The Obscure Giallo Thread

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HEAT OF THE FLAME -- From director Rafael Romero Marchent (best known for his spaghetti westerns), this Spanish giallo is surprisingly engaging. A mountain village in Spain. A young, beautiful wife is very unhappy in her marriage to an older, seemingly respectable man. Meanwhile, a masked killer is preying on young women in the area. Marred only by the worst man in drag disguise ever, this is another little Spanish gem of a thriller. There's another scene I won't spoil but is very un-pc and cringy. Lots of hang-gliding footage, oddly. Written by Santiago Moncada, who wrote the excellent films THE CORRUPTION OF CHRIS MILLER and THE BELL OF HELL.

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Death On The Fourposter (Sexy Party) 1964:



This ones pretty funky.

I'm a huge Micheal Lemoine fan. It's the way he responds to shocking events that gets me. Everytime the same blank wild eyed stare, like someone with an ice-cold grip has just grabbed his balls and is not letting go.

Also this is black and white. I've not seen a huge number of black and white giallos which gives it some novelty value. The plot definitely doesnt have any. A hip young group of friends go for a holiday at a huge, remote castle and they are not all going to make it through the first night.

The execution is fun but. All lounge music, impromptu dance sessions, spontaneous seances and, of course, lots of scenes of our ladies helping each other with difficult undergarments while the caretaker watches them through the keyhole. It's 1964 so there's a limit to the salaciousness but the director was making some effort to put the sex in Sexy Party.

It takes over an hour to get to the first kill but oddly that first hour is the best part of the movie. Might have been better if it had stayed the course as a sexy drama.... but then I probably never would have heard of it and that would be a shame. Recommended for those with a weakness for such things.

[BW Haggar Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close BW Haggar]

I'm a huge Micheal Lemoine fan. It's the way he responds to shocking events that gets me. Everytime the same blank wild eyed stare, like someone with an ice-cold grip has just grabbed his balls and is not letting go.

I'm also a huge Lemoine fan, and completely agree! His 'look' (he does pretty much the same one when he's meant to be registering sexual attraction?) is just amazing.

I don't think I've ever seen him in anything as early as '64, so 'Sexy Party' is definitely on the to-watch list.

As indeed are all these films, if only I had the time...

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I had trouble getting through DEATH ON THE FOURPOSTER...maybe I should give it another go.


THE DOUBLE -- Punctuated by a killer Armando Trovajoli lounge score, this a genuine lost treasure. Easily Jean Sorel's most fully realized character and best performance in a giallo. He's pretty much a son of a bitch yet you still feel some sorrow for his murder (not a spoiler as it happens as the film opens). The film plays in flashback as Sorel reflects on what led up to him being shot. Absolutely fascinating, and the beautiful location shooting adds yet another touch. Need another reason to see this? Ewa Aulin is a co-star and looks amazing. This might top the list of gialli that deserve a fine release.

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This might top the list of gialli that deserve a fine release.

Given the cast and production values its strange that it hasnt had one. I struggle with this one a little bit. I've watched it a couple of times and both times came away feeling that maybe I wasn't watching it closely enough. It takes a long time to sort of start which I guess is why they have the framing device that they do. Doesn't feel cohesive to me though.

Still its a comfortable watch for a giallo fanatic. I did enoy Sorel playing a complete motherfucker. And the visual style has made me desperate for a parfocal zoom lens of my own.

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SNAPSHOT OF A CRIME - Fantastic, groovy Bixio score highlights this one. Incredibly score-heavy film, almost overbearing. Even at only 74 minutes, this one's a bit of a slog to get through. It seems to be going for the vibe of the Lenzi/Baker gialli but falls well short. Some stunningly beautiful actresses though. Plot revolves around blackmail and drug smuggling. Worth at least one watch.

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No One Heard The Scream (1974):



I am not the biggest fan of Spanish giallo in general. The setting feels wrong. They did pump them out though. This one by Eloy De La Iglesia is one of the better ones. A shapely hooker is minding her own business in her home apartment block when she spots her neighbour very clumsily disposing of a corpse in the elevator shaft. It's unclear exactly what this dudes plan was and why he wasn't banking on exactly this happening. Or maybe he was all along because he uses the clumsy corpse disposal as an In to develop a relationship with our hooker and the two set of on a cross country, corpse disposal holiday. Love ensues. Or does it? Do you we care? I don't know.... I was losing interest there for a bit as things goet a bit aimless once we lose the body, it started strong and had some good bits throughout, but it does tail off for a good while. Perks up again at the end for a strong finish. Overall, I don't regret the time.

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No One Heard The Scream (1974):



I am not the biggest fan of Spanish giallo in general. The setting feels wrong. They did pump them out though. This one by Eloy De La Iglesia is one of the better ones. A shapely hooker is minding her own business in her home apartment block when she spots her neighbour very clumsily disposing of a corpse in the elevator shaft. It's unclear exactly what this dudes plan was and why he wasn't ban king on exactly this happening. Or maybe he was all along because he uses the clumsy corpse disposal as an In to develop a relationship with our hooker and the two set of on a cross country, corpse disposal holiday. Love ensues. Or does it? Do you we care? I don't know.... I was losing interest there for a bit as things goet a bit aimless once we lose the body, it started strong and had some good bits throughout, but it does tail off for a good while. Perks up again at the end for a strong finish. Overall, I don't regret the time.

