Siete muertes en los ojos del gato

This Gothic horror/Giallo hybrid doesn't seem to be all that well-regarded but, having read a couple of reviews before actually viewing it (I had by-passed the Blue Underground DVD because of the absence of the Italian-language track but managed to acquire the film regardless through other sources), I became quite intrigued by some of the bizarre elements incorporated into the script. To get back to the language factor for a bit: actually, the print on display was mostly in English (which, to be fair, is fitting – given the Scottish setting of the tale) but it reverted to Italian for four brief scenes which, presumably, were omitted from export versions.

Having watched the film for myself, I must say that I liked it quite a bit: Margheriti was perhaps the most erratic of the triumvirate of directors who gave the genre an identity in Italy (the others being, of course, Riccardo Freda and Mario Bava) – however, this turned out to be a pretty solid effort all round. For one thing, it's an absolute treat for the eyes – the Gothic atmosphere is really laid on thick here (when it comes to both interiors and exteriors), and the whole is accompanied by a moodily effective score from the ever-reliable Riz Ortolani. Peter Bryan wrote the novel on which the film was based: having himself contributed to a number of scripts for Hammer horror titles, it doesn't take much to visualize this as one of their own products – since that famed genre brand-name alternated between Gothic-styled fare and modern thrillers (usually with a similar attempt to prevent the heroine from laying her hands on a family inheritance at its center) – albeit with a more adult approach typical of the country and the era.

Margheriti managed to assemble a splendid international cast: British Jane Birkin as the lovely heroine Corringa (also the name of the source novel), American Hiram Keller (as the current and predictably mad lord), Germans Anton Diffring and Doris Kunstmann (as, respectively, the shady doctor and luscious teacher ostensibly employed for Keller's rehabilitation), French Serge Gainsbourg (Birkin's former husband and frequent collaborator, as the somewhat eccentric police inspector looking into the titular murders) and Italians Venantino Venantini (as the new parish priest) and Luciano Pigozzi (as the custodian of the castle grounds). Some of the more unusual plot points involve: Diffring being romantically involved with both Keller's mother and the French teacher (though the film's erotic quotient is disappointingly mild); Kunstmann is actually a bisexual and, at one point, attempts to seduce Birkin – unsurprisingly, this proved to be one of the 'deleted' scenes (though the fling is over before it has even begun!); Birkin and Keller, then, start off on the wrong foot but end up bonding – and, eventually, lovers (despite being first cousins)!

Gore is present via images of corpses being devoured by rats and a succession of throat-slashings, while the identity of the killer turns out to be quite a revelation. The narrative does, however, feature a couple of red herrings in the rather unconvincing element of vampirism (via a family legend which 'afflicts' Birkin's deceased mother – though, for good measure, the heroine herself runs into a clutch of bats while inspecting the castle dungeons) and the even more baffling presence of an ape in the house, with which very little is actually done after all! On the other hand, the titular furry feline is very cute and agreeably enigmatic – contriving somehow to be present at the scene of each and every murder, hence SEVEN DEATHS IN THE CAT'S EYE.

"Seven Deaths in the Cat's Eye" (1973) is a very unusual kind of giallo film, taking place as it does not in modern times, but rather in what appears to be the early 20th century. Is it a giallo or is it a Gothic murder mystery with a high body count? I suppose the answer must be "Who cares?" when a picture is as fun as this one. The film shows us what happens when the young, pretty Corringa (Jane Birkin) returns to her aunt's ancestral Scottish castle of Dragonstone after an extended absence; namely, a series of increasingly bizarre murders amongst the oddball inmates of the house. The picture combines some slightly graphic homicides (you know how many, and which household pet witnesses them, from the film's title, right?) with vampire lore, some hinted-at lesbianism, a maddened orangutan (who looks like a "Jungle Jim" gorilla), ravenous rats, bats, secret passageways, cemetery exploits, and incest to make one wild and heady melange. The film also features stylish direction by Antonio Margheriti, as well as gorgeous set decoration (the picture is very handsomely produced) that is shown to good advantage on this stunning-looking DVD from Blue Underground (although it's a shame that no subtitles option is offered). And how nice to see Anton Diffring, whose performance in 1960's "Circus of Horrors" so impressed me, here again playing another suave slimeball! As regards the potential viewer of "Seven Deaths in the Cat's Eye" and his or her ability to guess the identity of the killer, my advice would be to not even try. Just emulate the titular tabby, sit back and enjoy the show!

