Morbid
October 8th, 2007, 06:58 PM
Continuing my rekindled love of giallo, and attempting to check out some of the non-Argento variety, I continue with the following review of The Case of the Bloody Iris.
http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0000640SK.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg (http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0000640SK/dreamindemon-20)
The Case of the Bloody Iris
Directors: Giuliano Carnimeo
Writers:Ernesto Gastaldi
Actors: Edwige Fenech, George Hilton, Annabella Incontrera, Paola Quattrini, Giampiero Albertini
Jennifer (Edwige Fenech (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0271763/)) is a model who has been living a life with her husband within a sex cult that involves orgies and heroin. Finding the activities repulsive, she leaves that life behind, including her husband, and moves in with her best friend Marilyn (Paola Quattrini (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0703009/)), who is also a model. Meanwhile, Andrea Barto (George Hilton (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0385253/)), a constructor with a phobia of blood and owner of a series of apartment buildings, would like to do some vanguard advertising in order to sell some of his vacant units. Enlisting the help of a flaming cheesecake photographer, they decide to offer a model a room so they can sell more units, especially since a woman was just stabbed to death in the elevator of one of his buildings. The plan is simple; when people find out a gorgeous model resides in the building and likes to frequent the pool, people will scramble to get any of the remaining rooms. Andrea settles on Mizar Harrington (Carla Brait (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0104069/)), an African American model and stripper who works at a club doing an act that involves her wrestling with men in 3-minute intervals. If the man wins the match, he can have sex with her right there on the floor in front of the patrons. Unfortunately for Mizar as well as Andrea, she is murdered in her new apartment, found drowned in the bathtub at the hands of an unknown killer. Andrea's dilemma of a now empty apartment in a building marred by two deaths is solved when he offers the vacant apartment to Jennifer and Marilyn, an offer they accept. Everything is looking up for all involved, and Andrea and Jennifer have even seemed to taken a liking to each other. However, on the first night in their new pad, Jennifer is accosted by a masked intruder who tries to strangle her. Fortunately he is scared off before he is able to complete the deed.
Fearing that the person responsible for the attack is the same person who killed the two previous girls, Jennifer contacts the police. Heading the investigation of the death of the two girls is Commissioner Enci (Giampiero Albertini (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0016693/)), a grizzled stamp collector with a strange fascination with other peoples sex lives and his Inspector (Franco Agostini (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0013210/)), an aloof officer who performs most of the grunt work and has a love of sandwiches. They have set their sites squarely on Andrea as they find he has not been to forthcoming with how well he knew one of the victims and the simple fact that he owns the building the girls were killed in. But it wouldn't be complete without an entire cast of possible suspects, and with The Case of the Bloody Iris, they are here in spades. This building is chock full of eccentric characters, which include an old woman who reads crime comics and seems to guarding a secret, a reclusive musician who plays the violin at all hours of the night and his lesbian daughter (who stares at Jennifer and Marilyn like a starving man at a juicy T-bone). To make matters worse, Jennifer is also being stalked and harassed by her husband, who vows to never let any other man possess her.
Will the killer be stopped before he kills again? Will the Inspector ever get to finish his sandwich? Will Marilyn ever grow a brain? You find all of this out, and much more, in The Case of the Bloody Iris, also known by the cooler title, What Are Those Strange Drops Of Blood Doing On Jennifer's Body?
Regularly found at the top of many giallo lover's lists, Giuliano Carnimeo (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0002189/) (directing under the pseudonym, Anthony Ascott) delivers some trashy fun with his one-and-only giallo entry. One thing a viewer will notice is that Carnimeo's film has an extreme '70s vibe to it that also uses vibrant colors in the locations and the clothing worn by the models within the film. The title track by Bruno Nicolai (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0006214/) which is played throughout the film helps keeping this groove going and is almost impossible to get out of your head once you have heard it. Even thought this was his first film in the genre, Carnimeo, mostly known for his spaghetti westerns, is still able to deliver the goods and is able to navigate through some of the dialog in Ernesto Gastaldi (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0002759/)'s (Torso and The Whip and the Body) screenplay that includes such choice lines as when Barto informs Jennifer "Don't thank me just yet. Wait till I try to make it with you and you find out what a bastard I am". Luckily, Gastaldi and most of the cast are giallo veterans and aside from the director himself, no stranger to the genre or the people who watch it. The Case of the Bloody Iris relies more on sleaze than gore, but is packed to the gills with all the sex, violence, red herrings and kink you are looking for. They even manage to get in a bit of childhood trauma thrown in for good measure.
As usual, Edwige Fenech is absolutely beautiful and manages to change outfits in this film more than a dancer in a Vegas stage show. She may not be convincing as an English model, she handles the confused, helpless damsel in distress like a seasoned pro and has no problems removing her top. Quattrini is believable as the irreverent, ditsy roomate. The suspense scenes are done well, especially in the multitude of stalk scenes and the final act in the buildings boiler room, and Stelvio Massi (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005787/)'s cinematography uses the spacious environments to great effect. Although Carnimeo relies on the zoom shot way, way too much and some of the awkward dialog does help keep the film a bit on the unintentionally funny side, not helped by some of the English dubbing (the Mizar Harrington strip club scene in particular). But even with it's faults, The Case of the Bloody Iris is still an entertaining film to watch even if it never the levels of Bava or Argento and enough good stuff to recommend to fans of the genre.
