SERIOUSLY. This is what the crap Hollywood still puts out?

Am I Missing Something?

It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.

Excellent characters with emotional depth. My wife, daughter and granddaughter all enjoyed it...and me, too! Very good movie! You won't be disappointed.

Blood Link stars Michael Moriarty as a respected scientist who studies dreams with his lab/bedroom partner Penelope Milford. Moriarty is having visions of himself murdering women and comes to understand that he is seeing murders committed through the eyes of his psychopathic lost twin brother--also played by Moriarty. So the good doctor packs his bags and heads to Germany where his brother is engaged in his murder spree.The doctor believes that if he can find his brother before the police locate him, he can shuttle him back to the States and get him some psychiatric treatment. But brother has other ideas in mind--namely taking his place in the lab and more appropriately, in bed with Penelope Milford.STORY: $$ (The story doesn't offer anything new to the genre. Who hasn't seen one of these good/evil twin thrillers before? The personality quirks (Moriarty playing with his hair) were forced plot details and hindered the film).ACTING: $$ (Rather weak. Michael Moriarty and Penelope Milford are both talented thespians but they have no chemistry and at times seem to sleepwalk through their roles. One gets the impression that on set things weren't tightened down and the actor's work suffered because of it. The great Cameron Mitchell gives a quality performance as former prizefighter Bud Waldo who mistakes the murderous Moriarty for the doctor who treated him once. Sarah Langenfeld is serviceable as Bud's daughter).NUDITY: $$$$$ (Lots of skin here, folks. Most of the women that Moriarty kills are topless. Martha Smith, who played the eager-to-please sorority gal in ANIMAL HOUSE, spends her entire screen time topless--and she is on screen quite a bit. Sarah Langenfeld has a bedroom tryst with Michael Moriarty because ol' Mike is so blasted irresistible. For fans of petite beauties, Penelope Milford has a couple nude scenes as well. A lovely little lady, Penelope bares her breasts early in the film in bed with Moriarty and near the close of the film she is stripped to her birthday suit by the evil Moriarty. The credits roll with Penelope getting her pajama top removed for a final shot of breasts just in case the viewer forgot what the movie was all about. The story of twins in trouble is just filler between the breast shots. But when they're supplied by the well put together Miss Milford, who can complain?)

Dr. Craig Mannings (Michael Moriarty) believes he has discovered a revolutionary psychology technique and has been using himself as the guinea pig. Unfortunately, these experiments allow Mannings to see through the eyes of someone else and that person is murdering folks. Turns out he is seeing through the eyes of Keith (Moriarty again), his Siamese twin that Craig believed was dead. Using clues from his visions, Craig tracks Keith to Germany but soon finds out that his brother wants him there to create the perfect patsy for his crimes.Alberto De Martino directed this Italian/German co-production. While you won't get anything original with the plot of normal twin/evil twin, it is worth seeing solely for the performances by Moriarty. Moriarty has the "normal" sibling as slightly odd, while the "evil" one is like he is playing Klaus Kinski on a good day. The scenes of them interacting are particularly enjoyable. Also worth mentioning is a scene where the evil Keith gleefully punches an aging boxer (Cameron Mitchell) - who just happened to have been treated by Craig in the States - to death in a park. Moriarty is clearly having fun throughout the picture (or is slightly intoxicated). Sadly, the rest of the film isn't up to the level of Moriarty's enthusiasm. De Martino reveals the twin twist way too early and with all the dazzle of a kid's party magician. Also, the plot is full of holes and silly coincidences (odds of your unknown twin running into a patient you treated in a cafe in Germany?) that, at times, make you feel like a reel was left out. The ending - where Craig's woman is in danger - could have been a suspenseful game of cat-and-mouse but unfolds with a thud. On the plus side, there is some nice location work in Berlin and a nice Morricone score.

This obscure Italian film – made in the English language – mixes typical elements of the giallo with a few sci-fi trappings, and adds to them a doppelganger theme. Incidentally, given that it deals with Siamese twins who haven't been in contact for years but are able to 'see' what one another is doing, it somehow feels like the long-lost sibling of two Brian De Palma films itself – coming, as it does, in between his SISTERS (1973) and RAISING CAIN (1992)! Anyway, it's mildly interesting (even more so for me, being a twin myself!), good-looking (the film was shot in the U.S. and Germany) and features an understated Ennio Morricone score – but, in the long run, emerges as nothing especially remarkable. Besides, even if the supporting cast is decked out with veteran presences – Geraldine Fitzgerald, Virginia McKenna and Cameron Mitchell – they're all basically wasted (McKenna, for instance, is already dead within the first 5 minutes!).The lead is played by Michael Moriarty, an actor noted for his intense performances – and, here, we get double the dose (with the star, predictably, hamming it up particularly in his serial-killer characterization)! However, he's flanked by two lovely ladies whose contribution is above-average for this sort of thing – Penelope Milford (ex-Oscar nominee for COMING HOME [1978]!) as the good Moriarty's girlfriend and Sarah Langenfeld (in one of only 4 films she did) as the daughter of has-been prizefighter Mitchell, whose cold-blooded murder at the hands of the bad Moriarty she witnesses. By the way, the film features a surprising amount of nudity (by the two girls and others) – but it's not done in an overly sleazy or exploitative manner.The 'face/off' situations between the two brothers provide the expected fireworks; the climax, then, sees Milford distracting the villainous (and impotent) Moriarty by letting him rape her – thus enabling the police to track him down through his brother's ability to recognize the surroundings! This is followed, however, by a far-fetched CARRIE (1976)-like twist set in the city morgue...but which leads to an effectively unsettling 'curtain' where Milford is literally unable to tell which brother she's ended up with! P.S. If all goes well, I should be getting to another of De Martino's horror films – HOLOCAUST 2000 (1977) – in the near future, which is one I've missed out on numerous times in the past...

I'm strangely fascinated by the acting career of Michael Moriarty. He's rather odd-looking and never seems to know what's going on, yet he was often offered important horror roles during the 1980's. Especially, by Larry Cohen who cast him in "Q – The Winged Serpent" and "The Stuff". Well, "Blood Link" isn't exactly an important film, but it's easily his most ambitious and valuable role. Your first impression will probably be that he's terribly miscast in his double role as sadistic murderer and the telepathically linked twin brother who pursues him, but he actually grows in his role and gets more convincing as the story develops. Craig Mannings is a doctor living in the United States who's frequently disturbed by nightmares in which he sees himself committing gruesome murders. He's instantly reminded of his former Siamese twin brother Keith, only he supposedly dies in an arson at age 17. The search brings him to Hamburg where the sane & insane brother will be reunited, although not without a lot of bloodshed. "Blood Link" is an interesting, albeit slow and implausible thriller with some clear giallo influences and a most enchanting score by master Ennio Morricone. Alberto De Martino – one of Italy's most criminally underrated director – professionally and adds in twists, nifty murders and even some nudity whenever you tend to lost interest. Although nearly not shocking or violent enough to rank among Italy's better thrillers, fans might find it enjoyable and worth tracking down.