UST AS Gli ultimi giorni di Pompei ends with a cataclysmic volcanic eruption, so would Mario Bava’s next
project begin. Though less expensively achieved than the explosion that show- ered Pompeii in the Bonnard/Leone film, the eruption that opens Caltiki il mostro immortale is by far the more memorable spec- tacle—and it is but one facet of a masterful procession of pre-titles illusions. The sequence begins with three panning (right to left) shots of three panoramic glass mattes, each filmed separately. They are: (1) a twilight view of a Mayan plaza with a
pyramid and towering sculpted columns, rising against a secondary rear matte of cloudy, airbrushed sky; (2) a view of an abandoned Mayan temple, adorned with stone idols, all riotously overwhelmed by plant life, with a background of actual fronds visible through the bare portions of the glass, as well as a backdrop of airbrushed storm clouds; and (3) a deeper jungle view consisting of a static lizard, more dense wilderness, and a carved leo- nine idol, again with real plant life and painted storm clouds visible on a layer behind the glass.
