Italian Giallo Films I've Seen (1963 - 1993)
- Including only exclusively Italian gialli and co-productions made by Italian directors.
- Not including co-productions made by foreign directors like 'Death Knocks Twice' (1969), 'The Fox With A Velvet Tail' (1971) or 'Blue Eyes Of The Broken Doll' (1974).
- Also not including Italian giallo/horror hybrids with prevailing supernatural elements like 'Death Smiles On A Murderer' (1973), 'Suspiria' (1977) or 'Dial Help' (1988).
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- DirectorMario BavaStarsJohn SaxonLetícia RománValentina CorteseA mystery novel-loving American tourist witnesses a murder in Rome, and soon finds herself and her suitor caught up in a series of killings.AKA 'The Girl Who Knew Too Much', 'The Evil Eye' - (8/10) - The cornerstone of the giallo genre. The simple story feels like a pleasant cross between Agatha Christie and Nancy Drew and it plays out as a charming little detective adventure spiced up with two drops of comedy and a pinch of horror. In comparison to other Bava's films it has a slightly more old-fashioned feel to it and it can be slightly weird on the tonal level as it regularly switches between a crime thriller and a light-hearted melodrama, but most of its shortcomings are easily fought off by its many other assests. Letícia Román is an equally gorgeous and entertaining female protagonist, the supporting cast is also great and does well in both the serious and more humorous moments, Bava makes sure the camerawork stays fun with his distinctive visual flourishes and even though the film has a kinda tongue-in-cheek approach, it still delivers some very nicely handled chilling moments evenly spread throughout the run-time. The original Italian and the re-named, re-dubbed, re-scored, re-cut and re-ended American version 'Evil Eye' offer a very different overall experience, but both have their own merits (be it the European version's richer atmosphere, more appropriate soundtrack and an iconic bonus longshot of Letícia in bikini, or the US version's interesting first-hand narration through inner monologues of the protagonist and some extra comedy moments, including Bava's rare cameo as a voyeuristic portrait of a deceased relative). Featuring a girl booby-traping the whole ground floor of a borrowed house with an overwhelmingly long piece of string.
- DirectorMario BavaStarsCameron MitchellEva BartokThomas ReinerA masked, shadowy killer brutally murders the models of a scandalous fashion house in Rome.AKA 'Blood And Black Lace', 'Six Women For The Murderer' - (10/10) - The ultimate giallo experience and a definitive blueprint for many of the future entries. Awesome direction and camerawork being as stylish as possible with beautiful use of light and colours, entertaining cast of characters and diverse kills, all that backed by a classy soundtrack. Featuring one of the most arrogant detectives of the giallo realm.
- DirectorJean JosipoviciAmbrogio MolteniStarsJohn Drew BarrymoreGloria MillandLuisa RivelliA party of young people gather in a mansion for an occult experiment in which deaths are predicted by a psychic. Soon it turns into more than an experiment . . .AKA 'Death On The Fourposter' - (3/10) - A campy early giallo with many silly party activities and not so many thrills. The story initially promises an orgy of the century, but ends up being very restrained, even for its time. It has way too many shallow characters for anyone to make an impact, only one off-screen murder, a lot of wandering around and awfully boring second half. There are quite a few moments of nice cinematography and it includes some outdoor scenes shot in front of the same chateau later used in 'Libido' (1965), but the overall approach makes it feel outdated and rather boring. Featuring a medium being so scared by his own prophecy that he decides to disappear from the film.
- DirectorRomano FerraraStarsJohn Drew BarrymoreLuisa RivelliLisa GastoniDavid Lugani live in a house with his wife, his brother Charles, paralyzed, blind and dumb, and Secretary Paul. Brother seems to have a special ability, which would allow him to perceive and predict disasters.AKA 'A Game Of Crime' (3/10) - Not the most interesting or entertaining thriller. There's a lot of talking, limited underwhelming action and poorly executed ending with a swarm of rats giving better performance than their human colleagues. Majority of its scenes take place in one of the villas used in 'Blood And Black Lace' from the same year. Featuring a woman saying she likes to read everything but giallo novels.
