Roberto Loyola Movies

An unreleased suspense thriller from Italy's master of horror and fantasy, Mario Bava, Rabid Dogs makes its belated debut in this special DVD release. When a bank robbery goes awry for a pair of violent criminals, they take an innocent woman hostage, who must fight for her survival. Shot mostly inside a speeding car, this tense and claustrophobic drama was filmed in 1974 (five years before Bava's death), but shortly before completion the death of one of the principal financiers threw the project into limbo. In 1998, the film's elements were rediscovered and editing was completed using Bava's notes as a guide; the result is a film that takes a decidedly modern detour from Bava's traditional Gothic subject matter and gives a much broader perspective on the range of his talents. A few years later, the film was reworked and retitled Kidnapped for a brief theatrical run in the U.S. That version of the film would later be released on DVD by Anchor Bay, with the original, Rabid Dogs cut included as supplimental material. Curiously enough, the version of Rabid Dogs featured on the Kidnapped disc still differs from the version of the film previously released by Lucertola. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

This inept, semi-psychedelic Italian drug film stars Carlo De Mejo as Dr. John, a professor who is terribly upset that one of his students, (Alex Rebar of The Incredible Melting Man), is a drug addict. Fearing embarrassment to the university, Dr. John and his nerdy prize pupil (Eugene Pomero) get Rebar out to his house in the country. It's all a trick to get him off of heroin, but in the process Rebar gets Dr. John's pretty wife (Ewa Aulin) hooked on the drug as well. John eavesdrops on Rebar, taunting him mercilessly until the crazed addict ties himself to a bed in order to deal with his harrowing withdrawal symptoms. Meanwhile, the stoned Aulin dances about the house pretending to be a Greek goddess. Pomero tries to talk John out of the whole thing, and director Roberto Loyola keeps cutting away to a group of Rebar's hippie friends burning him in effigy at a public park. None of it makes much sense, and the soundtrack consists of some of the most horrible late '60s music ever heard in a feature film (credited to Ronnie Jones and The Man). It may merit some interest just for the cast, but is otherwise a "buried treasure" which should have stayed that way. Roberto Loyola, who directed under the name "John W. Shadow", went on to produce Mario Bava's unfinished Cani Arrabbiati (1975), which was finally completed by Lea Lander in 1996 and released as Semaforo Rosso. ~ Robert Firsching, Rovi