I really like this one, the ending is very Hitchcockian. One of the best Spanish gialli imo. I'm gonna throw a penalty flag though, it's no longer obscure since it's had a BD release, haha. There are some real gems in the Spanish giallo world. THAT HOUSE ON THE OUTSKIRTS and GLASS CEILLING (also directed by Eloy de la Iglasia). I'll post my short, useless reviews for them soon.

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I really like this one, the ending is very Hitchcockian. One of the best Spanish gialli imo. I'm gonna throw a penalty flag though, it's no longer obscure since it's had a BD release, haha.

Fair! I missed that- it appears it was even reviewed here by Mr Jane. I watched The Glass Ceiling as well. I felt that Noone Heard The Scream edged it. I've not come across House On The Outskirts.

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VERGOGNA SCHIFOSI (aka DIRTY ANGELS) - A classic Morricone score for this one. Thoroughly unique, fascinating and blackly comic. Lino Capolicchio is an eccentric artist and quasi-revolutionary, friend of three formerly decadent leads. They are being blackmailed with a porn photo from the past when someone died of a drug overdose during an orgy. Lino is the blackmailer and they plot to murder him. The three idle rich leads are quite repulsive characters and Lino is the only one who seems happy. Lovely pop art look and gorgeous lead actress. Offbeat and talky but absolutely engrossing.

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THE KILLER WORE GLOVES - Prolific director Juan Bosch helms this Spanish/Italian co-production. A London-set giallo. A woman's boyfriend is away, she rents the flat above to a strange man. Convoluted to say the least. Some decent murder scenes but too spaced out, lots of dull moments. There are some funny moments - the doorman lurking in the back with a wicked blade saying "I had to prune the plants." Overall though, a thoroughly mediocre affair. The presence of the great character actor Bruno Corazzari saves this from being a complete loss.

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I always preferred blonde bombshell Marisa Mell over long haired brunette Marisa Mell. She jumps off the screen in Danger Diabolik and One On Top Of The Other. As a brunette she feels like generic eurobabe from central casting.

Anyway, she's brunette Mell in this and she's supported by Farley Granger and Helga Line. Mell marries a rich but pretentious and boring dude which is presented as a kind of prostitution. She falls in love with another very similar seeming guy and wants a swap. Before you know it she's being blackmail by her chauffeur who saw her dumping the body off a cliff.

My copy of this looked like shit with a strong magenta shift. I suspect it would look great on a decent print. This is a teir B early giallo though I suspect those involved had hope that it was going to be more than that. Could have done with a few more murders to keep the pace up. Still odd that it hasn't turned up from a US label.

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I always preferred blonde bombshell Marisa Mell over long haired brunette Marisa Mell. She jumps off the screen in Danger Diabolik and One On Top Of The Other. As a brunette she feels like generic eurobabe from central casting.

Anyway, she's brunette Mell in this and she's supported by Farley Granger and Helga Line. Mell marries a rich but pretentious and boring dude which is presented as a kind of prostitution. She falls in love with another very similar seeming guy and wants a swap. Before you know it she's being blackmail by her chauffeur who saw her dumping the body off a cliff.

My copy of this looked like shit with a strong magenta shift. I suspect it would look great on a decent print. This is a teir B early giallo though I suspect those involved had hope that it was going to be more than that. Could have done with a few more murders to keep the pace up. Still odd that it hasn't turned up from a US label.

Marisa Mell made a few of these early gialli. I like them very much. I have a nice copy that I got from Craig at ETC (RIP). A lot of them have magnificent soundtracks.

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Twisted Girls (1969)



My copy of this one was taped off a pan and scanned Italian tv broadcast which is a shame. Most of its pleasures- the fashion, the architecture, the locales, the babes!- are visual. It probably had a 25 page script as there's barely any dialogue and the films runtime is largely taken up by watching our shapely leads frolic and gambol in the surf.

Manuela breaks up with her loser boyfriend who is, admittedly, a bit rapey. She hooks with her friend who has a stylish villa by the sea. They are both most definitely straight but, what with all the nude sunbathing and previously mentioned gamboling, they start touching each more than they should much to their own disgust. Then our rapey lead man turns up. He totally misses the opportunity for a hot threesome with a pair of newly bi-sexual babes and tries to tempt his woman back. It's not going to end well.

I dug it. It's a very relaxing watch as it's exceedingly low tempo. You need to be satisfied with just watching a 70s fashion parade with a lounge music score at times but I have no issue with this.

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Twisted Girls (1969)
You need to be satisfied with just watching a 70s fashion parade with a lounge music score at times but I have no issue with this.

Pretty much the reason I watch anything. I prefer that languid meandering show more than most anything contemporary these days. That's where my heart is.