- DirectorLuigi BazzoniFranco RosselliniStarsPeter BaldwinSalvo RandoneValentina CorteseWhile visiting his favorite resort town during the off-season, a novelist investigates the apparent suicide of a woman he was infatuated with.AKA 'The Possessed', 'The Lady Of The Lake' - (5/10) - A very stylish and visually striking, but otherwise dull pre-giallo. The whole film is superbly photographed and it offers a rich moody atmosphere of an off-season lakeside resort town and its surroundings. Even though the acting is okay (for what the script requires), sadly the story remains quite boring, because after a promisng start everything slows down and never picks up again. There's little to no action as the puzzled protagonist spends majority of the run-time just visiting random people, asking questions and getting no answers and then walking around in the snow until he eventually falls ill and goes through a series of vague dream sequences (also with no answers included). The film relies heavily on its dark undertones and the main mystery element, but maybe takes it a step too far, because the initial tension eventually wears off and it only comes with a lazy "well nevermind" ending that makes the whole thing kinda pointless. Featuring an ominously jovial hotel owner.
- DirectorRoberto MauriStarsAlberto LupoMarilù ToloLisa GastoniA masked man is hunting down and murdering women throughout the city. The police set out to capture him before he can kill again.AKA 'Night Of Violence', 'Call Girls 66' - (2/10) - A very underwhelming pre-giallo. The story can't fully decide of its main theme and so it puts together a lifeless mishmash of high-end prostitutes, a drug ring and a stalker in the park. Nothing is elaborated on much though as majority of the scenes follow the investigation lead by a surprisingly kind, caring and also very boring detective. Featuring a truly bizarre moment with the killer telling his radioactive sob story to an angry relative of one of his victims and (successfully!) fishing for sympathy.
- DirectorDino TavellaStarsMaureen BrownLuigi MartocciAlcide GazzottoA crazed killer is on the loose in the catacombs of Venice, Italy. He stalks beautiful women, drags them to his underground lair, kills them, then stuffs them and adds them to his "collection."AKA 'The Embalmer', 'The Monster Of Venice' - (1/10) - An unremarkable mess with dull story and zero production value. It manages to fail at basically everything at once and besides one or two okay moments with the masked killer in the sewers there are no redeeming qualities at all. It has shoddy direction and editing, bad acting and the feeble script calls for so much unglamorously photographed and utterly pointless touring around Venice (including a random trip to a glass workshop) that the film sometimes feels like a part of a rejected advertising campaign put together by the local tourist board. Featuring an Italian Elvis Presley impersonator coming out of a coffin to perform a song.
- DirectorSilvio AmadioStarsCyd CharisseHugh O'BrianMario FelicianiIn this crime-thriller, Rome proves to be an unhappy destination for an American couple when the husband is kidnapped and his wife begins a desperate search for him.AKA 'Assassination In Rome - (3/10) - A below average and rather boring murder-mystery. There are only minor early giallo influences (mostly lifted from Bava), a couple of unfunny comedic moments and a shoehorned romance on top. Although the static cinematography lacks any sort of style, at least it captures some nice locations around Rome and Venice. The film moves extremely slowly and feels way too long, it's very talky, sometimes it gets weirdly melodramatic and the acting ranges from bad to mediocre. Featuring an American protagonist shamelesly asking for vermouth instead of J&B whisky.
- DirectorErnesto GastaldiVittorio SalernoStarsDominique BoscheroMara MarylGiancarlo GianniniA young man visits his ancestral home accompanied by his guardian and their respective wives, where he is plagued by the memories and influence of his murderous, psychosexual father.(7/10) - A very solid pre-giallo with understandably toned down, but still quite provocative erotic undertones. It doesn't have the most original story, but the film is very nicely shot on the grounds of a beautiful seaside chateau with slight gothic horror undertones, the small cast of four acts well enough and the ending is also cool and eerie. Featuring a bedroom with walls covered by mirrors.
- DirectorMino GuerriniStarsFranco NeroGioia PascalErika BlancA young count living with his domineering mother spirals into madness after his mother and fiancée are killed by his jealous, lovesick servant.AKA 'The Third Eye' - (3/10) - A pretty weak thriller with good cast, but lousy script and execution. The story is sloppy, the action is lacking and the whole film feels way too long and often tedious, including a sequence with a wounded woman trying to asnswer her phone for almost 5 minutes straight. Featuring Franco Nero going into full Norman Bates mode as a taxidermy enthusiast, abusing a soon-to-be-stuffed parrot with a wooden stick.
