La Trancheuse Infernale

I was just amazed when I finished watching this Italian thriller. Inspired in quite a few American and European movies of this kind, it gets you intrigued from the start till the end. Strange events, mysterious characters, (including the main one who is an amnesic man who doesn´t know who he is or why someone is trying to kill him), the right rhythm and really thrilling moments make this movie one of the best Italian thrillers I´ve ever seen. Absolutely recommended.

Puzzle aka Man without memory aka Uomo senza memoria, L' (1974)

Eight months after a near fatal car crash in London, Peter Smith (Luc Merenda)is still unsure of his real id, the only clue he has is the car was rented to someone by that name, the name he now goes under. His doctors say that through his sub conscious he is deliberately hiding his past, out of fear. He is introduced to a man, Philip, who claims his real name is in fact Ted and who claims that he, Ted/Peter is a conman, Ted/Peter can neither corroborate or deny the accusations, one thing for sure though is the man has a grudge against him, they go to Peter's apartment to discuss matters but Philip is shot and killed by an assailant with a rifle on the building opposite, Peter then receives a telegram which claims to be from his wife who lives in Portofino, Italy, and after hiding the body flees the scene.

Sara his wife (Senta Berger) has put her missing husband behind her now and has moved on to a new friendship with Daniel Reinhardt (Umberto Orsini), the local swimming coach , she has also befriended one of his pupils, Luca, a keen swimmer and amateur photographer who has a bit of a crush on her. On the eve of her husband's arrival she is attacked and drugged in her own home by an unseen assailant but the motive is unclear as nothing was taken, the police are baffled. On his arrival Peter is unable to recognize his estranged wife and is prompted by a red haired stranger as to her identity. Sara regails their past to an inquisitive Ted, she tells of their whirlwind relationship, and the fact that she never really knew what business he was in, just that it was secret work that may have involved antiques. "Who am I ? He pleads…"a dirty rotten bastard " she replies and every one seems to agree!. Ted/Peter is shocked to find out that Sara had not in fact sent the telegram, Ted tells her they may be in danger and that the killer has arranged it that way, but what is his motive? Puzzle shies away from the usual clichés of the genre and in so doing it turns out to be a rather slow and plodding affair, who the killer is? is always an important part of any Giallo and there are many suspects in the film, is Sara somehow involved?..is she really his wife…is he really Ted?…could it be the red haired stranger who introduces himself as George (Bruno Corazzari) who claims to have saved his life, could it be Daniel, the friend of Sara or perhaps the mysterious blonde Mary (an underused Anita Strindberg) or could it even be the helpful policeman?…well to anyone with a knowledge of Gialli, it will be pretty obvious. Puzzle isn't bad in any way, it just doesn't excel or excite, the way a Giallo should, the second half of the film is better when the pace builds but if feels more like your regular crime film as opposed to that of a Giallo, the performances of the three main leads are all good but there is a distinct lack of great set pieces but the best kill is saved until the end when the real killer is revealed. The film does however seem to foreshadow scenes from both TCM(1974) and The Shining(1980). Not essential Giallo by any means but an enjoyable way to pass 90 mins.

This little seen thriller is a solid entry into the giallo canon that was directed by Duccio Tessari (who did the equally good "The Bloodstained Butterfly") and written by Ernesto Gastaldi (who is the iconic writer of the giallo genre).

The narrative features an interesting narrative hook (a man can't remember who he is and now thugs are after him for something he hid... and he doesn't know where it is, let alone *what* it is). Unfortunately, the film doesn't utilize its intriguing plot premise to the fullest, with essentially the amnesia element pushed aside for most of the movie, and instead relies on more conventional means of telling the story. Fortunately, the writer manages to more successfully integrate the amnesia element towards the end which allow for a few plot twists, but not to the degree it could have achieved.

The direction is fine but nothing exemplary, and the performances are all solid but not particularly memorable. In other words, everything is competent and efficient, but it doesn't really standout from the majority of thrillers that saturate our viewing repertoire.

