Murder Obsession(1981)

Murder Obsession (1981) aka”Satan’s Altar” , “Follia Omicida

directed by : Riccardo Freda,

Cast: Stefano Patrizi,  Laura Gemser , Anita Strindberg,Silvia Dionisio

Rather poor blend of Giallo mystery trappings with satanic/occult horror that works mostly as a perversely charming hodgepodge of genre cinema clichees but retains some merit due to some wonderfully crafted disturbing scenes of lucid demonic psychedelia.

Michael is a successful actor, but he has a scandal in his past: at a tender age he knifed his father to death. He and his girlfriend Deborah go to his mother’s for the weekend, and are joined by the director and others from a recent film project. But they are given a rather cool reception by the superstitious housekeeper Oliver. Soon rude things begin happening to some of the guests, and Michael fears a repeat of his nightmare past is in progress.

Ricardo Fredda’s Gialli tend to lean towards the trashier end of the genre canon , see “Iguana with the tongue of fire” for reference. This one is along the same lines, as the pace is quite problematic to put it nicely and the storyline doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. Luckily the end is quite strong if downbeat and manages to tie the fragmented narrative together. As per usual in Gialli , there is not much care for character development . Performances by genre regulars are mostly unspectacular. However this will probably appeals to fans of trashier Gialli like: Strip nude for your killer , Paris Sex Murders and the aforementionen Iguana with the Tongue of fire.

Borderline fodder yet with rewarding moments. I’d like to watch the bluray though as my vhs copy is a bloody mess.

The Dirty Seven(1982)

The Dirty Seven (1982)

Aka “La Belva dalla calda pelle” ,”Emmanuelle Queen of the Desert”

Directed by:Bruno Fontana

Cast:Gabrielle Tinti,Laura Gemser,Angelo Infanti,Vassili Carris

A squadron of mercenaries falls victim to a scheme after their last mission and are left stranded in a desert island ,to add insult to injury they  lose their captain and must begin a brutal attempt to survive. Consequently lower instinct start prevailing and the mercenaries wreak a havoc of pillaging and burning in an attempt to secure supplies. When an old farmer and his teenage granddaughter fall victims of their antics they hit rock bottom and start fighting each other for leadership. However things are getting an even nastier turn after Sheila (Gemser) finds out about the murder and rape of her grandpa and sister. Sheila will stalk ,enchant and then annihilate the dirty bunch… but does revenge really have a meaning?

Another sleazy Italian actioner that owes more to bottom barrel gems like “Rolf” rather than is a direct descendant of the “Black Emmanuelle” series. Gemser’s presence is of course a selling point for the film but there is more sleaze than sex to be found here.

Fontana tries to point a finger at the brutality of war that demoralizes and dehumanizes even the most solid of personalities ,he also questions the effectiveness of revenge but do not have high hopes ,this is not the lost Italian sibling of Apocalypse now but a relatively gritty, amusingly sleazy ,workmanlike Eurocult movie. If you really want to watch a more profound Italian war/action film then opt for Antonio Margheritti’s near masterpiece  “Last Hunter”.

In other news Gemser is her usual self but doesn’t flash her naked beauty as much as in other occasions. I watched “the dirty seven” version which focuses more on the mercenaries and omits a lot of the nudity that the  other version called “Emmanuelle Queen of the Desert” delivers.

Long story short, Fontana’s flick is as solid of an entry to the black Emmanuelle catalogue as other minor unofficial entries ,like “Emmanuelle Queen of the Sados” are, a decent attempt in sleazy Eurocult. Fans of the Gemser legacy and other sexploitation and Eurotrash enthusiasts should obtain this.

Αγνοημένο υποπαράγωγο της σειράς ταινιών με τη Λάουρα Γκέμσερ στο ρόλο της μαύρης Εμμανουέλας, το παρόν τεμάχιο γυρισμένο στην Κύπρο προσπαθεί φιλότιμα και σχεδόν μεταδίδει σε σημεία την αποκτήνωση και την απελπισία του ανθρώπου που δεν έχει τίποτα να χάσει μέσα στη ματαιότητα της φρίκης του πολέμου, αλλά κατά διαστήματα χάνει τον έλεγχο και πέφτει ενίοτε θύμα στις σκουπιδοσυμβάσεις και στις υπό του μηδενός ερμηνείες του καστ. Ο Γκαμπριέλε Τίντι και η Λάουρα Γκέμσερ παίζουν μέσα στο μέτρο των δυνατοτήτων τους αλλά το υπόλοιπο καστ καταβαραθρώνεται,ίσως και λόγω της τραγικής αγγλικής ηχητικής μπάντας.

Όσοι πάντως είδατε Μαύρη Εμμανουέλα και σπεύσατε δεν θα αποκομίσετε τίποτα το σπουδαίο, καθώς ο Φοντάνα εστιάζει περισσότερο στη μάχη μεταξύ των μισθοφόρων για επικράτηση και στα σκαμπανεβάσματα της ψυχολογίας του πολεμιστή παρά στο γυμνό κορμί της Λάουρα Γκέμσερ.

Πόρισμα. Το παρόν έχει χτυπητές αδυναμίες αλλά φέρει ακέραια και τα καλά χαρακτηριστικά του Ιταλικού war action . Οι λάτρεις του ιδιοσυγκρασιακού Ιταλικού genre cinema δεν χάνουν τίποτα να προσθέσουν το παρόν στην ταινιοθήκη τους