- DirectorElio ScardamagliaLionello De FeliceStarsWilliam BergerFrançoise PrévostMary YoungPatients and staff of an isolated mental hospital are being killed off by a hooded maniac who stalks the halls.AKA 'The Murder Clinic' - (5/10) - Probably the most successfully executed mix of giallo and gothic horror, but otherwise a very luckluster affair. It uses great sets and even utilizes some nice outdoor locations and with its 19th century England setting, overall aesthetic combining occasionally stylish use of shadows and colors and several familar supporting actors in the cast it's balancing somewhere between Hammer and Mario Bava films, although it doesn't really manage to have the same impact as any of those. The main story is okay, but nothing special, and it's one of many taking bits of inspiration from Georges Franju's 'Eyes Without A Face' (1960) formula. Since the script doesn't give anyone much to work with, most of the characters are only vaguely skteched out and once they fulfill their role as obvious red herrings, exposition carriers or plot pushers, they either completely disappear or are reduced to a mere background. It's also definitely on of the less exploitative entries to the genre as the murder scenes (and all the violence in general) is extremely toned down and any sort of nudity is completely out of the picture. Featuring a man confessing his love to a fresh corpse while his next love interest is standing right behind him.
- DirectorAngelo DorigoStarsSergio CianiMary ArdenIvano DavoliAfter a rich mine worker dies in mine accident, his heirs gather in his house to hear the reading of the will.AKA 'A... For Assassin' - (3/10) - Yet another example of the overplayed "too many heirs" scenario. It's handled with enough grace to stay watchable, but it unfolds more like an old-school detective story, there's a lot of talking and it has almost zero re-watch value. Featuring a Poirot-like detective who can hardly wait for the characters to finally start bumping each other off and even dramatically says the name of the film into the camera at one point.
- DirectorTinto BrassStarsJean-Louis TrintignantEwa AulinRoberto BisaccoBernard meets Jane in a night club, in London, and he likes her. Her father was killed in a car accident, but she thinks he has been killed because he was blackmailed for a picture of his second wife, Jane's mother in-law. In the same night club Bernard finds the blackmailer corpse and Jane near him, but he believes she is innocent. So they run away followed by the police and a dwarf, the blackmailer's men, who believe Bernard killed their boss. They believe that Jerome, Jane's brother, can help them to solve the case. But she doesn't know where he is, or so she says. Corpse after corpse, Bernard will find out the truth. But will the truth help him?AKA 'Deadly Sweet', 'I Am What I Am' - (6/10) - A pop-art thriller with a quirky vibe of a comic strip. After a bit clumsy start it gets progressively better and it has a couple of really nicely crafted sequences, although the overstretched and utterly pointless final scenes taking place at a hippie rave kinda let it all down and make the ending very anticlimactic. The story is very basic, but Jean-Louis and Ewa make an entertaining leading duo, majority of the film has a very lively and creative camerawork (with some segments filmed in black and white) and a really cool editing style. Featuring a fistfight accompanied by quick inserts of hand-drawn "sound effects".
- DirectorGiulio QuestiStarsGina LollobrigidaJean-Louis TrintignantEwa AulinThe depraved manager of a high-tech poultry factory - which is genetically engineering boneless chickens - is pulled into a love triangle with his domineering wife and her sexually-liberated cousin, leading to double-crosses and murder.AKA 'Death Laid An Egg', 'Plucked' - (6/10) - A well-made film with a lot of potential, but sadly slightly downgraded by its artsy fartsy approach. It comes with an entertaining cinematography, a quite interesting story with a nice twist and a good cast with the main three actors playing off of each other extremely well. It has a very peculiar style which gives a lot of distinctive charm, but unfortunately also serves as it's biggest weakness. The plot includes a lot of obscure randomness á la French nouvelle vague (sometimes funny, but mostly rather pretencious) and often it gets way too arty for its own good, while the irritating experimental "soundtrack" doesn't help either. Featuring a scientist creating a breed of headless chicken monsters.
- DirectorVittorio SindoniStarsTom DrakeFemi BenussiVirgilio GazzoloThe death of a surprisingly rich railroad worker leads to mysterious murders within his testamentary heirs.AKA 'Deadly Inheritance' - (5/10) - Yet another classic "too many heirs" murder-mystery with not too much new to offer in terms of story or style, but with a couple of early giallo-esque murders (including death by a golf club) and a very groovy soundtrack by Stefano Torossi. Featuring a detective hitting on two female suspects.
- DirectorBrunello RondiStarsGary MerrillElga AndersenGeorges RivièreA man and his wife are vacationing on the Tuscan coast in 1912. When the wife is murdered, the husband sets out to find a young woman who looks just like her, in order to keep her memory alive.AKA 'Run, Psycho, Run', 'Later, Claire, Later' - (1/10) - A truly botched drama passing off as a giallo. The overall presentation is rather archaic and with its mostly static black and white cinematography, choppy editing and slightly irritating old-timey soundtrack it often feels like something made in the 1940's. Although the cast includes a couple of familiar faces from future gialli, the script doesn't allow anyone to stand out, and the only entertaining character is a random lunatic running around with a knife whilst proclaiming she can be a goat, a star or a pirate (although her role is one of many that turn out to be absolutely pointless). The story is a vague variation on Du Maurier's novel 'Rebecca', plotted as a below-average murder-mystery which is so uninteresting that no one can be bothered to solve it. In the end the film comes across just as a lifeless affair plagued by long-winded talky scenes with huge clunky exposition dumps and dull melodrama galore. Featuring a close-up of a woman saying the Italian title out loud (accompanied by a sinister flute cue in the background).
