|
|
|
Death Smiled At Murder
Directed By Joe D’Amato
Released: 1973
Starring: Ewa Aulin, Klaus Kinski, Angela Bo, Sergio Doria and Luciano
Rossi
Running Time: 92 minutes
Region: 0 PAL
DVD Released By Italian Shock
----------------------------------------------------------
Greta von Holstein (played by Ewa Aulin) is the only
survivor of a terrible carriage accident. The trauma leaves her physically
unharmed but her memory has been erased. She is taken in by Walter and Eva
von Ravensbrück (Sergio Doria and Angela Bo), a kindly and wealthy couple.
Dr. Sturges (Klaus Kinski) examines Greta and discovers that she is
neither dead nor alive. Suddenly, the von Ravensbrück estate is plagued by
a rash of horrendous murders as a mystery involving Greta’s brother, Franz
(Luciano Rossi), and Walter’s father, Dr. von Ravensbrück (Giacomo
Rossi-Stuart), begins to unfold.
Hello, Joe. What do you know? Aristide Massaccesi AKA Joe D’Amato directs
this gothic and dreamy horror film. D’Amato’s cinematography is top notch
as usual and Berto Pisano’s soundtrack is superb which is not surprising
considering some of his other efforts:
Strip Nude for Your Killer,
Malabimba,
Giallo A
Venezia, etc. The plot is a tough one to crack (read
as: slowly paced). Let’s just say it is anything but complicated yet
remains just out of reach throughout the film’s running time. For some
viewers, this will add to the dreaminess of the experience and for others,
it will cause massive hair-pulling. But hey, this is a D’Amato flick. The
token amounts of either extreme gore or rampant nudity (or both in this
case) are present and well accounted for.
She is cute, she is deadly, she is Greta. Ewa Aulin of
Death Laid An Egg
and Candy
goes berserk in this one and I couldn’t be happier. Little seen actress
Angela Bo is quite good as the beautiful but very psychotic Eva von Ravensbrück.
Although I’m not entirely sold on Sergio “Creepy Mustache” Doria, he plays
Walter well enough. Giacomo Rossi-Stuart (Kill,
Baby, Kill!,
The Night Evelyn Came Out Of Her Grave)
plays Walter's father and isn’t given much to do. In fact, his character seems
more like an afterthought of the script. However, there is a chilling
moment when Dr. von Ravensbrück hides in a tomb which he believes (very
incorrectly) to be inhabited only by the dead.
As usual, I am blown away by the screen presence of the always memorable
Luciano Rossi. This guy played some seriously freaky baddies in over 60
films. Sadly, he doesn’t get nearly enough screentime as the incestuous
Franz von Holstein but easily steals the show much like he did in
Death Walks At Midnight
and The Stranger’s Gundown.
A charismatic and often frightening performer, Rossi will be sorely missed
by this Eurotrash film fan.
For me, Death Smiled At Murder
delivers that satisfying yet cheap and dirty feeling that only Italian
horror movies provide. Joe D’Amato’s
Anthropophagus
and Beyond
The Darkness also have the same effect on me. I can
only hope that folks who are down on D’Amato’s horror efforts will come
around one day. I consider his small contribution to the genre absolutely
essential viewing for Italian horror fans.
If not for the supernatural themes and the early 20th century setting,
Death Smiled At Murder
would make a great Giallo with its brutal murders, trashiness, beautiful
actresses, visually appealing sets, and obtuse plot. The gore effects are
cheap but quite gruesome with a highpoint being Klaus Kinski stabbing a
needle into an unblinking eye. Don’t miss this one, folks. Trust me, it’s
worth staying awake for.
----------------------------------------------------------
DVD Stuff:
The Italian Shock DVD looks pretty good. The widescreen print isn’t anamorphic or
anything but there isn’t much damage in the form of lines and scratches.
The mono audio is the most problematic with a noticeable hiss through much of
the film. Luckily, the dialogue isn’t affected by this noise and all of
the actors are easy to understand. There are no other audio options on
this disc other than the English language with removable Dutch subtitles.
The extras include the film’s trailer, a slideshow with some screenshots
(with the bizarre menu music playing over it), and liner notes (10 pages
long!).
----------------------------------------------------------
Links:
Get this DVD from
Xploited Cinema.
|
|