Links
IMDB (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0069073/) | Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0000640SK/dreamindemo-20) | Soundtrack (http://www.soundtrackcollector.com/catalog/soundtrackdetail.php?movieid=22751)
Pictures
http://img150.imagevenue.com/loc1015/th_79706_2007-10-06_003513_122_1015lo.jpg (http://img150.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=79706_2007-10-06_003513_122_1015lo.jpg)http://img11.imagevenue.com/loc680/th_79711_2007-10-06_004727_122_680lo.jpg (http://img11.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=79711_2007-10-06_004727_122_680lo.jpg)http://img9.imagevenue.com/loc868/th_79716_2007-10-06_004833_122_868lo.jpg (http://img9.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=79716_2007-10-06_004833_122_868lo.jpg)http://img158.imagevenue.com/loc641/th_79724_2007-10-05_231957_122_641lo.jpg (http://img158.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=79724_2007-10-05_231957_122_641lo.jpg)
http://img43.imagevenue.com/loc924/th_79918_2007-10-05_232654_123_924lo.jpg (http://img43.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=79918_2007-10-05_232654_123_924lo.jpg)http://img166.imagevenue.com/loc783/th_79923_2007-10-05_234128_123_783lo.jpg (http://img166.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=79923_2007-10-05_234128_123_783lo.jpg)http://img40.imagevenue.com/loc652/th_79928_2007-10-05_233929_123_652lo.jpg (http://img40.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=79928_2007-10-05_233929_123_652lo.jpg)http://img126.imagevenue.com/loc856/th_79944_2007-10-05_234230_123_856lo.jpg (http://img126.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=79944_2007-10-05_234230_123_856lo.jpg)
http://img40.imagevenue.com/loc780/th_80071_2007-10-06_003323_122_780lo.jpg (http://img40.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=80071_2007-10-06_003323_122_780lo.jpg)http://img194.imagevenue.com/loc437/th_80082_2007-10-05_232802_122_437lo.jpg (http://img194.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=80082_2007-10-05_232802_122_437lo.jpg)http://img42.imagevenue.com/loc834/th_80087_2007-10-06_004405_122_834lo.jpg (http://img42.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=80087_2007-10-06_004405_122_834lo.jpg)http://img19.imagevenue.com/loc952/th_80093_2007-10-06_002255_122_952lo.jpg (http://img19.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=80093_2007-10-06_002255_122_952lo.jpg)
http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0000640SK.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg (http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0000640SK/dreamindemon-20)
The Case of the Bloody Iris
Directors: Giuliano Carnimeo
Writers:Ernesto Gastaldi
Actors: Edwige Fenech, George Hilton, Annabella Incontrera, Paola Quattrini, Giampiero Albertini
Jennifer (Edwige Fenech (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0271763/)) is a model who has been living a life with her husband within a sex cult that involves orgies and heroin. Finding the activities repulsive, she leaves that life behind, including her husband, and moves in with her best friend Marilyn (Paola Quattrini (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0703009/)), who is also a model. Meanwhile, Andrea Barto (George Hilton (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0385253/)), a constructor with a phobia of blood and owner of a series of apartment buildings, would like to do some vanguard advertising in order to sell some of his vacant units. Enlisting the help of a flaming cheesecake photographer, they decide to offer a model a room so they can sell more units, especially since a woman was just stabbed to death in the elevator of one of his buildings. The plan is simple; when people find out a gorgeous model resides in the building and likes to frequent the pool, people will scramble to get any of the remaining rooms. Andrea settles on Mizar Harrington (Carla Brait (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0104069/)), an African American model and stripper who works at a club doing an act that involves her wrestling with men in 3-minute intervals. If the man wins the match, he can have sex with her right there on the floor in front of the patrons. Unfortunately for Mizar as well as Andrea, she is murdered in her new apartment, found drowned in the bathtub at the hands of an unknown killer. Andrea's dilemma of a now empty apartment in a building marred by two deaths is solved when he offers the vacant apartment to Jennifer and Marilyn, an offer they accept. Everything is looking up for all involved, and Andrea and Jennifer have even seemed to taken a liking to each other. However, on the first night in their new pad, Jennifer is accosted by a masked intruder who tries to strangle her. Fortunately he is scared off before he is able to complete the deed.
Fearing that the person responsible for the attack is the same person who killed the two previous girls, Jennifer contacts the police. Heading the investigation of the death of the two girls is Commissioner Enci (Giampiero Albertini (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0016693/)), a grizzled stamp collector with a strange fascination with other peoples sex lives and his Inspector (Franco Agostini (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0013210/)), an aloof officer who performs most of the grunt work and has a love of sandwiches. They have set their sites squarely on Andrea as they find he has not been to forthcoming with how well he knew one of the victims and the simple fact that he owns the building the girls were killed in. But it wouldn't be complete without an entire cast of possible suspects, and with The Case of the Bloody Iris, they are here in spades. This building is chock full of eccentric characters, which include an old woman who reads crime comics and seems to guarding a secret, a reclusive musician who plays the violin at all hours of the night and his lesbian daughter (who stares at Jennifer and Marilyn like a starving man at a juicy T-bone). To make matters worse, Jennifer is also being stalked and harassed by her husband, who vows to never let any other man possess her.