- DirectorAntonio MargheritiStarsMark DamonEleonora BrownSally SmithAfter a mysterious trunk arrives at a prestigious girl's boarding school, its staff and students - including an orphaned heiress and an amateur sleuth - are targeted by a shadowy murderer.AKA 'Naked... You Die', 'The Young, The Evil And The Savage' - (2/10) - An unispired, protracted and all around dull giallo. It has a decent cinematography with a couple of nice touches and it's set around the same cosy villa used earlier in 'Death On The Fourposter' (1964) and 'Libido' (1965), but besides the occasionally captivating visuals it doesn't offer any particular highlights. The potential of the simple story centered around a murderer picking up girls at the isolated boarding school is completely wasted, there is zero tension and only sporadic instances of very tepid action. The film is apparently trying for a more light-hearted tone, but fails, mainly because of the flat performances and the fact that many of the more absurd aspects of the plot are taken way too seriously (including a moment when the murderer puts on a full diving gear and haphazardly attempts to drown his next victim in a swimming pool). Although the script is laced with intended comedy, it absolutely never lands properly and only comes off as awkward filler, which also goes for the whole melodramatic subplot including a weird romantic Little Red Riding Hood & Richard The Lionheart role-play. The nudity suggested in the title is very limited and always heavily obscured or "conveniently" out of frame, while all the violence is severely toned down and presented in a very sloppy fashion. The bland cast doesn't include anyone with the capacity to make any sort of impression, all the characters are only vaguely sketched out, and things are not elevated by the weak soundtrack full of generic and slightly irritating tunes. Featuring a killer able to choke a girl to death by gently putting his gloved hands around her neck for 5 seconds.
- DirectorCesare CanevariStarsDimitri NabokovMaria Luisa GeisbergerBen SalvadorFour notorious bank robbers - Klaus from Germany, Albert from France, Juan from Spain and Carina from Tangiers meet up in an isolated Castle to divide a large number of diamonds hidden there by their formerAKA 'A Hyena In The Safe' - (5/10) - A small-scale crimi thriller with a hint of giallo. It has a very simple story with a bit of boring scheming and the kills are rather tame, although the death by drowning in a flooded garage is presented in a pretty stylish and unsettling way. The cinematography is a mixed bag with needlessly hyperactive fits during certain scenes of basic conversation and instances of very tacky editing, but also good amount of captivating shots and even some aerial footage of the secluded mansion area (which is very nice, indeed). The cast largely consists of one-time actors trying their best, with oddities such as Diana Rigg's German look-alike and Vladimir Nabokov's son. Featuring a guy throwing a cane with a hidden blade like an ancient Spartan warrior.
- DirectorRomolo GuerrieriStarsCarroll BakerJean SorelIda GalliA sexy newlywed couple visits the husband's hometown in Geneva, where they are subjected to threats stemming from the death of his former fiancée.AKA 'Sweet Body Of Deborah' - (5/10) - The main story is rather bland and not all that much happens throughout the film, but it's very nicely shot and directed with a lot of beautiful locations, all that backed by a pretty good soundtrack by Nora Orlandi. Featuring an outdoor game of Twister between Carroll Baker and Jean Sorel.
- DirectorMassimo DallamanoStarsJohn MillsLuciana PaluzziRobert HoffmannWhile trying to solve a series of murders, a possessive narcotics detective hires a hit-man to kill his unfaithful wife, but the hunter and the hunted soon begin an affair.AKA 'Black Veil For Lisa', 'Death Has No Sex' - (8/10) - A very cool giallo focused mainly on exploring its three main characters. The story has its flaws, but it's highly entertaining thanks to its steady pace and a lot of neat touches, coming up with almost noir-ish vibe. The film is also nicely photographed and Luciana Paluzzi looks absolutely stunning. Featuring one of the earliest examples of a very meticulously placed J&B bottle.
