Review of The Iguana with the Tongue of Fire

With a great title along the lines of the films comprising Dario Argento's Animal Trilogy I was expecting a much better movie but was very dissapointed. In fact, the title and its explanation are probably the best things in L'Iguana dalla lingua di fuoco. This movie is very incoherent (of course, that doesn't always detract from a giallo) and more importantly, lacks the suspense and style usually associated with the genre. There's not much in this movie to keep one's interest (I fell asleep towards the end and when I woke up about half an hour later my tape had rewound completely and, no joke, had ejected itself from the VCR. Just some sort of subtle hint I guess). However, there are some positive aspects to the film. There is a decent amount of gore and fairly interesting characters. Then there is the camp value that L'Iguana dalla lingua di fuoco boasts (One of the film's main red herrings is the pair of dark sunglasses that the killer, as well as every citizen of Dublin, wears). Overall, this is a below average giallo but if not taken seriously, it can still be a fun viewing.