Sentences de mort

And I do mean EVERYTHING else.

A great looking film in all aspects.

Brilliant camera work. Excellent use of color. The cinematography and art direction were Oscar worthy and everybody in it looked great. The majority of them proving it by getting naked.

Beautiful models get bumped off by a killer whose face becomes a giant eye before the kill. The sudden rush of colors signifies that a murder is coming. Said models work for a magazine that our heroine (A former model herself) runs.

Of course now she thinks she's the final target. Is she? If you can find this gem, see it.

I found this in a used video box in Tokyo and was sucked in but the cover art. Seeing Bava's name helped too.

It's a bit dated now, it reminds one of an 80's music video at times. But the mystery element is great and never lets up.

This is such great trash. As a straight woman, I was insanely distracted by Serena Grandi's breasts throughout. I really don't know how she walks, let alone runs, with those things. I hope her back is ok. There were times when I was more concerned that she'd topple over and hit her head on a coffee table than get stabbed by the psycho killer who was after her.

It's fairly typical giallo stuff and feels a little like a less psychic Eyes of Laura Mars with a well off magazine editor finding out that her models are being killed off one by one. But this one comes with 100% more Daria Nicolodi, which is never a bad thing even if she gets nothing to do.

There's a suspenseful sequence in a department store, a wacky killer monologue/motivation, and some really surreal murder sequences where we see them through the killer's P.O.V. where he or she sees the victims as different kinds of strange insects or giant eyeballs. If someone can figure out what the creators were smoking or shooting up when they thought of this, I'd like some, please.

This is a better than average Giallo and is packed with solid actors. There are scenes that you will remember from this one. George Eastman has a small part in this so don't go in expecting a large amount of him in this one. If you are a fan of this style of film or even just a fan of Serena Grandi you must see this film. George Eastman and Serena Grandi get along way better in this film than in Grim Reaper. ;-)The killer is plagued with delusions and these are worth seeing. There is a nightmarish feel too the film. The pacing is very well done. Look for one of the lead actors of Demons to have a prominent part in this film. Lamberto Bava did a great job with this one. See the Shriek Show DVD version of this one.

Delirium (1987)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Gloria (Serena Grandi) is a former model who struck gold making a magazine called Pussycat but it seems a secret admirer is about to cross the line. Pretty soon obnoxious phone calls are turning into someone murdering off the models that are working for Gloria.

Lamberto Bava was trying to not only make a film that looked and seemed like the work of his father but there's no question that there's a touch of Dario Argento as well. DELIRIUM isn't a completely successful movie but at the same time there are enough interesting and bloody murders mixed in with the sexploitation feel to where fans of the genre will find it to be worth a watch.

The film seems to not know if it wanted to be a naughty nude film or a giallo so we basically just get the best of both worlds. The film's plot certainly isn't the greatest or the most original but it's basically just here to show beautiful women being murdered and of course getting naked before hand. As a giallo it works to a point as the violence is certainly there as well as the actors and actresses ability to spit out blood as they are being wounded.

The film offers up a lot of nudity from the various women and that includes the lead Grandi. She's actually pretty good in the film has she's constantly showing off her body and in a rather hilarious way she does so at the end with the killer's request. You've also got George Eastman and Daria Nicolodi appearing in brief bits. Bava's direction is fine for this type of picture and he offers up some nice cinemaotgprahy and lighting.

DELIRIUM certainly isn't a masterpiece or even a good film but it's sleazy enough to where fans of the genre should enjoy it.

Lamberto Bava may not be as great as his father; master director Mario Bava, but you can always count on a good time when it comes to his movies - and while Delirium is certainly no masterpiece; Giallo fans will be satisfied with this sleazy story of murder and naked women! Italy's answer to Dolly Parton, Serena Grandi, stars as Gioia (the Italian answer to 'Gloria'), the owner of a porn magazine known as 'Pussycat'. The porn industry attracts a lot of attention for it's stars, and Pussycat magazine is no exception. One of Gloria's admirers is a wheelchair bound young man who spies on here from the sanctity of bedroom, and another 'admirer' is someone a little more psycho - someone that likes to kill Gloria's models, and then send her pictures of their mutilated corpses in front of a six foot picture of herself! Obviously, this leads our leading lady to assume that she's the next victim; as more and more of her models are killed, who could be the killer?

And what could possibly be their reason for slicing up such fine looking ladies? Lamberto Bava seems to know what audiences like - and this is shown by the way that Grandi's breasts are shown often. I have no problem with this; and I doubt anyone else with a will to see this film will either. The Giallo is a sub-genre soaked in sleaze, and Bava does a good job of implementing that style into this film by way of lots of nudity, and some graphic murders. The murders are a big part of any Giallo - and this one features the likes of murder by pitchfork, and the (apparently) famous bee murder scene! Really, the murders aren't the best ever seen in a Giallo; but they do the job. The acting is typically trashy, and it's always obvious how Serena Grandi won her role (clue: it wasn't acting talent). The cast is made up of unknowns (Giallo standard), with the exception of Daria Nicoladi. Dario Argento's frequent collaborator lights up the support cast, and gives the film an extra little bit of cult class. Lamberto Bava's films are often rated poorly by critics (both professional and amateur), but as usual; Delirium isn't all that bad. No masterpiece; but well worth seeing for the Giallo fan.