Director: Antonio Margheriti
Year: 1973
Country: Italy/France/West Germany
Alternate Titles: La morte negli occhi del gatto
Genre: Giallo
Plot:
Arriving at her family’s ancestral castle, a woman kicked out of school arrives to find out her squabbling over everything from money to the treatment of her cousin, but when a series of murders plagues the family causes her to question a terrible family curse as behind the crimes.
Review:
There was quite a lot to like with this one. Among the film’s most enjoyable aspects here is the glorious mixture of giallo tendencies in a Gothic setting. The location of the castle, stranding everyone along in the middle of nowhere, there’s plenty of stellar old-school Gothic atmosphere as the endless corridors, cobweb-riddled furniture and secret passageways leading into hidden underground tunnels navigated by candlelight. The stuffy atmosphere is completed with the need for keeping secrets from each other as everyone, from the girl who got kicked out of school to the other family members with their money troubles and secret affairs with everyone else, which all come together into creating that kind of immersive, chilling atmosphere.
This atmosphere manages to work for the film when it comes time for the giallo elements to be featured. This is where the film really shines as the attacks feature strong genre setups, from the figure stalking a sleeping victim who is smothered with a pillow in her sleep, the other victim outside the graveyard who gets their throat slit while meeting a supposed acquaintance unexpectedly or even stumbling upon victims already killed off which all provide some solid stalking scenes. As well, with the location offering plenty of opportunities to spend in underground catacombs and secret passageways, the more traditional horror shocks including the encounter with the bats flying near her head while trailing a strange noise, the sudden appearance of the pet orangutan sitting in its cage or the final battle deep in the catacombs don’t seem out-of-place. That allows the film to truly work well with the combination of Gothic atmosphere and giallo shocks.
The other enjoyable feature to be had here is the stellar mixing of the family curse into the storyline which gives this some added old-school thrills. The central superstition of a murdered family member who rises from the grave as a vampire to seek revenge on the one who killed them gets a lot of mileage in the middle section where it’s used exactly as it should. This one generates some great suspense with the idea that there’s something supernatural here through the madness associated with the situation since the killer goes to great lengths to help ensure this happens through playing with the casket, moving bodies or tantalizing everyone with potential wounds that might result in that conclusion. That brings out the film’s lone flaw in that this section of the film revolves around a Gothic melodrama enhancing these aspects than a horror or giallo film, especially as she slips into hysterics quite easily. This is all that holds this one back.
Overview: ****.5/5
A fantastically enjoyable mixture of both a giallo and a Gothic horror that plays everything up to the best aspects of both styles, this emerges as one of the finest efforts in the style and a career highlight for most involved. Give this a shot if you’re a fan of either style of Italian horror effort or of the creative crew involved, while those that don’t care for either style won’t be swayed by this one.
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