Un papillon aux ailes ensanglantées

I only heard about this giallo recently, but it's undoubtedly one of the best examples of the subgenre that I've watched. Besides, from the little I've checked out of Tessari's work so far (incidentally, I've just recorded his Spaghetti Western A PISTOL FOR RINGO [1965] - which I'll catch up with soon enough), it's easily his most significant effort; I should also be getting to PUZZLE (1974), another giallo of his, in the near future.

THE BLOODSTAINED BUTTERFLY (as ever, the title is only peripheral to the main narrative) - which opens with an identification of all the major characters - is especially notable for its complex editing structure, with details of plot related throughout in abrupt flashes (as either part of a lengthy trial sequence, which occupies the majority of its first half, or during troubled lead Helmut Berger's regular fits, which remain unexplained till the finale). While characterization is somewhat aloof (with no real female counterpart to Berger, despite a fair number of women in the cast), the principal actors are well chosen and also include such familiar Euro-Cult faces as Carole Andre' (playing a murdered victim), Evelyn Stewart (the wife of the suspected killer), Silvano Tranquilli (the police detective assigned to the case) and Wolfgang Preiss (the prosecuting attorney).

The narrative is a bit on the seamy side - encompassing (if ever so discreetly) rape, infidelity, paedophelia, pornography, prostitution, etc. - but welcome comedy relief is provided by the interaction between the flustered Tranquilli and his long-suffering junior partner. Unlike many films of its ilk, the audience is kept guessing as to the identity of the villain up to the violent climax (resulting in a curt but satisfyingly bleak ending) and, just as thankfully, the script dispenses with the idea (popularized by Alfred Hitchcock's PSYCHO [1960]) of presenting a forced last-minute explanation - wherein a psychiatrist is appointed to dig into the killer's past, in order to extract some lame motive for his misdeeds. Typically, however, the eclectic score (courtesy of Gianni Ferrio) is masterful - especially in the way a Tchaikovsky symphony is seamlessly woven into the soundtrack!

The film is available on a bare-bones DVD from both Italy and Spain - but it more than merits a decent release in R1 through, say, Blue Underground (given their predilection for such "Euro-Cult" offerings)...

A girl is murdered in a park. A suspect is tried and convicted but the killings continue.

The Bloodstained Butterfly is a giallo that occupies the more restrained side of the genre. Despite having a plot revolving around a series of knife murders, it doesn't really focus on these killings. One is shown briefly in flash-back, while the others are essentially committed off-screen. Instead, the narrative concentrates more on the mystery. For this reason it is on the more sober and intelligent side of the giallo genre. Quite a bit of the story is taken up with the police procedural angle and court-room scenes. And similar to many others in the sub-genre, an intense melodrama underpins the murder mystery; and, as is often the case, it's populated by a group of quite unsympathetic people. These are made up with the usual concoction of the psychologically troubled and the sleazily untrustworthy.

While the emphasis on melodrama and detective/courtroom dynamics might not be to everyone's taste, it works here. The mystery is compelling and you are kept guessing all the way. I can't say I predicted the outcome either, which is always a bonus. But in amongst all of this are some great typical giallo moments such as the opening scenes in the park with the killer making a get away shot from a number of nice angles. In general, as you might expect from this type of film it is photographed well throughout and has a good soundtrack too. It also has a somewhat unusual opening credit sequence where we are introduced to all of the main characters where they are shown with their moniker displayed on screen. This is quite good, as these films almost always have convoluted plot-lines and this helps ease us into proceedings with a quick look at whose who in the film about to start.

The Bloodstained Butterfly is overall a pretty involving mystery. It isn't a horror-orientated thriller at all though, so if that's what you're after you'd be best looking elsewhere. But it has the specific mood and essence that early 70's gialli have. If you're a fan of the sub-genre you should check this one out.

A young woman is stabbed to death in a park, and the killer gets away. Soon, a suspect is apprehended and, after a lengthy trial, imprisoned for the crime.

However, the case is hardly open-and-shut, as we are introduced to characters with mixed motives, and made privy to certain facts that toss everything into confusion! Then, another murder is committed in a similar fashion, and someone begins taunting the police. This isn't the last homicide, either!

THE BLOODSTAINED BUTTERFLY is an excellent giallo, packed with suspense, mystery, red herrings, some unexpected twists, and a unique denouement!

Co-stars Helmut Berger as Giorgio, the rather strange son of a millionaire...

I love that in the seventies, you could pull up to a petrol station get out next to the pumps, try and light up a cigarette, find out the packet is empty, throw the empty packet on the ground, then go and pick up a hooker.

This seems to be a blend of the old school gialli (rich, soulless socialites double crossing each other) and the new gialli (gloved killer, stabbing) that has a middle part that centres around a murder prosecution. You might need a little patience.

After we're introduced to our characters with their names appearing onscreen beside them, we see a girl's corpse tumbling down a hill in a park and being found by two kids. Several witnesses spot a person in a mac stumbling through the park, with one lady claiming that the killer is a well known television personality whose daughter coincidentally it the murdered girl's best friend. However, a dazed Helmet Berger is seen staggering around the place too, so we know that things are going to get convoluted pretty quickly.

Cop Silvio Tranquilli is brought in to...well, not break these case as they get a suspect pretty quickly, but he does complain about coffee a lot. Plus, this whole sequence gives director Duccio Tessari a chance to give us all sorts of freaky camera angles while the police use scientific methods that seems to quickly lead to a healthy case to send down the TV presenter.

However, the suspect also has a pretty good lawyer who may very well get him off the hook. Well, nearly. After the presenter's wife (Ida Galli) accidentally gets the guy sent down, things get very giallo like as true motives are revealed, the double crosses begin, and the murders seemingly continue, even though the killer is in jail.

To give you an idea of the pace of this film, the police are still standing over the first victim's body eighteen minutes into the film. Then you get the courtroom drama and the mystery of what Helmet Berger has to do with it all. Duccio Tessari is no fool, however. His eye for good visuals shines through and we get a change of scenery as the film is set in Bologna, not a place that turns up frequently in these films.

It does drag, but the ending is worth waiting for. I'd been after this one for ages and although it's good, I don't think I'd ever watch it again.

One of the best gialli to come out of Italy in the 1969-77 period, it's very stylish and (of course) convoluted, but always interesting and ultimately quite clever. For once the solution to the mystery actually matters (and makes sense!), and the motive behind the murders and the finale are worthy of Agatha Christie. I highly recommend it. Great soundtrack too, I just bought the CD.