The vampire myth is here married to the insidious world of Western capitalism; the blood drinkers of legend reduced to pleasure-less businessmen and replaced with vicious, predatory cars. Despite the humorous aspects of the scenario, Farina plays the film straight, allowing it to take on … Read More →
Tag Archives: italy
Inferno (1980; dir. Dario Argento)
Here, Argento’s skillful, almost instinctive application of dream logic to the cinematic spectacle is belied by a lacklustre and pedestrian approach. This thematic sequel to his excellent Suspiria (1977) is so similar to its predecessor that it pales by comparison. This film fails where the … Read More →
La polizia chiede aiuto (1974; dir. Massimo Dallamano)
This sleazy film from helmer Dallamano – who gave use the equally questionable Cosa avete fatto a Solange? (1972) - makes for uncomfortable viewing as it simultaneously revels in and condones ‘lewd’ and ‘socially abhorrent’ behaviour: here child prostitution, voyeurism and murder are treated with the … Read More →
The Secret of Seagull Island (1981; dir. Nestore Ungaro)
This is a truncated, theatrical version of an Italian-British co-production, originally shot to run nearly five hours as a TV mini-series. As a result, the plot, which borrows heavily from the celebrated giallo films of the 1970s, is overly complicated, with much exposition culled in … Read More →
La dama rossa uccide sette volte (1972; dir. Emilio Miraglia)
A confused and roughly edited murder mystery, this Italian giallo seems to be a victim of its own devices, unnecessarily cluttering its narrative with badly explained character detail. But unlike Suspiria (1976; dir. Dario Argento) or Reazione a catena (1971; dir. Mario Bava), this confusion … Read More →
Il nascondiglio (2007; dir. Pupi Avati)
Pupi Avati is the most intelligent and insightful filmmaker working in conventional, narrative-based cinema today. His work, of which this is an excellent example, is consciously aware of the perverted phenomenon that surrounds cinema, and the audience’s willing participation in its construction. Although not openly … Read More →
Lisa e il diavolo (1974; dir. Mario Bava)
Cinema is necrophilia. The act of desiring now aged or decayed faces, trapped by the illusion of action that seems to exist in the present tense, but were in fact created and forgotten years ago. The sepulchral nature Bava’s masterpiece encapsulates the sentiment precisely: the … Read More →
Gli orrori del castello di Norimberga (1972; dir. Mario Bava)
This is one of Bava’s less personal works but it still manages to convey his understanding of the cinematic spectacle, which informs a number of effective if visceral sequences. The atmosphere of horror and mistrust that Bava weaves around the throwaway, forgettable surface narrative, drives … Read More →
Terrore nello spazio (1965; dir. Mario Bava)
Contrary to popular belief, independent, commercial-minded cinema can be a fertile ground for intelligent, probing filmmakers, and chief amongst them is Italian helmer Bava. Although his output was comparatively broad – totaling nearly 23 single-credit films before his death in 1980 – his legacy of … Read More →
Il profumo della signora in nero (1974; dir. Francesco Barilli)
Genre is an unfortunate and regrettable aspect of film theory, resulting in the pigeonholing of films by what they should contain rather than what they uniquely offer. Along with a misguided respect for narrative, genre dominates much film criticism and eduction, resulting in ugly and … Read More →
I sopravvissuti della città morta (1983; dir. Antonio Margheriti)
To paraphrase Edgar Allan Poe, a film without an idea is just a film. This – another of Margheriti’s misadventures with actor David Warbeck – is a complete waste of celluloid. Without any of the care and attention he usually lavishes on his films, Margheriti … Read More →
Profondo rosso (1975; dir. Dario Argento)
Italian filmmaker Dario Argento here cements his reputation as the “Italian Hitchcock” with this variation on the Psycho (1960; dir. Alfred Hitchcock) scenario. Showily lensed and featuring sequences of technical bravura that bely its simplistic aspirations, Profondo rosso is a film that mocks those who … Read More →