Shudder Saturday: Opera (1987)

It's been a while since I've seen Opera. It's been a while since I have watched, or rewatched (more often than not), ANY Dario Argento movie. I was moved to revisit this particular feature after mentioning it to someone who was just starting to explore Argento's filmography. I have always had a soft spot for it, although I was initially confused when I once thought I was revisiting it before pressing play on Dario Argento's The Phantom Of The Opera (a film made a decade later, and one that isn't half as good as this).

This IS a riff on the classic Gaston Leroux tale, considering it's all about a mysterious figure who takes an unhealthy interest in a stage starlet (Betty, played by Cristina Marsillach). Not content with watching her from the wings though, this "phantom" likes to catch Betty, use some needles and tape to ensure she cannot close her eyes, and make her watch as he kills various people in front of her. You get deadly set-pieces, a killer who stays hidden for most of the runtime, and an absolute overdose of style. Peak Argento giallo, in other words.

As well as directing, Argento is also credited here for co-writing the screenplay with Franco Ferrini. It may not be the best screenplay, but it's also far from the worst, especially in comparison to other giallo and slasher films of this era. It's just a shame that Argento tries to give characters emotionally-loaded dialogue to match his swooping and gliding camerawork when the ideal approach would be a near-silent tale told through the gorgeous visuals.

Marsillach is fine in the role of Betty, and this is a cast that also has room for Daria Nicolodi (a friend named Mira), Coralina Cataldi Tassoni (a costumier named Giulia), Ian Charleson, Urbano Barberini, and Antonella Vitale, all potential victims or a potential killer, as well as a fun cameo from Michele Soavi (uncredited), but the real pleasure comes from Argento setting up one audacious sequence after another in a way that blends the traditional with the modern more effectively than some of his other work.

Even compared to other Argento delights, and I'm sure some will argue with me on this point, Opera feels dizzying and dazzling in a way that underlines his mastery of fluid camera movement, inventive and gory deaths, and the seriously macabre juxtaposed alongside entertaining absurdity. While not his very best film, I would nominate Opera as his best technical work. And I know it has some stiff competition.

If you haven't seen this one by now then do make it a priority. Okay, start elsewhere if you're completely new to Argento (Deep Red is always a winner, even if it's arguably the high point of his career), but you don't need to be an expert in his filmography to recognise his tricks and flourishes packed into every main scene here. 

9/10

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Mubi Monday: The Bird With The Crystal Plumage (1970)

The directorial debut of Dario Argento, and the first of what would become his “animal trilogy”, The Bird With The Crystal Plumage is a visually-pleasing and entertaining murder mystery. It is a giallo that both shows the intended path of a film career that would keep Argento on a high for the next decade or two and yet also tries harder to keep things logical and tidy (unlike a number of the more barmy examples of this sub-genre that aim for style and memorable deaths over any kind of plausibility).

Tony Musante plays Sam, an American living in Rome with his girlfriend, Julia (Suzy Kendall). Walking home one night, Sam witnesses the attempted murder of Monica Ranieri (Eva Renzi). He is unable to properly see the attacker, or even help, as he is trapped in an area between two glass doors. Once Monica is safe, with police and medical personnel on the scene, Sam tries to untangle exactly what he just witnessed. Immediately coming under suspicion from Inspector Morisini (Enrico Maria Salerno), Sam decides that he has to provide his innocence AND find the killer. Yes, it is time for him to turn amateur detective.

A lot of people love this film, and the subsequent films that came along soon after it, but I never have. It’s important, establishing some of the main elements that Argento would go on to polish and perfect by the time he delivered Deep Red, but it lacks the savagery and memorable madness that feels soaked into so much of Argento’s filmography. There’s one highlight, the main sequence in which our hero is trapped while watching the attempted murder take place, and the ending returns to that idea, but it’s not quite enough to make this a classic. It is good, but you can find a hundred other examples of this kind of film that are good.

