Giallo In Venice

Giallo In Venice

"Keep focused on the sex. It could be the key to everything."

When the bodies of a married couple, Fabio (Gianni Dei) and Flavia (Leonora Fani) are found on the shores of Venice's Giudeicca island, Inspector DePaul (Jeff Blynn) is on the case. What's unusual is that while Fabio was stabbed to death, Flavia drowned in the canal – but her body was discovered on land. As DePaul investigates, he discovers a dark web of drugs, jealousy, and kinky sex. But who was the killer? Flavia's ex, Bruno Neilsen (uncredited)? Or maybe it was the stalker following their friend Marzia (Mariangela Giordano). Soon the killer strikes again, picking off those who know too much. 

Man, oh man. I'm afraid I cannot get behind this one.

In fact, for a while I considered leaving Giallo In Venice off the list but, in the end, decided to include it for the sake of thoroughness. The thing is that for a genre known for cheap productions, this one scrapes the bottom of the barrel. It looks like the whole movie was lit by a single fluorescent bulb. And in a genre known for depicting women in jeopardy, this one goes way too far. It's a "sexy" giallo, to be sure, and the plot seems to be an afterthought, hung on a series of grownup scenes. But there is an awful lot of rape in this movie. And a lot of women getting beat up, brutalized, and forced to do terrible, degrading things. Whereas Lucio Fulci's Perversion Story is a giallo that depicts sexuality in a fun way with a wink and a smile, Giallo In Venice depicts sex as an angry, brutal assault. It's disturbing to watch and decidedly un-sexy.  So here it is. It's on the list. But I cannot recommend that anyone watch this movie.

• The title is accurate – it is a giallo and it is set in Venice – but I've never heard of a movie labeling itself like that. I feel that overtly calling itself "giallo" instantly reduces the movie's credibility. It's sort of like hearing your parents use the word "fo-shizzle."
• In my research, I was only able to match a few actors' names to specific characters. The cast is so unremarkable that many don't have more than a handful of credits to check against.
• The old man who provides vital testimony may have been inspired by a similar character in My Dear Killer. But he had an opportunity to talk to the police at the very beginning of the investigation. Why did he wait until days later to come forward with the vital evidence?

What the Hell am I Watching?

So, yeah, this movie is about 40% naughty time and, as I mentioned, most of it is difficult to watch. Especially the parts where Fabio forces Flavia into exhibitionist situations or to engage strangers.

Warning: there's a scene where the killer amputates a victim's leg with a handsaw. It lasts way way way too long and it's shown in gruesome, bloody close-up.

This movie does have one (and only one) thing going for it: the person who killed the couple is the last person you'd expect.

Fashion Moment

Fabio is looking stylish in his crisp white linen suit with a contrasting V-neck tee and pushed up sleeves. Don Johnson would steal this look five years later for Miami Vice.

And the perv in the background is sporting the classic preppy "I don't know how to put on a sweater so I'll just tie it around my shoulders" look.