Will the killer be stopped before he kills again? Will the Inspector ever get to finish his sandwich? Will Marilyn ever grow a brain? You find all of this out, and much more, in The Case of the Bloody Iris, also known by the cooler title, What Are Those Strange Drops Of Blood Doing On Jennifer's Body?
Regularly found at the top of many giallo lover's lists, Giuliano Carnimeo (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0002189/) (directing under the pseudonym, Anthony Ascott) delivers some trashy fun with his one-and-only giallo entry. One thing a viewer will notice is that Carnimeo's film has an extreme '70s vibe to it that also uses vibrant colors in the locations and the clothing worn by the models within the film. The title track by Bruno Nicolai (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0006214/) which is played throughout the film helps keeping this groove going and is almost impossible to get out of your head once you have heard it. Even thought this was his first film in the genre, Carnimeo, mostly known for his spaghetti westerns, is still able to deliver the goods and is able to navigate through some of the dialog in Ernesto Gastaldi (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0002759/)'s (Torso and The Whip and the Body) screenplay that includes such choice lines as when Barto informs Jennifer "Don't thank me just yet. Wait till I try to make it with you and you find out what a bastard I am". Luckily, Gastaldi and most of the cast are giallo veterans and aside from the director himself, no stranger to the genre or the people who watch it. The Case of the Bloody Iris relies more on sleaze than gore, but is packed to the gills with all the sex, violence, red herrings and kink you are looking for. They even manage to get in a bit of childhood trauma thrown in for good measure.
As usual, Edwige Fenech is absolutely beautiful and manages to change outfits in this film more than a dancer in a Vegas stage show. She may not be convincing as an English model, she handles the confused, helpless damsel in distress like a seasoned pro and has no problems removing her top. Quattrini is believable as the irreverent, ditsy roomate. The suspense scenes are done well, especially in the multitude of stalk scenes and the final act in the buildings boiler room, and Stelvio Massi (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005787/)'s cinematography uses the spacious environments to great effect. Although Carnimeo relies on the zoom shot way, way too much and some of the awkward dialog does help keep the film a bit on the unintentionally funny side, not helped by some of the English dubbing (the Mizar Harrington strip club scene in particular). But even with it's faults, The Case of the Bloody Iris is still an entertaining film to watch even if it never the levels of Bava or Argento and enough good stuff to recommend to fans of the genre.
Links
IMDB (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0069073/) | Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0000640SK/dreamindemo-20) | Soundtrack (http://www.soundtrackcollector.com/catalog/soundtrackdetail.php?movieid=22751)
Pictures
http://img150.imagevenue.com/loc1015/th_79706_2007-10-06_003513_122_1015lo.jpg (http://img150.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=79706_2007-10-06_003513_122_1015lo.jpg)http://img11.imagevenue.com/loc680/th_79711_2007-10-06_004727_122_680lo.jpg (http://img11.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=79711_2007-10-06_004727_122_680lo.jpg)http://img9.imagevenue.com/loc868/th_79716_2007-10-06_004833_122_868lo.jpg (http://img9.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=79716_2007-10-06_004833_122_868lo.jpg)http://img158.imagevenue.com/loc641/th_79724_2007-10-05_231957_122_641lo.jpg (http://img158.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=79724_2007-10-05_231957_122_641lo.jpg)
http://img43.imagevenue.com/loc924/th_79918_2007-10-05_232654_123_924lo.jpg (http://img43.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=79918_2007-10-05_232654_123_924lo.jpg)http://img166.imagevenue.com/loc783/th_79923_2007-10-05_234128_123_783lo.jpg (http://img166.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=79923_2007-10-05_234128_123_783lo.jpg)http://img40.imagevenue.com/loc652/th_79928_2007-10-05_233929_123_652lo.jpg (http://img40.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=79928_2007-10-05_233929_123_652lo.jpg)http://img126.imagevenue.com/loc856/th_79944_2007-10-05_234230_123_856lo.jpg (http://img126.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=79944_2007-10-05_234230_123_856lo.jpg)
http://img40.imagevenue.com/loc780/th_80071_2007-10-06_003323_122_780lo.jpg (http://img40.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=80071_2007-10-06_003323_122_780lo.jpg)http://img194.imagevenue.com/loc437/th_80082_2007-10-05_232802_122_437lo.jpg (http://img194.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=80082_2007-10-05_232802_122_437lo.jpg)http://img42.imagevenue.com/loc834/th_80087_2007-10-06_004405_122_834lo.jpg (http://img42.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=80087_2007-10-06_004405_122_834lo.jpg)http://img19.imagevenue.com/loc952/th_80093_2007-10-06_002255_122_952lo.jpg (http://img19.imagevenue.com/img.php?image=80093_2007-10-06_002255_122_952lo.jpg)