This film seems like it has the scripts of several movies all shoved together--and although there are some eerie moments, the overall effort is rather poor. William Campbell (the actor who starred in the classic "Star Trek" episode "The Squire of Gothos") plays a bizarre artist. He specializes in paintings of women being murdered and people love them. However, you learn to make these paintings he actually kills people. Sounds familiar? It is if you've seen an earlier American-International film called "Bucket of Blood"--it's pretty much the same script. However, on top of this decent story, there are several other story elements--ones that make the film confusing and silly. You see, Campbell is actually VERY old and retains his youth through these killings--and vampire fangs appear when he kills. But, you never see him drinking blood nor is it even implied--and he walks around a lot during the daytime. What gives?! None of this makes a lot of sense. Even with a creepy ending, the film just never pays off and is silly and forgettable.

A crazed artist (William Campbell) who believes himself to be the reincarnation of a murderous vampire kills young women, then boils their bodies in a vat.

Michael Weldon called Blood Bath "a confusing but interesting horror film with an even more confusing history." This is quite right, as the film actually started out as a spy thriller filmed in Yugoslavia with William Campbell, and Francis Ford Coppola somehow involved. But Roger Corman did not like the finished product -- which no one has ever seen -- and scrapped it.

And then, wanting to revive it as a horror film, he brought in Jack Hill to cut out the spy parts and film new horror parts. Let me say, I love Jack Hill. Now, that is because I think "Spider Baby" might be the greatest horror film of the 1960s. But Hill is no slouch in this earlier outing, either (financially backed by B-movie god Roger Corman and with supporting actors Sid Haig and Patrick Magee).

But then, after Hill completed his version of the film, Corman again did not like it... and a third director was hired to finish the job. That is the film we have today.

With the three visions mixed, there is a something of a mystery to this film, almost like a bit of a dream to it. While it could be compared to "Color Me Blood Red" or "A Bucket of Blood" (many have pointed out the beatnik artist connection),there is more ambiguity here. Is the artist a vampire? A reincarnation of a vampire? Even connected at all? George Romero explored this theme again (albeit in a very different way) with "Martin", but I think Jack Hill did just as well in many respects.

I would love to see what Hill's version looked like before the new additions and changes. Would it be better? Worse? Just different? I have no idea. But now, looking back on Hill's career, we see he is a far more important part of cinema history than he could have been known to be at the time. Preserving his work would be a good way to add to his legacy, and I would firmly support it.

This film has quite the convoluted history, which accounts for it being such a disjointed mess. Starting life as a Yugoslavian/USA co-production titled Operation Titian, partly funded by the legendary producer Roger Corman, the movie was edited down, re-titled Portrait in Terror and sold for US TV. Not finished with the film, Corman then hired legendary exploitation director Jack Hill to shoot new scenes and released the result as Blood Bath. Finally, director Stephanie Rothman was brought in to film even more scenes, the final incarnation of the movie being called Track of the Vampire. This is the cut that I saw, and its a completely baffling experience.

William Campbell plays artist Toni Sordi, whose paintings depict women in the throes of death. In reality, Sordi is an ancient vampire who kills his models, dropping them into a vat of bubbling molten wax. After claiming the lives of several pretty young women (and a jealous husband, played by Patrick Magee),Sordi is pursued by a gang of beatniks (including Jack Hill regular Sid Haig),but ultimately falls prey to his wax encased victims, who come back to life and give him a taste of his own medicine (in a scene reminiscent of gory 1980 shocker Maniac, starring Joe Spinell).

Featuring an amusing satire of the '60s art scene (dig that crazy quantum painting!),a lengthy interpretive dance routine on a deserted beach courtesy of ballerina Dorean (the lovely Lori Saunders, who also sports a range of skimpy bikinis throughout the film),a murder on a merry-go-round, another in a swimming pool, and lots of running around an old medieval town (which we are supposed to believe is in California, NOT Serbia),the film is definitely something of a curio but not much of a horror film.

3.5 out of 10, rounded up to 4 for the groovy prismatic effect during the beach dance.