Argento keeps his script pretty low-key and grounded, and also keeps it fairly close to a Fredric Brown novel titled “The Screaming Mimi” (apparently, I am not familiar with that material so cannot say just HOW close this is), which gives him more time to make viewers cringe with dialogue that weaves between the laughably bad to the horribly outdated. He already shows a good eye for set-piece moments though, but just cannot throw in enough of them while taking more care than usual to deliver a standard narrative.

It's tough to judge the acting on display, especially when heightened melodrama is the tone of most scenes, but I guess you could say that everyone feels right for the time and the place. Musante is a decent lead, helped by the fact that his “relationship” with the killer feeds into his need to get the case solved ASAP, and Salerno is good as the typically displeased cop who is very reluctant to let our hero get too far away from him. Kendall and Renzi are fine, the latter having a bit more fun once the immediate threat of murder is gone, and Umberto Raho, Pino Patti, Giuseppe Castellano, and Mario Adorf all help, populating the screen with memorable characters/suspects.

A score by Ennio Morricone also proves to be a bonus, although it is far from his best work, and there’s a fascination in seeing Argento begin his directorial career with something so intriguingly full of indicators of what he would circle around, again and again, throughout his career. I may not love it, but I certainly admire it.

6/10

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Shudder Saturday: The Cat O' Nine Tails (1971)

This might be a very early feature from Dario Argento (the second film he helmed, and also the second of his animal-themed trilogy), but this rather sedate giallo certainly has a lot of elements in place that the director would become known for throughout the next couple of decades.

The basic plot concerns a number of killings that seem to be connected to a scientific laboratory. As the mystery deepens, it becomes something more and more interesting to a journalist (Carlo Giordani, played by James Franciscus) and a blind puzzle enthusiast (Franco Arnò, played by Karl Malden). But as they get closer to the truth, they also get themselves targeted by the killer.

Although a bit bloodless compared to what Argento would deliver within the next few years, The Cat O'Nine Tails is a fun murder mystery that is punctuated by death scenes often enough to help the pacing of the film. For fans of this kind of thing, you get everything you could expect from an early 1970s Italian thriller. A handsome lead. Someone with a disability that doesn't stop them from being quite brilliant, yet critically holds them back from solving the mystery any time before the grand finale (of course). Some wonderfully cheesy dialogue, especially in a scene showing the sexual chemistry about to shatter the beaker when James Franciscus is being as forward as he can be with Catherine Spaak. A bit of gratuitous nudity. A ridiculous explanation for the killings, with some enjoyably silly science backing it up. And, of course, the usual equivalence of any deviance from the entrenched hetero-normative standards with the potential to be a dangerous psychopath.

Franciscus is good in his role, all noble intent and twinkly eyes, and Malden does very well as the blind man who ends up becoming an invaluable assistant as the investigation gathers momentum. Spaak is made to start off icy and full of attitude, before thawing out in the company of the lead hunk, and she does fine in her role. Small turns from Aldo Reggiani, Horst Frank, and Carlo Alighiero help to remind you of the many red herrings to be considered as the killer, up until the reveal that we get in the final sequence. And it's also worth mentioning that Cinzia De Carolis is a lot less irritating than she could have been in the role of Lori, the niece of Malden's character, and someone who provides him with one or two essential observations.

Argento is already showing his eye for interesting shot choices (especially extreme close-ups that show an unflinching eye looking at victims), but there's still some way to go before he would have the style and flair that would make his more celebrated outings stand out from the crowd. The best thing here is seeing him hold back, setting up some nice moments of tension with simpler shot choices and camera movement, in line with a plot that is slightly less convoluted than many of his other works.

It may be more for completists than anyone seeking out the cream of the crop, when it comes to either gialli or Argento films, but it's still more worthwhile than many others you could choose, including some from the latter part of Dario's filmography.

6/10

There's a lovely disc available here.

Mubi Monday: Knife + Heart (2018)

AKA The Crow, The Cock & The Shiny Blade (but not really, although that could easily have been a real alternate title for this).

