Behind the Couch

1972 Dir. Aldo Lado When the young daughter of Venice based sculptor Franco is heinously murdered, he and his estranged wife begin an investigation to track down the killer. Meanwhile the body-count continues to grow as the crazed maniac bloodily dispatches anyone who strays too close to discovering the truth about their identity. Set in Venice and featuring the story of a grief-stricken family crippled by the death of their child, Who Saw Her Die? is in many ways uncannily similar to Nicolas Roeg’s startling masterpiece Don’t Look Now , which was released only a year after. Opening with the shockingly frank and brutal murder of a little girl on a snowy mountain in France, Lado’s film pulls no punches, however while its central mystery constantly intrigues as it twists and turns unendingly, it never really manages to repeat the power of this opening scene. Focusing on Franco’s obsession with finding his daughter’s killer, the film unfolds as in typical giallo fashion, with red...

1972 Dir. Sergio Martino Alcoholic writer Oliviero (Luigi Pistilli, Bay of Blood ) and his long-suffering wife Irina (Anita Strindberg, Lizard in a Woman's Skin ) live an isolated, self-destructive existence in their crumbling villa. When Oliviero’s mistress is the first victim in a series of vicious murders, he becomes the prime suspect – and when his niece Floriana (Edwige Fenech, Strip Nude for Your Killer ) suddenly arrives for a visit, things become increasingly complicated as a series of double-crossings and shifting character dynamics add to the air of stifling paranoia. Irina finds comfort in Floriana’s arms – and bed – and the two decide to bump off Oliviero, Diabolique -style. Throw in a few lesbian sex scenes, an ominous and seemingly ubiquitous black cat, lush gothic trimmings, several vicious murders, and you have a fantastically moody giallo that rates right up there with the best of ‘em. Your Vice is a Locked Room and Only I Have the Key – the absurdly extr...

1971 Dir. Lucio Fulci Carol Hammond (Florinda Bolkan) has been having bizarre and erotic dreams about her neighbour Julia, in which they make love and then Carol violently stabs her to death. Julia is then actually found murdered. Did Carol kill her and then repress the memory? Or is she having psychic visions of someone else’s crime? She tries to solve the mystery whilst evading attempts on her own life by a sinister stalker, seemingly intent on keeping her in the dark… After Dario Argento’s The Bird with the Crystal Plumage proved extremely popular with its heady amalgamation of grindhouse exploitation and art-house chic, European cinemas were soon saturated with provocatively titled gialli featuring animal imagery in the titles. One of the more provocative and visually arresting of these films was director Lucio Fulci’s Lizard in a Woman’s Skin . The opening barrage of eerily sensual imagery produces a heady, hypnotic atmosphere rife with sexual decadence. Fulci showcases his...