"How much terror can a child really wreak?" by Audrey Vann 7. LITTLE DEVILS, BIG SHRIEKS: How much terror can a child really wreak? Kill, Baby, Kill Set in a small Transylvanian village in 1907, Mario Bava’s gothic horror film Kill, Baby, Kill begins as a deceivingly straightforward tale: A big city pathologist is brought in to investigate the death of a young woman who’s been skewered by a palisade fence. The mystery quickly grows—a child’s laugh echoes through cold stone walls, ghostly eyes glare through dusty window panes, porcelain dolls appear in people’s rooms, and a young woman stabs herself with a candelabra. Melissa, a seven-year-old ghost girl, is seeking her revenge. Who has summoned her?  The plot is convoluted at best, which is likely due to Bava’s claim that much of the film was improvised. To make things more chaotic, the production company ran out of money during filming, which prompted the cast and crew to knowingly finish filming without compensation. And, the film’s soundtrack, which is inaccurately credited to Italian film composer Carlo Rustichelli, is a compilation of library music. Yet, the music is subtle and psychedelic as electronic hums bubble beneath Melissa’s giggles.  Despite the film’s narrative flaws, this is the kind of movie you watch for the—I hate to say it—vibe. Velvet robes and peasant blouses abound as the village witch, who looks like a John Waters leading lady with arched eyebrows, teased hair, and cat eyeliner, performs rituals with leech vines. This film is like if Coven’s 1969 proto-metal album Witchcraft Destroys Minds & Reaps Souls was made into a movie. The set design is whimsical and decadent, with colorful lighting and layers upon layers of cobwebs (seriously, I think they might’ve blown the budget on cobwebs). Because of its lush visuals, the film has been cited as an inspiration for both Dario Argento's Suspiria and Martin Scorsese's The Last Temptation of Christ. Luckily, the film is free to watch on Kanopy if you have a library card. Go on, light your tapered candles, pour yourself a crystal glass of mulled wine, and enjoy. The Stranger is participating in Scarecrow Video’s Psychotronic Challenge all month long! Every October, Scarecrow puts together a list of cinematic themes and invites folks to follow along and watch a horror, sci-fi, or fantasy flick that meets the criteria. This year, Stranger staffers are joining the fun and we’re going to share our daily recommendations here on Slog! Read more about Scarecrow’s 2024 challenge—and get the watch list—here. And you can track our daily recommendations here! 💀