Knife + Heart is a proper giallo film, which should delight fans of the genre. It's not an exercise in style, although it is stylish. It's not a deconstruction of the tropes, although it flips things around by having victims that are almost entirely male. It's not playing anything for laughs, or meta moments, although it has a wonderful sense of playfulness, thanks to the setting.

It's Paris. It's 1979. Anne Parèze is a director of gay porn films. She's also struggling to deal with a separation from her partner, and editor, Loïs (Kate Moran). And things get a lot worse when a killer starts targeting a number of the men that she works with. Who is it? What is his motivation? Will anything stop Anne from making her movies?

The second feature film from director Yann Gonzalez, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Cristiano Mangione, this is a near-perfect example of how to rework a familiar checklist of genre staples within a framework that manages to be familiar and enjoyably subversive at the same time. The impressive audio and visual work helps immensely, because we all know that the better gialli were more concerned with style and set-pieces than anything pesky like plausibility or logic, but arguably the biggest plus point here is that everything is played completely straight (no pun intended).

The cast all do well in their roles. Paradis seems made for this central role, she could have stepped out of any 1970s film in this mould, but she's given strong support from Moran, Nicholas Maury (as Archibald, her main co-worker/cohort), Khaled Alouach (one of the stars of the film within a film, his character utilising that trope of being someone who strongly resembles someone else), and Pierre Pirol, who brings a surprising heart to a role that could have easily been clumsy or comedic (he's "the golden mouth" brought in to help stars . . . get ready to perform).

A heady mix of sexuality, mental health issues, and stylish and bloody deaths, Knife + Heart is the kind of movie I would love to see more of. You will know whether or not it is for you within the first 10-15 minutes, which features an absolutely stunning opening murder. It feels authentic without having to point out every little detail and act smug about everything it is getting right (a fault that we have all seen occur in some other movies), and I believe that you could show this to someone, claiming it was a previously lost film that has now been rediscovered, and they would believe you.

Remove seven points from my rating if you're a homophobe, but also then remove yourself from this page. Many thanks.

8/10

There's A disc available here, but more options should be available in a few months.

Eyeball (1975)

Eyeball, directed by Umberto Lenzi (who also co-wrote the film with Felix Tusell), is a giallo film that almost slavishly follows the established rules of the form. If you know what to expect then you're going to have a lot of fun. If you are looking for some of the best examples, the more stylish and gorgeous ones, then this isn't the film for you.

The premise is simple. A killer starts to slice their way through the tourists who are all on the same coach trip. The killer wears red and has a thing for removing an eyeball from each of his/her victims. Who could be the knife-wielder? Is it Mark Burton (played by John Richardson), a man who thinks his own wife might be the culprit due to his infidelity with Paulette Stone (played by Martine Brochard)? Is it the clergyman who seems to be going out of his way to look more suspicious than most of the other tour group members? It could be anyone, although the list of possible suspects starts to narrow down as the corpses start to pile up.

Although you may struggle to figure out who the killer is, with the exception of viewers who may have an unerring nose for sniffing out culprits, it becomes more and more obvious as Eyeball plays out just who ISN'T the killer. If you're being shown someone close to every murder scene, if they are walking around under a mobile neon sign that says "killer, killer", then it's unlikely to be them. Both the script and direction play up this side of things, with Lenzi clearly setting out to make something fun more than something to be celebrated as a masterclass in tension and horror, and it is all part of the film's charm.

Richardson and Brochard are the leads, both doing decent work for this kind of film (including moments of overacting, of course, and some casual callousness towards others as the situation starts to get worse), George Rigaud is that twitchy and suspicious clergyman, Andres Mejuto is the Inspector trying to find the killer, and the stunning Mirta Miller plays a stunning female photographer. You also get Ines Pellegrini, playing a model being photographed by Miller, Daniele Vargas and Silvia Solar as a married couple, and Marta May as the wronged wife of Richardson's character, as well as quite a few others (special mention to Raf Baldassarre as the leering tour guide, Martinez).