Like any decent Italian director of good old times, Antonio Margheriti made movies of every genre imaginable: war movies, horror movies, crime/giallo movies, sword and sandal movies (Ursus!), spy and sci-fi movies, Spaghetti westerns. Surprisingly, I realized these days that I do know mostly his works he did under his pseudonym Anthony M. Dawson. As Mr. Dawson he directed some fine cheesy action pieces and pleasures of my youth like Commando Leopard, The Commander and Code Name: Wild Geese, and a fine B-movie Spaghetti western starring Lee Van Cleef - Take a Hard Ride.

With La morte negli occhi del gatto aka Seven Deaths in the Cat's Eyes Mr. Margheriti put his feet on the ground of Gothic horror and giallo movies - one could dare to say that the movie is mostly a mix of both genres. The strongest feature of Seven Deaths in the Cat's Eyes are for sure the visuals - the setting is a fine looking Gothic castle/manor, housing a greedy and half-mad plotting family, on top we get Jane Birkin shining in all her beauty. What else? The cast works solid, here and there we get a shot of erotic quality and a little murdering business is done too. Sounds not too bad? Sadly, the movie does not reach its full potential, and I guess mostly to blame is the timing/composition of the story unfolding: somehow the movie never gets in full steam mode and just bobs along. Some detours fragment the plot without adding any good, not sculpted to the point, so to say. In short: the story can't keep up with the visual qualities and acting of the cast and is without doubt the weakest link in the chain. With the same production and cast but with a better composed script this could have been a fine movie, maybe even a classic. Final verdict: all in all not too bad, but for sure no must-watch. The best I can say about Seven Deaths in the Cat's Eyes is that it got eye-candy quality and provides some nostalgia - so if you are in the mood or need for some Gothic vibes you may give this one a try.

This a strange movie. It was directed by Anthony Margheretti who specialized in Italian Gothic horror films, but it was made at the height of "yellow (giallo) fever" in the early 1970's. As a result it is kind of a strange cross between a 60's Gothic horror movie and a 70's giallo. It is set in a 19th century Scottish castle rather than in a more modern-day Rome fashion house,for instance, but it has both a number and an animal in the title(the calling card of a giallo) and it features a series of nasty murders right from the opening credits when a man is butchered and his body fed to rats in the cellar. It also has an ape wandering around through secret passages in the castle, which doesn't fit either the giallo or the Gothic horror genre but might be some kind of homage to Edgar Allen Poe's "Murders in Rue Morgue". The story starts off when a young woman (Jane Birkin) returns home to her family's castle and is reunited with her neurotic mother, lecherous uncle, and angry young cousin (who owns the ape), and before long people start dying left and right. Oh yeah, there's also a cat wandering around who witnesses (some of) the murders, thus the title.

This was OK I guess, but I had a few problems with it. First, off they pretty much wasted the ape. If you're going to have an ape in your movie (or a man in an ape suit anyway) you should do more with him. Second, this is the only movie I've ever personally seen Jane Birkin in where she does NOT take her clothes off. As this made the movie significantly more boring I had a lot of time to ponder why this was and it finally occurred to me that she might have been pregnant with her daughter, the equally sexy actress Charlotte Gainsbourg, at the time. (And speaking of Gainsbourg, Serg Gainsbourg also has a cameo in this movie as a dubbed Scottish detective).

Finally, I was disappointed with the titular cat a little bit. It was kind of fluffy white cat like the one Blofeld is always stroking in James Bond movies. They should have used a more sinister black cat like the one named "Satan" that appeared in two gialli the previous year ("Gently Before She Dies" and "Crimes of the Black Cat"), but maybe he'd gone to kitty heaven or just refused to travel to Scotland (at least it wasn't a guy in a cat suit). Anyway, it seemed like they kind of forgot about the cat anyway towards the end. This was an alright movie, but it could have been better.

"La morte..." has all the ingredients of a horror movie, but isn't one. It tells the story of Corringa (Jane Birkin) who arrives at a castle to meet her relatives. Soon after, several people are murdered, and the only witness is a cat - who unfortunately cannot tell anything, but is mentioned in the movie title, anyway ;-). Tales about vampires are told, candles are flickering, Corringa has strange nightmares, while rats discover another corpse in the dark cellar - you get the picture, it's as gothic as gothic can be. Director Margheriti ("E Dio disse a Caino") and cinematographer Carlini ("Ercole alla conquista di Atlantide") shared the same stylistic obsession, it seems. The castle is full of scary details, and they put it to the best use. One direct quote from "Once Upon A Time In the West", unexpectedly, with Hiram Keller and Jane Birkin replaying Henry Fonda and Claudia Cardinale, try if you can discover it. This little-known movie was a pleasant surprise for me, as I have watched a couple of really bad movies from the same director (but good ones, too). "La morte..." has atmosphere, tension, baroque visuals. It's got a lot more in common with Hammer Draculas than the usual 70s Italian slasher flicks.