- DirectorGianfranco BaldanelloStarsLisa SeagramMaurizio BonugliaCaterina BarberoAKA 'Yellow: The Cousins' - (4/10) - A very mediocre, but occasionally entertaining murder-mystery with slight giallo undertones. It has a really cosy setting of an old rural estate and nearby countryside and besides some weird jump-cuts and choppy edits even a quite decent cinematography with a simple yet effective approach. Every once in a while it even comes up with some stylish or creative moments like a short sequence when a fly becomes the main character for a few seconds before it's mercilessly smashed out of the frame with a magazine. The story is serviceable at best, it severely lacks when it comes to action, not all that much happens throughout the runtime and especially the whole second half of the film kinda drags. There are some fun moments like a decadent house party with a lot of drinking, smoking, kissing and sitar playing going on trying to liven things up a bit, but there are no truly powerful moments and in the end it becomes a bit boring. Although the two pretty actresses provide the film with quite frequent nudity, the erotic sequences are not presented in an overly good manner (most of them feel very forced) and any sort of violence is basically absent all together (except for a couple of light smacks in the face and one very toned-down blow to the head). Featuring a detective nearly causing a heart-attack to an old lady by suddenly appearing behind a bed sheet while she's taking down dry laundry.
- DirectorUmberto LenziStarsCarroll BakerLou CastelColette DescombesA rich, alcoholic widow assuages her loneliness through a ménage à trois with two seductive step-siblings, whose true motives threaten her sanity and life.AKA 'Paranoia' - (6/10) - One of the two best gialli of the Lenzi-Baker tandem, but still far from being great. After a promising opening and first third of the film comes a quite repetitive midsection with the main female character gradually spiraling down the path of drugs and alcohol, while basically all the action is saved for the last 10 minutes and a somehow abrupt and underwhelming ending. Featuring a guy pretending to be dead for a while, for no real reason.
- DirectorUmberto LenziStarsCarroll BakerJean-Louis TrintignantErika BlancA bored, married Parisian socialite is pulled into a web of lust and deception after he seemingly rescues a woman from her abusive boyfriend.AKA 'So Sweet So Dead' - (4/10) - A bland thriller, despite its great cast. It's one of the more run-of-the-mill and ultimately unsatisfying Lenzi gialli, this time with kinda unoriginal story and certain aspects borrowed from 'Les Diaboliques' (1955). There are some twists, brief nudity and a bit of action here and there, but ultimately it doesn't excell in anything particular and the only truly interesting thing about it is to see Carroll Baker, Erika Blanc and good old Jean-Louis side by side. Featuring a very lazy police department strictly refusing to investigate anything for more than a minute.
- DirectorDamiano DamianiStarsCatherine SpaakJean SorelFlorinda BolkanA young girl named Claudia, flirts with two men, and at the same time, she is also having an affair with her step-mother who doles out her inheritance money from her dead father. Is she playing all three of them to get what she wants?AKA 'A Rather Complicated Girl' - (/10) -
- DirectorSilvio AmadioStarsCatherine DiamantEwa GreenNino SeguriniFollowing a row with her fiancé Maurizio, Manuela breaks off with him and decides to go to a Mediterranean island where her friend Eleonora now lives a solitary life. The friendship between the two girls gradually turns into sexual attraction and they become lovers. When Maurizio lands on the island with a view to reconquering Manuela, his fiancée long hesitates between Eleonora and him. When she eventually decides to follow Maurizio Eleonora reacts violently...AKA 'Twisted Girls', 'Isle Of The Swedes', 'No Man's Island' - (4/10) - A full-on melodrama gently kissed by giallo. It has a pretty cosy setting and the pleasant tiny cast of three lesser-known actors is giving a good performance (most of the time), which hugely helps fighting the fact that there's not much on the menu as far as the actual plot goes. The story is very thin and basic and the vast majority of the film is literally just about two women partaking in various relaxing activites in and around a villa on a remote island and occasionally visiting a nerby town to do some shopping, with a bit of sexual self-exploration on the side. There's some nudity and of course a good amount of lesbian moments, but the action is severely lacking and not even the ever so slightly more eventful final act is able to do much about it. The film also sabotages itself with extremely vague and pretentious attempts at some sort of social commentary through quite bizarre moments like a random radio news flash about last week's victim count in the ongoing Vietnam war or a close-up on a photo of starving children in a magazine article. Although the editing is kinda sloppy at times and the whole cinematography has a rather cheap DIY approach, it never gets static or boring as it's clear to see that there are steady efforts to liven things up, and every once in a while it actually delivers a really cool shot or a nicely crafted sequence. Featuring a weird unexplained outdoor game consisting of a group of people looking for a woman who's running away from them while taking of her clothes.