There are so many things that Eyeball isn't. It's not the best giallo, it's not the best Lenzi movie, it's not the best cast, and not even the best film about a killer removing eyeballs from victims. But that doesn't really matter. What matters is that it IS an amusing bit of entertainment from start to finish. You could even say that it's . . . worth keeping an eye out for (bdaump-tsshhhhh).

6/10

There's a fine Blu-ray presentation here.
Americans can buy a version of it here.

Five Dolls For An August Moon (1970)

If you're a horror fan who hasn't heard of Mario Bava then, as the saying goes, you'd better check yourself before you apply a not inconsiderable amount of damage to yourself. Bava is a towering influence over the horror genre, a man with an eye for gorgeous visuals, and also quite a few gorgeous women to cast in main roles. That doesn't mean that I love everything he ever did. I am one of the few people who doesn't view Planet Of The Vampires as a masterpiece. This is another film that I view as a lesser outing from the man, but it has just enough in the mix to make it worth your time.

A bunch of people are gathered on a small island. Most of them are simply hoping to relax, but some are trying to persuade Professor Gerry Farrell (William Berger) to sell a new scientific formula that he has come up with. And then someone turns up dead. Soon followed by someone else. It's not long until everyone is fearing for their lives. But who is the killer?

Working from a story by Mario di Nardo (an idea taken, apparently, from an uncredited, classic Agatha Christie tale), this is a fun, if lightweight, whodunnit. In fact, the third act pulls the rug from under the feet of viewers in a way that underlines the humour of the piece. Bava often laces his movies with black humour - arguably peaking in the punchline that would end his next film, A Bay Of Blood - and this is another that will make you smile in between the bloodshed.

It's a shame that this feels so ugly and unstylish compared to Bava's other movies, and the drab visuals and low energy levels end up dragging the whole thing down a level. Compare this to the likes of Blood And Black Lace, for example, and the differences seem vast. Others may disagree, but this felt like the most un-Bava movie I've seen yet from him.

The cast all do what is required of them, although nobody really stands out. Well, apart from the glorious gorgeousness that is Edwige Fenech, who would stand out in anything. Fenech is a highlight, due to the fact that she's Fenech, but Berger, Edith Meloni, Ely Galleani, Helena Ronee, Howard Ross, Ira von Furstenberg, Mauro Bosco and Teodoro Corra all try their best. Corra, in particular, has fun as the man who owns the island, therefore making him a prime suspect when the killing begins.

No Bava film is ever bad, from the selection I have seen so far. It just so happens that some aren't as good as others. This one isn't half as good as his best outings. It's still alright though. And when was the last time you read a movie review that ended on that kind of ringing endorsement? Sometimes the words just seem to flow right through me.

6/10

http://www.amazon.com/Five-Dolls-August-Moon-Remastered/dp/B00DI67N94/ref=sr_1_1?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1419351638&sr=1-1&keywords=five+dolls+for+an+august+moon

Torso (1973)

Much loved by giallo fans, and yet another contender often included when discussing templates for the modern slasher movie, Torso is enjoyable, twisted stuff. It is, however, also a tad dull in places, leading me to wonder just what I was missing if I didn't immediately consider it an unmissable classic.

Suzy Kendall and Tina Aumont are two lovely ladies in a film full of lovely ladies. Yes, Torso throws in plenty of gratuitous nudity and, in the second half, a big excuse for a sleepover that puts a bunch of potential female victims together. There's also a killer on the loose, of course, and that makes the ladies afraid. So afraid that they continue to get naked often enough to keep viewers happy, in between the moments of tension and/or bloodshed. And that's about it.

