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A Blade In The Dark

Alternative Titles: La casa con la scala nel buio

Director: Lamberto Bava

Year: 1983

Starring: Andrea Occhipinti, Anny Papa, Fabiola Toledo, Michele Soavi

 

Context:

Released in 1983 A BLADE IN THE DARK would ultimately herald in, unknown to it at the time, the death of the Italian thriller as a commercial entity, with Argento's TENEBRAE and Fulci's NEW YORK RIPPER both released a year previously marking the pinnacle of the 80s giallo/thriller output.

 

It has been stated that this film was initially planned to be a TV mini-series but due to it's graphic nature was pulled from the schedule and released as a feature length instead however this is unconfirmed.

 

Several of the cast and crew would have multiple jobs on set including a young Michele Soavi who also acted as an assistant director, a role which he would graduate from and become a renowned director in his own right (STAGEFRIGHT, THE CHURCH, DELLAMORTE DELLAMORE).

 

Synopsis:

A killer stalks a composer staying at a posh Tuscany villa while writing the score to a horror film which has an incriminating clue to the killer's identity.

Review:

Kicking off with a bit of misdirection and violence we are soon led to believe that this is the work of our old friend, the psycho-sexual killer however this is just one of the many tropes that Lamberto Bava throws to the side as quickly as he picks up in a well shot film that is as high on tension as it is implausible character reactions.

 

No doubt Lamberto Bava must find it hard to be recognised on his own merits as everything seen or read about the man (and now this) can't help but mention him in relation to his father, the godfather of the giallo Mario Bava (THE GIRL WHO KNEW TOO MUCH, BLOOD AND BLACK LACE) but Lamberto is his own man and his early output, first MACABRE and then this, A BLADE IN THE DARK prove that he is no imitator but equally nor is he an idiot to have not learnt a few tricks from his father.

 

Although where Mario Bava would use light and colour to paint an almost dreamlike, surrealist picture, Lamberto uses the darkness and shadows to create tension and a feeling of anxiety with this is particularly suited to the minimal locations on offer in this film which utilise the little nooks and spaces in the villa to great effect.

 

The mystery itself is well constructed if a little straightforward in comparison to many other entries in the filone, but keeping in line with the then contemporary trends what this film lacked in convolution it more than makes up for in brutality such as the bathroom murder which would give TENEBRAE a run for its money. The film also builds on an idea frequently used by Argento, in regards to the protagonist being an artist, in this case like David Hemmings in DEEP RED, a pianist (musician). However while Argento never really linked the crime to the  audible art, Bava intricately links them as they seem inseparable and one feeds into the other with several further related elements liberally taken from Argento's use of audio also featured. Special praise also has to go to Guido and Maurizio De Angelis for a tremendous score which really does capture the essence of the film.

 

These points however are far from mere imitations hacked in but rather woven into the plot and it is the use of music, both in the film and to the viewer that helps distinguish this film from many of its contemporary peers.

 

Sadly for all the hard work that went into integrating the soundtrack and the movie-within-a-movie ideas into the plot, many elements fail to hit the mark. This is surprising considering the film is from genre icons and Lucio Fulci regulars Dardano Sacchetti (THE BEYOND, MANHATTAN BABY, NEW YORK RIPPER amongst many others) – who also went on to work with director Lamberto Bava on DEMONS and DEMONS 2– and Elisa Briganti (ZOMBIE FLESH EATERS, MANHATTAN BABY and more) and you get the feeling that things were a little rushed. With this theory being supported by a few of the cast stating the short time frame in which things were completed.  

 

Now I know what you are thinking - this is essentially a giallo, plot conveniences and inconsistencies are allowed for the greater good, and it is true that something may be lost in translation however in this case it would appear that the writers not only seem to add in some random scenes in order to drive the story along, for example a woman hiding in the closet and the cockroach/spider situation, but they seem to be trying too hard to shoehorn in as many aspersions of guilt for each character as possible and somehow they seemed to have missed what elements of the film (cinematography, limited location) were responsible for the actual generation of tension.

 

Meanwhile elements of this film play almost like a slasher, such as the (primarily) singular location (chosen for budgetary and practical purposes admittedly) and the seemingly condensed timeline of events, while even a few of the kills have a touch of the teen massacre/home invasion about them. Although coming so soon after the North American slasher boom this is not unexpected and no doubt these elements would have been commercially attractive.

 

There are obvious links to Hitchcock's PSYCHO as well as many of Argento's films but Bava's sophomore effort does more than enough to stand on its own and overall this film is fun, brutal and a little ridiculous and although essentially marking the end of the commercial Italian giallo (in terms of quality at least) it is a fine swansong to the genre. A BLADE IN THE DARK, along with TORSO and TENEBRAE is one of those films that provides the perfect transition for any slasher fans looking to get into the genre and should be picked up by fans both old and new.

 

Version Reviewed:

We watched the 2015 blu ray as released by 88 Films. The film itself looks fantastic on blu ray, really justifying the upgrade for those of you with this already on DVD thanks to a decent transfer making the film look the best it ever has on home release.  88 Films also provide both English and Italian language options and English subtitles.

 

Meanwhile the bonus features include an interview with cinematographer Gianlorenzo Battaglia in which he discusses how he became involved in the film, his friendship with director Lamberto Bava and also the challenges of shooting a feature film in three weeks. The stories are interesting and the eighteen minutes or so fly by. However it is the fifty minute archive Q&A with Lamberto Bava that really steals the show and despite sometimes things being lost in translation this is a very engaging feature where the charm and genuine nature of the director really come across as he discusses his career. Finally we are also treated with the Italian opening and closing credits but in reality these serve no purpose bar completion. Also credited as a bonus is collectible poster artcard but this is rather flimsy and adds nothing to the value proposition of the release.

 

 

Cosi Perversa
Cult, Horror and Transgressive Cinema

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