FrightFest Special | Giallo | Dario Argento | 90mins

For some inexplicable reason – this film has been panned. The audience at the ‘Fest loved it and it had us all in uproar throughout. It was the first London screening, introduced by one of the festivals spokespeople who claimed that there was to be a meeting for Argento Anonymous after the film for those in need of therapy. Sorry, but this movie cheered this reviewer no end and would be great as a fix for any bout of misery.

It was, as a wonderful addition, introduced by a succession of exploitation trailers from the seventies, late eighties – they were the real deal not the idealised fictional trailers put together by Tarantino for his Grindhouse Double Bill. ‘Young Nurses’ – a Roger Corman classic looks brilliant. It is available but only on Region 1.

It is unwise to go see this film and to expect what is infamous as Giallo – the exploitation cinema style more commonly associated with the Italian director Dario Argento. Rather this film has bits from a lot of places: Hostel, Se7en, Kiss the Girls, Silence of the Lambs, Saw - whilst all the while bowing to just about every cop movie cliché in the book. The movie is set in Rome as well, so you can be guaranteed some pretty lovely architecture as backdrop. It would have to be Italy that would provide the canvas for a film about an ugly figure deranged at his own lack of beauty. Piazzas alone would drive them over the edge.

The hilarity is, or feels, intentional. There is no way that either of the main leads could keep such a straight face during some of the acting, and it is worth remembering that both Brodie and Seigner are serious actors, both of whom have worked with Polanski. There were no such levels of depth or seriousness here though, although there are some genuinely tense moments. Especially at the beginning as we see girls being stalked by the serial killer ‘Yellow.’ The victims are impossibly beautiful. Seigner though, does not look good, and at 43 should not be looking nearer to 50 or over, which was, admittedly distracting.

She plays the part of the sister (Linda) of a missing model, Celine (of course it would have to be a model), who is now trapped in a remote labyrinthine system of rooms and cellars only sold to serial killers. ‘Yellow’ is not a happy bunny. Born of a mother with junkie habits and resulting Hepatitis – Yellow is so called due to his jaundiced appearance. It is doubtful though that his mother is responsible for his speech impediment, limp and deformed sized head – but the flashback of ‘Yellow’s’ infant life is as joyous as that of the Inspector after him.

Enzo Avolfi (Brody), is a haunted man. He does what he does due do his mother being killed in front of him (why is never gone into), by a man who later runs a butchers shop (why is never gone into). The flashback of this is one of the funniest things ever on film – the FrightFest audience were uncontrollable. As an adolescent boy, Enzo tracks down this brute and kills him violently in his own shop. A policeman sees it all through the shop window: ‘I told them everything – they understood’, Enzo tells Linda. Hilarious

Linda, thankfully does not have a backstory but doesn’t mind falling asleep on the Inspectors sofa in his basement office whilst he reiterates important aspects of the case to her.

In the meantime Yellow has one on the slab and one on the go to replace the one just been carved up. Not only does he Stalk ‘n Slash – but takes pictures of their bloodied faces for his desktop to masturbate over later. He has come a cropper with Celine though – she’s a bit spirited and tells him what is really wrong with him (can’t be for the first time – surely?), after he has dumped the poor Oriental model (thinking her dead) in the middle of a Piazza. This scene has evidently been inspired by the ‘Sloth’ murder in Se7en: the victim is thought of as dead only to make a sharp inhalation as the police look closely at the cadaver. She gasps something in Chinese and Enzo – always with a handy Dictaphone takes her evidence for him to go to a Chinese fishmonger to interpret. This is straight by the book police procedure here. Linda, of course accompanies him everywhere and no-one ever questions this.

Even funnier is when Yellow decides to pay Linda a home visit – unperturbed by him being there – she immediately agrees to play his game to get her sister back without an ounce of hesitation or fear.

Of course, Enzo suspects Yellow’s moves and goes to her apartment which starts the inevitable cat-and-mouse chase at the back end of all protagonist/antagonist based thrillers.

This movie does not have a predictable ending but is rather strange which does not entirely dissatisfy but does not feel like closure either. This does not dissuade however from a really wonderful and guffaw inducing experience.

Giallo was released in the UK 29^th June 2009

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