Director Sergio Martino is a significant talent, capable of much better work than what's on display here, and he certainly knows how to make his films aesthetically pleasing for those who like attractive women (hint: he tends to employ attractive women and then encourages them to disrobe). Torso has some of his usual flair, here and there, but it's just a bit too clumsy and ugly in places to be considered a top-tier Martino flick, in my eyes. The script, co-written by Martino and Ernesto Gastaldi, works well enough when setting up the killings, and explaining the sleazy background motivator for our mystery killer, but there are moments when it can't maintain any momentum, becoming preoccupied with fringe characters, mainly lust-filled men, who are of little interest to viewers.

Kendall and Aumont, as previously mentioned, are lovely, and that's all that's really required of them. This isn't a film designed to showcase acting talent. It's designed to showcase the physical assets of those ladies, plus Angela Covello, Carla Brait, Conchita Airoldi and Patrizia Adiutori. There are some men onscreen too, mainly Luc Merenda, John Richardson, Roberto Bisacco and Ernesto Colli, and they're all perfectly fine as they do whatever happens to need done in between more scenes involving the ladies.

There are some nice moments of gore, and it's easy to see why this is considered such a major influence on the slasher flicks of the late '70s and '80s, but it's let down by the meandering moments that feel like padding, despite its lean runtime. Still well worth your time, but I just didn't get an all-time-great vibe from it.

Oh, and I can't finish this review without praising one of the main alternative titles that this was known by - "The Bodies Presented Traces of Carnal Violence". How beautifully evocative and unpleasant is that? Both poetic and painful, which sums up the best of Italian horror cinema right there.

6/10

http://www.amazon.com/Torso-Blu-ray-Suzy-Kendall/dp/B004WMOSLO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1413583323&sr=8-1&keywords=torso

The Night Evelyn Came Out Of The Grave (1971)

The Night Evelyn Came Out Of The Grave is a film that I know I should score pretty low. I laughed during many moments, I was never scared for a second and the camerawork seems to be planned to highlight the bad (over-)acting throughout. Yet, despite the major flaws, I liked it. I liked it a hell of a lot.

The plot sees Lord Alan Cunningham (Anthony Steffen) caught in a vicious cycle of ever-so-naughty behaviour. He has a thing for redheads, you see, and likes nothing better than taking them back to his estate, eventually getting them to put on some long, leather boots and then get a bit kinky before he spoils it all by taking things to far and causing them no small amount of trauma in the form of making them dead. Lord Alan just hasn't been the same since his wife (the titular Evelyn) died during childbirth. His doctor (Giacomo Rossi-Stuart) keeps trying to help him, while others (Joan C. Davis as Aunt Agatha, Enzo Tarascio as cousin George and Roberto Maldera as Albert) may or may not be messing with his mind. Perhaps everything will work out for the best when he meets and decides to marry the lovely Gladys (Marina Malfatti). Perhaps not.

Directed by Emilio Miraglia, who also co-wrote the uneven script with Fabio Pittorru and Massimo Felisatti, The Night Evelyn Came Out Of The Grave may not count as some long lost masterpiece, but it has some stylish moments scattered here and there and the central plot allows for a heady concoction of fetishism, sex and death. Call me shallow, but it works for me.

The cast are a mix of heavy breathing and widened eyes, with the only real suave character being the good doctor. They are easy to point and laugh at, but it's worth bearing in mind that a) I saw the dubbed version and b) the film is from a time when that overcooked melodrama was much more common than it is nowadays. If only Nicolas Cage had been at this stage of this career at the end of the 1960s/start of the 1970s . . . . . . . . . he could have been a giallo superstar. Thankfully, there is at least the added enjoyment of watching the likes of Marina Malfatti and Erika Blanc occasionally in various states of undress.

The plot twists and turns nicely and it's fun to get to the finale and discover just what's going on, even for people who have been one step ahead the whole way through. There aren't too many death scenes, but the ones shown are memorable enough and one in particular stands out from the crowd (I'd give a clue to what it entails, but I don't want to spoil anything for those lucky enough to get their hands on this film).

When this film started I was laughing within the first few minutes and I didn't really stop laughing until the end credits rolled. But, for all that, I've also grown fond of it and enjoy it for the bit of off-the-wall entertainment that it is. Those who like their movies to be just a bit less laughable should remove a point or two.

