The Films of 71: Three Gialli

The first giallo film was made by Mario Bava in 1964 under the title, The Girl Who Knew Too Much. The subgenre wouldn't truly take off until the 70's. And even in the beginning, directors were adding special flavors and ingredients to it. 

CAT O'NINE TAILS

The second in Dario Argento's animal trilogy. The first being Bird With the Crystal Plumage and last being Four Flies On Grey Velvet. Out of the three films, this is my least favorite. There are strong sequences like the elevator shaft scene. But not enough to make it rise above.  

The focus on narrative is stronger than his later output like Suspiria, Inferno and Phenomena. Which, when it comes to Argento, isn't his strong suit. Dario is all about mood, lighting and atmosphere. 

LIZARD IN A WOMAN'S SKIN

I came to Fulci after discovering his zombie films: Zombi 2, The Beyond, City of the Living Dead. Each one's atmosphere and mood fed off the last. Which is the kind of horror I devour like catnip. Little did I know, he had a string of movies behind him that proved he was every bit as capable of telling a coherent story. Lizard is one such film. 

It's a film that starts off as an open shut case and then proceeds to make you look closer at little cracks in the story. Fulci employs split screen, a technique not commonly used back then. Keep in mind, this is before DePalma's first split screen use in Sisters. 

There's a fascination with sexuality you can sense in the film. The 60's explosion and culture's loose grip on forbidden pleasure all came to the forefront in genre cinema. It's not just the sex you're getting here. Fulci brings the gore. Plenty of it. 

So if you want to watch one of Fulci's earlier efforts, you're best checking out the labyrinthine psycho sexual shocker Lizard In A Woman's Skin. 

THE STRANGE VICE OF MRS. WARDH

Bava, Argento and Fulci are the three big names in Italian horror circles. If I were to include a fourth, it would be Sergio Martino. Unlike Argento, Martino was a journeyman. He started out with westerns and documentaries before this. 

Mrs. Wardh was the first of a series of giallos Martino would make. The one to set the DNA for everything else that would follow. The director brought an ingredient that others weren't using in the giallo: eroticism. A film like Henri Georges Clouzot's Les Diabolique would be the basis for these gialli Martino would make. What Clouzot could only imply in 1955, Martino made explicit in 1971. 

Even though there are traits that can string these films together, Martino brings a distinct flavor to each one. He always broke his own mold and did something different. His next film, All the Colors of the Dark blends in  the occult with the subgenre of giallo.

The gorgeous Edwige Fenech, a Martino regular for his next two giallos stars as the titular Mrs. Wardh.