained Lawn include an interview with filmmaker/film historian Luca Rea titled Odd Choices (16 minutes 15 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English with removable English subtitles for Italian film clips), an interview with film historian Enzo Latronico titled Bloodstained Piacenza (24 minutes 25 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), and an audio commentary with film historian and critic Rachael Nisbet.

Extras for Death Falls Lightly include a then-and-now location featurette titled Where Death Landed (5 minutes 31 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo), an interview with Luca Rea titled That Kind of Film (11 minutes 25 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English with removable English subtitles for Italian film clips), an interview with actor Alessandro Perrella titled Anything Goes (15 minutes 39 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), and an audio commentary with Eugenio Ercolani and Troy Howarth.

Other extras include a spot gloss slipcover (limited to 6,000 units).

Summary:

Obscene Desire: Demonic forces besiege an American woman who marries an Italian nobleman after she moves into his family's estate.

Giulio Petroni directed Obscene Desire. He’s known for Death Rides a Horse, A Sky Full of Stars for a Roof, and Tepepa.

Obscene Desire is a blend of gothic horror and Exorcist clone, infused with a dash of erotica. Although the opening setup does a great job setting the foundation, things quickly become too predictable as the narrative plods along to what feels like a rushed ending that is easy to see coming. When it comes to pacing, things move slowly, as the narrative never manages to sustain any momentum.

The performances are best described as serviceable; the cast are given little to work with. The main draw is Marisa Mell (Danger: Diabolik) in the role of Amanda, an American woman starting a new life with her Italian husband. She delivers a convincing performance of a woman who begins to question her sanity. The most memorable performance is Víctor Israel's (The Witches Mountain) portrayal of Giovanni, a creepy-looking groundskeeper. The most disappointing performance is Lou Castel's (Fists in the Pocket) portrayal of a priest who befriends Amanda.

It is clear, early on, that Obscene Desire is a film with a fair number of shortcomings. This is not surprising since its director, Giulio Petroni, would disown it after changes were made against his wishes in post-production. That said, when viewed in the context of Giulio Petroni’s most celebrated films, Obscene Desire feels like it could have been directed by anyone. Despite its many shortcomings, there are a few areas where Obscene Desire succeeds: its ability to create atmosphere and an eerie mood-enforcing score. Ultimately, Obscene Desire is a by-the-numbers occult-themed horror film that offers no surprises.

The Bloodstained Lawn: A decadent couple pick up wanderers and other undesirables and drain their blood for nefarious purposes.

The Bloodstained Lawn was directed by Riccardo Ghione, who is more known for his work as a screenwriter on films like The Dark Side of Love, Scandalous Gilda, and Delizia.

The Bloodstained Lawn is an odd film, even by Italian genre cinema standards. Its opening setup poses more questions than it answers, and its narrative moves at a lethargic pace. Other areas where the narrative is lacking are that there are few surprises, and it is padded with non-exposition moments that do nothing to further the narrative.

Although the cast features a few recognizable faces like Marina Malfatti (The Red Queen Kills Seven Times) and Nino Castelnuovo (The Umbrellas of Cherbourg). When it comes to the rest of the cast, they are names and faces no one would recognize. The most interesting performance is Enzo Tarascio (The Night Evelyn Came Out of the Grave), who portrays Dr. Antonio Genovese, a mad scientist character who created a robot that drains blood. That said, the rest of the performances are lacking, and they just go through the motions.

The Bloodstained Lawn is a film that can’t make up its mind what kind of film it is; one minute it is a thriller, horror, sci-fi, or melodrama. The Bloodstained Lawn has minimal gore, no real scares, and an anticlimactic finale that serves as one final insult. One of the few bright spots is Teo Usuelli's score, which has a music cue that's similar to one he used for Amuck!. Ultimately, The Bloodstained Lawn’s strongest asset is its title; unfortunately, the result is a film that never lives up to it.

Death Falls Lightly: A man wanted for the murder of his wife loses his grip on reality while hiding inside of an abandoned hotel.

Leopoldo Savona directed Death Falls Lightly. Notable films he’s known for are Men and Wolves, Killer Kid, Apocalypse Joe, and Byleth.

What begins as a film about a man on the run after discovering his wife's dead body shifts to a supernatural horror film that relies more on atmosphere than logic. The narrative is filled with surprises that consistently capture your attention. When the moment of truth finally arrives, the revelations about what has transpired are genuinely unexpected.

The performances are best described as serviceable. The strongest performance is Patrizia Viotti (Night of the Damned); she portrays the mistress of the man accused of murdering his wife. The weakest performance is Stelio Candelli (Planet of the Vampires) in the role of the husband, who is forced to go into hiding after finding his wife murdered. He delivers a one-dimensional performance that is devoid of any charisma.

Although Death Falls Lightly is a film that is not without its shortcomings, it is actually a well-made film on the technical side. The effectiveness of Death Falls Lightly in utilizing its central location is particularly evident, and the visuals are both stylish and rich in atmosphere. An area where Death Falls Lightly excels is Coriolano Gori’s (Werewolf Woman) score, which has a psychedelic vibe that perfectly reinforces the mood. Ultimately, if you're a fan of psychotronic cinema like the films of Renato Polselli and Luigi Batzella, then you should thoroughly enjoy Death Falls Lightly.

Bloodstained Italy is an eclectic selection of films; unfortunately, they are largely forgettable films that most will never revisit. That said, Bloodstained Italy is a solid release from Vinegar Syndrome that gives each film a strong audio/video presentation and informative extras.

 

Written by Michael Den Boer