Planet Of The Vampires (1965) ***

I had forgotten how much of the story and design elements of Mario Bava’s Planet Of The Vampires (1965) bear resemblance to Dan O’Bannon's screenplay for Ridley Scott’s 1979 Alien [review]—an alien planet, a distress call, giant ancient beings, a ship in need of repair. POTV hasn't aged quite as well as I remembered from previous viewings. The costumes and lighting are well executed, there's a nice sense of dread throughout, and Bava made the most of the production design and special effects on what was clearly a very limited budget. But there is definitely a cheap quality to the film, the pacing is a bit of a slog, and the acting is pretty unremarkable. That said, it's a fun, influential flick that scratches the itch if you're in the mood for pulpy, horror-tinged science fiction.

Mario Bava Feature Films Ranked