Blu-ray Review: Byleth: The Demon of Incest (1972)

November 10, 2019

Written by DanXIII

Daniel XIII; the result of an arcane ritual involving a King Diamond album, a box of Count Chocula, and a copy of Swank magazine, is a screenwriter, director, producer, actor, artist, and reviewer of fright flicks…Who hates ya baby?

Sometime in the 19th Century, in Italy, there ends up being a murder (for which someone is doubtlessly responsible) after a sesh of the hot n’ hornies. So begins Byleth: The Demon of Incest; a film sure to bring a tear to your eye and an itch to your crotch.

Cut to Lionello Shandell… c’mon movie, what the fuck?

Anyway, the impossibly named Lionello (Mark Damon) welcomes his sister Barbara (Marie-Claude Perin) home to the family castle after a journey abroad… too bad she brought along her brand-new husband Giordano (Aldo Bufi Landi)… cue ‘record scratch’, amirite?

Long story short; Lionelle is hot for sister, and her marriage has only made that itch harder to scratch… well that and the law of course… so, all of this results in our hero falling into some sort of jealousy fueled fugue state that makes him stalk around and spy on his sister humpin’ her man, as one does.

Did I mention Barbara is a red head? Well she is, and red-haired dames have been buyin’ the farm all over that piece… could rage beast Lionello be the killer? I’m not going to say… I will however tell you that cavorting and pubes ensue.

While not as downright sleazy as I was picturing with that award winning title and all, Byleth nevertheless manages to entertain. For one thing it’s a period piece pseudo-giallo (black gloved killer and all), so instead of groovy threads we get handsome Victorian attire as women end up murdered. The setting also gives the film a Gothic flair, which is only accentuated by the opulent dwelling and dark family secrets present in the narrative.

Notice how I’ve yet to mention any demons? That’s because the film waits until almost an hour in to get around to that particular plot device. Does that really matter? For me, not really… but you lot may feel differently, who the fuck knows?

I tell you what I do know; this film does succeed in one area that that you would expect, and that’s in the nudity department. There are a bevy of beautiful babes in this pic, and they aren’t shy about showin’ the goods, and that is a good thing given the fact that at it’s core Byleth is an exploitation film, and that’s what ya paid for.

Speaking of paying for things, if you bought this expecting special features your ass is going to be raw as fuck because, as hard as this may be for you to believe, it seems folks don’t want to talk about that incest picture they made when they were young and dumb.

So, there ya go; Byleth: The Demon of Incest is a dash of Poe, a sprinkle of E.C. horror comics, and a whole splash of naked flesh… not a bad combination if you ask me!

 

 

 

 

 

Share This Article

You May Also Like…