7/10

http://www.amazon.com/Night-Evelyn-Came-Out-Grave/dp/B00009P1PA/ref=sr_1_1?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1359152959&sr=1-1&keywords=the+night+evelyn+came+out+of+the+grave

Amuck! (1972)

AKA Alla ricerca del piacere AKA (the more appropriate) Hot Bed Of Sex.

Written and directed by Silvio Amadio, Amuck! is known by a few other names, but Hot Bed Of Sex is one of the most appropriate, considering how entertainingly titillating the whole thing is.

The strange plot sees the gorgeous Greta Franklin (played by the gorgeous Barbara Bouchet) going to work as a secretary for writer Richard Stuart (Farley Granger). The writer lives with his wife, Eleanora (Rosalba Neri), in sun-drenched Italy, but Greta isn't there to enjoy the weather, oh no. Greta wants to find out what happened to her good friend (and ex-lover), Sally. She suspects foul play and as the writer and his wife start to draw Greta into their sex games that suspicion starts to grow and grow. Did the writer kill Sally, or was it his wife? Perhaps it was the local fisherman, Rocco (Petar Martinovitch).

Amuck! is stylish and fairly well put together, considering that it already has a big enough selling point in the form of Barbara Bouchet. That it also uses Bouchet in some very erotic sequences throughout the movie should be more than enough to keep fans of this kind of film happy. Thankfully, the icing on the cake is the murder mystery plot - enjoyable stuff that tries to keep twisting and turning and keeps the heroine engaged in mindgames with most of the people around her.

Farley Granger is just fine, and the lucky bugger gets to act naughty with Bouchet. Rosalba Neri is also fine, and also lucky enough to get naughty with Bouchet. Patrizia Viotti has a lot less screentime, but guess what - she ALSO gets her naughty with Bouchet (under a waterfall, no less, in one particularly memorable scene). The eagle-eyed amongst you may already have spotted a pattern.

Silvio Amadio does a decent job here, but let's be honest, nobody is ever going to be quoting any classic lines from the script because there are none and this is unlikely to be on any favourite movie lists. However, it does what it does well and I think I may have already mentioned what a bonus the presence of Barbara Bouchet is.

7/10

Until the movie gets a decent re-release the only decent (using the word loosely) disc is this one -  http://www.amazon.com/Amuck-Alla-Ricerca-Del-Piacere/dp/B000QH6Z6A/ref=sr_1_1?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1360644087&sr=1-1&keywords=amuck

Deep Red AKA Profondo Rosso (1975)

Dario Argento is, quite rightly, regarded as a master of horror and has given fans a lot to enjoy over the years. Deep Red may be almost 40 years old by now but it holds up as one of his best films. A sleek and stylish giallo movie with a number of brutal death scenes and nice bit of investigation leading our hero (played by David Hemmings) towards a revelatory finale, this remains a film that you can bring forth as evidence of a master craftsman when arguing against any naysayers.

Of course, there will always be those who tell you that Argento does nothing more than ride on the coat tails of the great Mario Bava but this isn't true. There is SOME truth to it (the visual style and the setting of many scenes are reminiscent of Bava's work) but Argento is, in my view, the man who really helped to show just how involved the camera could be with all of the action. Bava had the style and some nice camera moves but Argento allows the camera to become a free spirit, floating hither and thither in a way that added a layer of balletic choreography to almost every scene.

Sadly, the scripts never tend to come up to the same level of quality as the visuals but Deep Red is one of the better attempts to marry proper movie dialogues to the bloody set-pieces. Sometimes it almost works (the conversations that Hemmings has with Macha Meril, who plays Helga Ulmann, for example) and sometimes it doesn't (pretty much any conversation that involves the character played by Daria Nicolodi).

Never mind though. A picture paints a 1000 words, as the saying goes, and there has never been more apt defence for the works of the great directors who know exactly where they want the camera to be while not always concerning themselves with the actors. Argento certainly fills each scene with enough mood and substance to make up for the weak script.