However, it certainly is an above average example of the giallo genre, with narrative that is better than most gialli and even has a terrific climax, but it's also certainly not a classic film in any respect.

Highly recommended for giallo fans, a solid recommendation to thriller aficionados, but others may wish to simply view a better example of the genre, such as "Deep Red".

Also, the film references Stanley Donan's film "Charade", see if you can catch it...

Luc Merenda plays Pete, a guy in London who has no memory following a car crash eight months previous. In fact, although his driving license says Peter, he might actually be called Ted. At least that's what the guy who tries to kill him calls him, before he himself is killed by a mystery assassin. It's around this time that Pete/Ted receives a telegram telling him to get ass over to Italy, where his wife is waiting for him. Problem being is that Ted didn't even know he was married.

Still, he heads over there anyway, and luckily enough a mysterious guy with a runny nose points out his wife at the train station. Now Sara's got problems of her own, seeing as she'd written off Ted's disappearance and now gotten a job as a swimming instructor at a local school, hooking up with new guy Reinhart (Orisini). Sara actually finds this new Ted a lot more pleasing than the old one, and starts falling in love with him all over, much to the dismay of Reinhart.

Runny nose guy turns out to be George, a very aggressive man who claims that Ted owes him something, and that he needs it before 'they' kill him, and if doesn't get it, he's going to kill Ted, but Sara first. Ted around this time also starts getting flashes of the past, and that turns out not to be good news, as his first recalled memory is seeing a man getting his throat cut by a mystery figure. To make things worse, George also starts on Sara, but when someone slashes her dog's throat, he's adamant that it wasn't him.

The first thing you'll notice is the complete absence of the black gloved killer in this giallo, but all the mysterious plot elements are there for the viewer to figure out. Is Ted suffering from amnesia or is he pretending? If he's not pretending, how can he trust anything that's going on, or anyone he meets? And what exactly is it that George is after?

This film, while not action packed, has a lot going for it. Starting with the great cinematography and use of colour (as usual for a giallo), the predominant colour here is blue, which appears in many shades and forms. Better still is Bruno Corazzari having a much larger role than usual. He always plays sinister types, but here he's given the space to branch out and his presence hangs over much of the film. His best scene is when he corners Sara, who is recovering with a broken leg, and just stands throwing lit match over lit match at her. Not life threatening, but a tense scene indeed. Umberto Orisini also has a bigger role than usual and has a very natural acting style I notice, that serves him well throughout the film. Luc Merenda of course is all eyebrows and glowering, and still comes across like a really thin Arnie.

There's a lack of blood and gore in this one that pays off in a later scene involving a chainsaw. One thing I did notice was that when one character falls to their death, the dummy's head falls off. Strange gaff from Tessari, whose composition and execution are usually flawless.

Luc Merenda has amnesia. He woke up from an auto accident about a year ago and has been unable to remember anything about his life. He had identification on him, but nothing can be found about his past. His psychiatrist introduces him to someone who claims to know him, but he immediately attacks Merenda demanding to know where the stuff is. Someone shoots and kills him through Merenda's window.

Merenda learned a bit from the guy. He learned that his name is actually "Ted Walden" and that he has a wife waiting for him in Italy. When someone sends him info about his wife and a train ticket, he goes to see her.

His wife is Senta Berger. She's assumed for the last year that Merenda ran out on her. She learns of his imminent arrival, but someone breaks into her house ... but doesn't take anything. When Merenda arrives, he's confronted by Bruno Corazzari who claims they are friends and partners in a shady deal that was to net them $1 million. The problem is that Merenda has the goods, and if he doesn't start remembering, the big boss will come after all of them.

After this fairly compelling setup, this film settles into a long rut before livening up for a delightfully absurd climax involving Chekhov's chainsaw and a villain undone when the rug is literally pulled out from under him. I think anyone watching this will know who the main villain is long before the film bothers to tell you, but it's a mildly entertaining diversion. It's pretty tame for a giallo, especially one this late in the cycle, but Duccio Tessari delivers this one just fine.

Anita Strindberg has a tiny, but fairly significant role.