Four Times That Night 1972 ***

A pretty obscure film even within the cornucopia of Amazon Instant, Mario Bava’s 1972 sexploitation comedy is an ingenious sculpture in time. Four Times That Night is four accounts of one event, a date between Gianna and Tina (Brett Halsey and former Miss Italy Daniela Giodano). They meet in a park, and go back to her flat for some fun, but the next day he’s sporting a head-knock and her dress has been ripped. What happened is told from four perspectives, and each one sees the same characters acting in very different ways, notably Dick Randall’s sleazy concierge.  Bava was a master of thrillers, but he brings the same gaudy showmanship to this ingenious, non-PC comedy, which ends with a psychiatrist explaining the story to the audience in unbelievable terms. A clever experimental film about strained relationships between men and women, Four Times That Night is a must for lovers of obscure movies.