Color Me Blood Red

Color Me Blood Red is a classic horror film released in 1965, directed by the notable Herschell Gordon Lewis and starring Gordon Oas-Heim, Candi Conder, and Elyn Warner. The story raises a dubious eyebrow at the lengths artists might go to make their work stand out, pushing the boundaries of macabre mystery and suspense by incorporating vintage, grisly special effects that were terrifyingly progressive in its time.

Gordon Oas-Heim, credited as Don Joseph in the film, flawlessly plays the character, Adam Sorg, a jaded and discontent artist desperate to achieve the recognition and success he believes he rightfully deserves. His aspiration to be the best in his field and induce a paradigm shift within the art world is wonderfully portrayed. Oas-Heim's performance largely contributes to the erratic and thrilling aura of this film.

In support, Candi Conder, playing as Gigi, is Sorg's apathetic and indifferent lover and assistant. Conder does an excellent job of juxtaposing her character's blase attitude against Sorg's obsessive ambition.

Elyn Warner, introducing a character named April Carter, presents a welcome, contrasting perspective to the growing unease. Her character's innocent curiosity and fraught storyline help bind together the events, escalating the overall sense of dread and fascination.

The movie unfolds at a beachfront property where Sorg's art studio is located. This setting offers a picturesque and contrasting backdrop for the appalling deeds that take place, a brilliant plot device to enhance unsettling emotions. The tranquility of the sea, complemented by the bright, tropical locale, offers a visual paradox to the blood-soaked terror that consistently bubbles up on canvas.

Color Me Blood Red largely investigates the intersection between madness and genius, raising questions regarding the extents to which artists might go for their work. Sorg's obsession with perfection leads him to an appalling discovery that blood can serve as an ideal medium in his paintings, bringing them to life in an unsettlingly literal sense. By playing off this sinister twist, the film delves deep into the horrors of obsession and the consequential moral decay.

The cinematography of the film strikes a chord, seamlessly blending bright, vibrant color with chillingly cold horror, bringing a bizarrely unique perspective to the narrative. Lewis's careful, gory close-ups of blood mixing with pigments, thus transforming into a morbid, yet distressingly alluring, 'work of art,' serve to unsettle the viewer and elevate the horror aspect.

Audiences can expect some dry humor scattered about in the dialogue and storyline, characteristic of Lewis's work, providing occasional relief from the film's suspenseful tension.

Laughter aside, this film doesn't hold back from exclusively focusing on graphic and grotesque horror. As a part of the infamous 'Blood Trilogy' by Herschell Gordon Lewis, following 'Blood Feast' (1963) and 'Two Thousand Maniacs!' (1964), 'Color Me Blood Red' largely contributes to the legacy of the splatter genre. It showcases Lewis's penchant for relentless on-screen violence, leaving an indelible mark on horror cinema.

The narrative arc of the film is a brilliantly paced onslaught of grisly aesthetics and psychological horror. The graphic scenes of Sorg acquiring and using his 'paint' remain faithfully horrifying throughout the film, binding viewers with a morbid fascination.

An engaging narrative combined with compelling performances, particularly from Oas-Heim, makes Color Me Blood Red a genuinely captivating horror feature. The screenplay, penned by Lewis and collaborator Allison Louise Downe, is artfully written to play on the audience's primal fears while offering a thought-provoking commentary on the gruesome lengths some might go for art.

With its blend of psychological themes, grisly visuals and dark humor, Color Me Blood Red is a must-watch for those with an appetite for vintage horror. It effectively sets the bar for the bizarre, splatter genre, promising a viewing experience that will silence the faint of heart while appealing to true horror enthusiasts.

As a product of its time, it played a significant role in furthering the horror genre, paving the way for more explicit, gory films in later years. Today, it stands as a grandiose example of how far horror cinema has come, with Color Me Blood Red still being celebrated as a stanchion of conceptual and macabre storytelling.