Deep Red remains an essential giallo for fans of the subgenre and is just as good an entry for newcomers as any other film that I can think of. If you haven't seen it yet then do so ASAP.

9/10

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Deep-Red-Blu-ray-Region-Free/dp/B003NEQ72U

The Strange Vice Of Mrs. Wardh (1971)

Sergio Martino is a name I have been hearing for years. His work is recommended by other horror fans who love his work and, having seen this movie and All The Colors Of The Dark, I can now honestly say that I know why he has so many fans.

This is a stylish giallo starring the gorgeous Edwige Fenech (who also, along with a few of the male cast members here, starred in "All The Colors...") as the Mrs. Wardh of the title. She used to like a bit of pain mixed with her sex (which explains her past relationship with the twisted Jean - played by Ivan Rassimov) but is now a happily married woman (her husband, Neil, is played by Alberto de Mendoza). By happily married I mean, of course, that Mrs. Wardh acts like a loving wife but isn't averse to having her head turned by the likes of hunky George (played by George Hilton). Her friend, Carol (Cristina Airoldi), positively encourages this potential dalliance. The fact that some maniac is killing women he views as whores definitely makes life difficult for anyone wanting to take an extra lover.

Have I mentioned recently how long I have held a candle for Edwige Fenech? How I could watch her in anything at all? Well, the big bonus is that the surrounding movie is usually pretty damn good when it's directed by Sergio Martino. And the lovely Edwige wasn't a shy starlet.

I'll grudgingly admit that the movie isn't a success thanks only to the presence of Miss Fenech. The rest of the cast are pretty good in their roles but it's the twisting plot (from the screenplay by Vittorio Caronia, Ernesto Gastaldi and Eduardo Manzanos Brochero) and top-notch direction that really makes this a superior giallo.

There may be more than a hint of free love and the fashions are decidedly of the era but this movie somehow still feels fresh and energetic as opposed to many other examples that have retained their entertainment value while also feeling a bit like a time capsule of the era. In fact, I was pleasantly surprised by the turn of events in the second half of the film and really appreciated the efforts made to intrigue and wrong-foot the viewer.

Definitely one to view if you're a fan of giallo, Sergio Martino and/or Edwige Fenech.

8/10.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0049UVAW4/ref=asc_df_B0049UVAW47445982?smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&tag=googlecouk06-21&linkCode=asn&creative=22206&creativeASIN=B0049UVAW4

Four Flies On Grey Velvet (1971)

Fans of Steve Martin, Woody Allen and Dario Argento all have one thing in common. They seem to spend a lot of their time wondering just when their favourites will return to the top form of their earlier efforts. Steve Martin has occasionally almost made audiences forget about the awful Bringing Down The House (okay, okay, I quite enjoyed that one, so sue me), Woody Allen has received apparently well-deserved praise for Midnight In Paris (which I have queued up and ready to watch at some point in the next few weeks) and Dario Argento has . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . well, let's be honest now, he's not really offered his loyal fans anything promising for quite some time. Or am I forgetting something major? If you could enjoy The Card Player, but not love it, then you're on a par with myself. I think his last excellent movie, from the few recent efforts I have seen, was Sleepless but even that one didn't please all of his fans. Not by a long shot.

Despite what some will tell you, not every earlier Argento movie was/is a bona fide classic. He certainly did his best work before the change of the century but giallo fans who have more than a passing knowledge of the subgenre will be able to provide you with a list of names of directors they feel have created a body of work superior to the Argento selection. That's not to take anything away from the man, it's just that perspective is needed when viewing and reviewing his work. I still love many of his movies and I still feel that his better films - Deep Red, Suspiria, Tenebrae, Opera etc - rank up there with the best that the genre has to offer. But that still doesn't mean that there aren't people who can do better.

Four Flies On Grey Velvet is a perfect example of the best of Argento mixed in with a few negatives.

