Runtime:
85 minutes
Directed
by: Mario Bava
Starring:
Leticia Roman, John Saxon, Valentina Cortese, Titti Tomaino (believe
it or not, a guy's name)
From:
Galatea Film
Here
is what I watched on Netflix tonight; a film that I saw identified as
the first-ever giallo movie, the start of a popular sub-genre of
horror in the 70's. I figured that I should watch more in the genre
and there are some of those flicks on Instant so I might as well
start off with the first one, right?
The
plot: Nora, a tourist from New York (Roman) visits Rome to hang out
with an old relative. Almost right away she croaks. She runs out of
the house and panics and after she gets her purse stolen, she sees a
woman get murdered. Most people think she's crazy or dreamt it up due
to her love of murder mystery novels; that includes a handsome doctor
she befriends (Saxon). She tries to solve the murder on her own but
runs into complications...
This
is definitely a Hitchcockian story more than anything else. It is
more about the real good way it was filmed rather than the story,
which was nonsensical at times but did have twists and turns. As it
is a black and white movie the way that light and shadows was
used...creative. Don't expect a lot of violence and killing in this
story; it's more of a mystery as Nora tries to figure out what is
going on. You can see how the sub-genre started here, with it growing
and maturing into the stylized bloody movies you got in the 70's.
I
was amused to see John Saxon act here as the earliest I had seen him
was 10 years later in Enter the Dragon, and I also remember him from
80's movies like A Nightmare on Elm Street. Seeing him look the same
except younger... something I thought I wouldn't see. I also thought
I woudn't get to see a glimpse of him wearing a Speedo on an Italian
beach, but that was the case. You do get a much better look at Nora
in a bikini; I am glad they did it that way rather than the other way
around.
So,
I thought this was an entertaining-enough flick. I mean, "marijuana cigarettes" is actually a plot point! I'll be back
tomorrow night.
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