Today is 7 October. It’s an atypically grey day here in sunny Southern California. The type of day made for staying in and watching horror movies. Of course, everyday is made for staying in and watching horror movies as far as I am concerned. But what type of horror movie should we watch? Our friends at the Cinematic Void have decreed today to be “Giallo” day in their 31 days of Voidoween Movie Challenge. And who am I to argue...because there’s always room for giallo!
That’s right. I said it.
The giallo I’ve chosen for today is an odd one. That’s saying a lot for a genre that is filled to overflowing with “odd ones.” I’ve picked the 1974 Francesco Barilli film The Perfume of the Lady in Black. It stars the beautiful Mimsy Farmer, who in my opinion has never looked more beautiful or more haunted...or more delicious (nudge, nudge...wink, wink).
In a nutshell, the film follows Silvia (Farmer), a manager at a local chemical company, as her past seems to catch up with and overtake her. It seems that as a child Silvia caught her mum having sex with a man who wasn’t Silvia’s dad. Mum then took a header off a balcony. Reality and fantasy intermingle in Silvia’s mind until she -- and the viewer -- is unable to discern between the two. There is talk of modern day witch cults and human sacrifice. Silvia goes to the zoo. Silvia goes to a seance. Silvia goes to a taxidermist. Silvia speaks to her younger self. Then, things get weird.
I won’t go into the weirdness. I want you to experience it for yourself. The ending of the films is a bizarre as they come. “Out of left field” doesn’t even begin to describe it. If you like your gialli with a dash of illogic and a soupçon of surrealism, then The Perfume of the Lady in Black is for you.
Also, if you are fan of giallo music, then picking up the Death Waltz Recording Company release of the soundtrack by Nicola Piovani should be for you, too. It's like the movie: beautiful, haunting...and delicious!
No comments:
Post a Comment
What do you think? Let me know!