The story, with a screenplay by Argento based on the story that he wrote with Luigi Cozzi and Mario Foglietti,  is twisted and interesting enough - a young man (Roberto, played by Michael Brandon) confronts someone that he believes has been stalking him for a few days, a scuffle ensues and then the "stalker" is accidentally killed. This whole incident has been photographed and the photographer now blackmails Roberto and becomes more and more menacing, also causing some more deaths. Things build to a tense and revelatory finale.

The direction showcases fluid and stylish camerawork that would become, arguably, Argento's main trademark throughout the 70s, 80s and 90s with some amusing camera shots from such strange positions as the inside of a guitar, etc. There are also some enjoyable set-pieces, though nothing really on a par with his best work (with the exception of the very last moments of the film).

The acting is okay. Brandon does what is required, as do the likes of Mimsy Farmer, Jean-Pierre Marielle, Bud Spencer and the other cast members. But okay isn't good enough when the movie is full of too many moments that highlight the weaknesses in between the strengths. The script isn't all that great and a bit of editing could have really helped this whole film become a much more enjoyable, more streamlined thriller/horror. Just when you think things are getting better something comes along to undermine the tension, be it poor character choices or just banal dialogue exchanges.

I recommend this movie, especially to fans of Argento (of course), but it's not the best example of a movie of this type. It's not even in the top 5 Argento movies of this type, in my opinion. Nonetheless, this is a good film with an abundance of style and ingenuity. And some musical input from Ennio Morricone.

7/10.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Four-Flies-Velvet-Uncut-remastered/dp/B005PM6M50/ref=sr_1_2?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1332972873&sr=1-2

All The Colors Of The Dark (1972)

A woman starts to, perhaps, lose her sanity after a period of time in which she is afflicted by recurring nightmares and visions of a man stabbing her to death. Her partner is supportive but also critical of her attempts to sort out the problem. Perhaps he has something to hide or maybe he is just sharing the pain that stems from the car crash they were in that led to the woman having a miscarriage. Regardless of how sane or insane the woman is, or how guilty or innocent the man is, things get stranger and more dangerous.

All The Colors Of The Dark is a decent film. It's stylish and has moments of tension in the second half, building up to a decent finale. It also has a nice mix of straightforward giallo moments and some very surreal, nightmarish sequences. The screenplay isn't bad but this is very much a movie to be watched and appreciated by fans of the director, Sergio Martino. Martino has a nice touch for the material and keeps things watchable and interesting without ever feeling the need to throw some blood all over the screen every few minutes. This sense of restraint means that the film may not please horror fans who simply like the blood and gore elements of the genre but it should certainly please anyone who enjoys stylish and offbeat thriller fare.

Then we have the cast, components of the movie I have deliberately avoided mentioning until now. George Hilton isn't bad as Richard Steele, the man trying to help his girlfriend but not really sure how to go about it, but this movie gets extra points every time the gorgeous Edwige Fenech is onscreen. In mental turmoil or not, Fenech is very possibly one of THE most beautiful women to have ever made her name within the horror genre (or, more specifically, the giallo subgenre) and her presence can elevate any movie. I'd go so far as to say that any movie featuring Fenech in a main role becomes, ultimately, an Edwige Fenech film. Hell, even her cameo in Hostel: Part II gave that film a couple of bonus brownie points. Nieves Navarro, Marina Malfatti, George Rigaud, Ivan Rassimov and many others do good work but they're all sidelined whenever Miss Fenech takes centre stage.

I am biased, obviously, with my love for Miss Fenech colouring my opinion of this movie. But show me a handful of horror fans who don't feel the same way and I'll kindly turn them away and ask them to come back when they've been on the planet for another decade or so. Putting my love for the lead actress aside (oh, if only it were that easy), I recommend this as a good film for anyone who enjoys a stylish and offbeat thriller.

7/10

http://www.amazon.com/All-Colors-Dark-George-Hilton/dp/B0002JP2SO