Loved every single minute of this quite contrived, but beautifully shot on lush and gorgeous locations and sets truly old school Giallo, produced with a more than decent budget and always shot with admirable taste, and a true classy professionalism! Maybe i wasn't expecting too much, despite the excellent cast lined up, which, by the way, i am hoping now IMDb will update! If the story is really intense and bedazzling, it is certainly because of the many plot holes, or because of many, and, recurring key moments, just completely (and, seemingly) very voluntarily, left in the dark, But, that makes it all actually way more mysterious, weird, and, at some point really haunting you, until the very unexpected, and honestly very dark, and rather sick double twisted ending. The film's at points (this is for all those who are not fans, nor familiar with this fantastic genre, since, for us who are accustomed to it, this all works quite to perfection, making us even a bit shocked at times by incredibly savvy explosions of gore, just when you thought the action was about to drag a bit, or maybe to just become a tiny tad too complex to even try to bother to analyze it, at once! Of course, the generous amounts of (extremely classy, but kinky) soft core also helps the entertainment, along with the cool and jazzy, catchy score of Bacalov, who composed stylishly, just about 15 or more years later the original ones were made, a truly chilling theme! And, so.. it all works, and, cannot be surprised this one actually quite did very well in Europe everywhere when it opened in 1989. Times had changed, and "Basic Instinct" was just about to be made, while even in the States, believe it or not, thrillers were becoming very erotic and enigmatic (think Angel Heart or Final Analysis), while in Europe, back in the 1980;s a whole new wave of sophisticated, but also shocking erotica was basically ruling at the box office, with great directors like Tinto Brass and Bigas Luna, producing some of their best and most scandalous work to date! The women were also all very beautiful, and, i loved that the film didn't have much at all any of that cheesy '80's look, but, actually, was presented in a very condensed, and tense atmosphere, so more properly generated by Fulci or Lenzi,'s and Martino's original late 1960's, mid 1970's classic's, than, instead, trying uselessly way too hard, as seen in so many other tragic cases, a way too updated 1980's campy look. The actors were all so well cast, i couldn't have wanted to change anyone, even some of the gorgeous girls whose acting was, at times lacking strength.. perhaps they were all so sexy, and gorgeously dressed, and undressed, that you just did not even had the time to notice! All the rest, was truly top notch quality, and, for me, a huge surprise coming from director Andrea Bianchi, who here, for me, fares well, and, i wanna say better than even in his little 1970's cult "Strip Nude for your Killer!" A lot better in my opinion, delivering a classic Giallo that ends up lingering with you, afterward, asking you a few disturbing questions, but, also leaving you completely satisfied, and, truly in pure Giallo's glory, and with a provocative, rabid, underlining sexuality! Note: also that this movie for sexual situations of extreme nature, full frontal nudity, and general profanity, topped off with some very disturbing feelings this flick can easily bring up, it should not be seen by anyone below 18, even though if accompanied, i mean! All the others, please, buck up tight your seat belts..its gonna be 1 Hell of a night, let me tell you!!
See also
Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews