Directors: Silvio Amadio (Smile before Death); Giuseppe Bennati (The Killer Reserved Nine Seats); Francesco Mazzei (The Weapon, The Hour, The Motive)
Screenplay: Silvio Amadio, Francesco Di Dio (SBD); Giuseppe Bennati, Paulo Levi (TKRNS); Francesco Mazzei (TWTHTM);
Cast: Luciano della Rubbia, Lyram Kellar, Silvano Tranquilli, Rosalba Neri (SBD); Rosanna Schiaffino, Chris Avram, Eva Cemerys, Lucretia Loue, Paolo Senatore, Gaetano Russo, Andrea Scotti (TKRNS); Renzo Montanario, Bedy Moratti, Eva Czemerys, Salvatore Puntillo, Clauda Gravi (TWTHTM);
Year: 1972 (SBD); 1974 (TKRNS); 1972 (TWTHTM);
Running Time: 88 mins (SBD); 103.5 mins (TKRNS); 104 mins (TWTHTM)
Certificate: 18
Arrow Video’s second Giallo Essentials Collection travels a less well-travelled route this time, celebrating three less well-known Italian murder mysteries. All three films are making their UK disc debuts, all in sparkling new 2K restoration formats, taken from the original camera negatives.
Smile Before Death
Following on from the bloody death of an older woman, seemingly at her own hands, her daughter, Nancy (Jenny Tamburi), visits, and is taken in by her rather ‘handsy’ stepdad, Marco (Silvano Tranquilli) and his friend/lover/ glamour photographer, Gianna (Rosalba Neri). It soon becomes apparent that the two adults may be being deliberately nice to Nancy since she’s about to come of age and inherit her mother’s considerable wealth. Will she come to a similarly sticky end?
As with most giallos, there are a couple of twists and turns along the way during this very colourful addition to the genre. However, not enough of interest really happens so one’s attention is left to wander. Fans of sleaze will find much to enjoy here though, since there’s plenty of flesh on display; mostly of the unnecessary kind, it has to be said.
Special mention must also be made about the incredible 70s décor and fashions, all underlined by a very catchy central theme by Roberto Pregadio, replete with Edda Dell’Orso’s ‘ear-worm’ vocalisations. You’ll be hearing it in your head for weeks afterwards, I promise.
Smile before Death is certainly worth a watch if only for the lovely ladies on display and for the quite clever double-twist at the end.
Film: 
The Killer Reserved Nine Seats
The most recently produced film in the set is also probably the most traditional murder mystery, playing out along similar lines to Ten Little Indians and The Cat and the Canary, but with a supernatural twist. In this fairly trashy giallo, nine – mostly fur-coated – people turn up at an old family-owned, but now unused, theatre for some kind of reunion. One of the attendees appears to know the theatre well, even if no one knows who he is. Is he the killer or perhaps a ghostly victim of a mass murder committed at the theatre a hundred years previously?
We get the usual round of familial politics where we gradually discover that most of the people there don’t really like each other for various reasons and most have something to gain if the eldest brother dies. In fact, someone or something does try to kill him by dropping a scenery beam on him while he’s standing on the main stage.
The theatre setting provides an interesting backdrop, along with plenty of opportunity for people to go wandering off by themselves; all the better for the masked killer to corner and kill them in a variety of interesting ways. All the murders are predicted in a medieval tapestry that one of the guests handily finds and starts putting two and two together.
A supernatural force locks the nine into the theatre so that they’re ‘sitting ducks’ come the final act when the killings become more and more frequent and supernatural forces come into play.
The Killer Reserved Nine Seats is certainly worth a watch as it’s a cut above many giallos, although suffers from too many dumb characters making it easy for the killer to dispatch them. For example, one woman, knowing full well that there’s a killer doing the rounds, reacts by dancing a sexy dance while nearly naked and being spaced-out on drugs; surely a good candidate for the Darwin Awards if ever there was one? And, to top off her already bizarre behaviour, she also tries to snog her dad after first getting naked – as you do!
Director Giuseppe Bennati makes the most of his attractive cast and the cool location and the film is certainly a lot of fun, despite some inane dialogue and unbelievable scenarios.
Film:
The Weapon, The Hour, The Motive
Probably the strongest film in the set, Francesco Mazzei’s The Weapon, The Hour, The Motive moves us into a nunnery where the suspicious death of randy priest Don Giorgio (Maurizio Bonuglia) brings in Inspector Boito (the excellent Renzo Montagnian) and his equally fun comic sidekick Morriconi (Salvatore Puntillo) to try and get to the bottom of things.
The inspector quickly falls for the obvious charms of sultry Orchidea (Bedy Moratti), who was the priest’s secret lover when he died, although she neglects to tell our friendly-neighbourhood sleuth that when she gives her statement.
Later on, there’s a graphic throat-slashing of a tarot lady who discovers the killer picking up a blackmailer’s envelope, plenty of topless nuns self-flagellating, the regular reveal of a number of red-herrings, and the midnight machinations of our juvenile hero, namely an orphan boy who Orchidea gives medicine to on a regular basis and also teaches on the few occasions she’s not shagging either the priest or the inspector.
It all comes to a colourful head during a wedding – the policeman’s, no less – where the killer finally gets their comeuppance; well, sort of.
While still trashy in places The Weapon, The Hour, The Motive, is a classier and lighter-hearted affair than the other two films in this set. The photography is excellent, the acting a notch up on most other giallos, and the Ennio Morriconi score is a delight. While it does get bogged down in melodrama from time-to-time it certainly delivers the ‘goods’ for fans of the genre and must have upset our censorship guardians when it originally came out, what with its depictions of blood on breasts and sexual misdeeds involving the clergy.
I, personally, would have liked the main police inspector character to be carried forward into a TV/film series since he’s warm, witty, cool (especially on his motorbike) and very smart, without being annoying.
Film:
Special Features
As per usual with Arrow Video there are plenty of special features to accompany the films.
Smile Before Death
In addition to a choice of two versions of the film (Italian and English – both the same length) we get the following:
Audio commentary with Troy Howard and Nathaniel Thompson – These two experts come up with some interesting facts about the production including revealing its alternative title, namely Smile of the Hyena. We also find out that the director’s only other sojourn into the world of gialli is Amuck! (1972). The commentators also reveal that 33 giallos came out in Italy the same year as this film; wow!
Smile of the Hyena (23.5 mins) – Interview with Stefano Amadio; the son of the film’s director, Silvio Amadio. Stefano is also a film journalist. Unfortunately, there weren’t any subtitles on the interview on the version I had so it was of limited use to someone who doesn’t understand much Italian.
Extended nude scenes (3.15 mins) – This does what it says on the tin – we get to see even more nudity from Jenny Tamuri and co-star Rosalba Neri; both of which are very easy on the eye. There’s no audio since these extra bits were never used in the final film. All are from the film’s photo shoot sequence, this time with more of a ‘lesbian vibe’.
Image Galleries – 13 promotional stills including a cool poster
The Killer Reserved Nine Seats
Audio commentary with Kat Ellinger – Here the author, editor and critic talks all things giallo, defining them (a pulp mystery/thriller, sometimes with supernatural elements), discussing their history – even the more recent stuff – and talks about her own personal thoughts about the film, seeing it as being a ‘gothic film’, in the same sub-group as the likes of Argento’s Opera, Soavi’s Stagefright and Bava’s Demons.
Hanging with Howard (8.5 mins) – An interview with actor Howard Ross, who chats about the film and the location and how the main actor seemed to think giallo were beneath him. He also reveals that the director was constantly pissed off and couldn’t wait to finish shooting the film. This is an interesting interview, but I’m not sure why the interviewer chose to set it up in front of a kid’s play area…
Writing with Biagio (28:38) – An interview with screenwriter Biagio Proietti who talks about his career, originally as an assistant director on films like Time of Indifference, to his screenwriting stint on films such as TKRNS, where he wasn’t paid for the script.
Theatrical trailer (3.14 mins) – Does what it needs to
Image Gallery – 25 stills including some cool poster designs
The Weapon, The Hour, The Motive
Audio commentary with Alexandra Heller-Nicolas – The film critic and author from Australia, who has made a study of the giallo genre, is very knowledgeable, if a little bit on the academic side at times. She apparently likes to call this film: ‘Who killed the randy priest?’, which, to be fair, sums up the plot very well.
A man in Giallo (13.5 mins) – An interview with actor Salvatore Puntillo, who has mostly fond memories of working on the film with his fellow actors, along with the director who was very serious, but good with the actors. Puntillo was lucky as his character’s role was expanded since the director really liked him. He later goes on to talk about his time working with Dario Argento on Deep Red. He thinks Dario is a funny guy.
English Front and End titles (2008) (3.5 mins) – These were all that could be found of the English elements of the English version of the film. However, the end still has me asking myself why they ended on a freeze-frame of the old guy with only two teeth?!
Image Gallery – 12 stills – mostly posters, which are all a bit cluttered, design-wise