Il diavolo a sette facce

This film was one of two videos featuring Carroll Baker that I found in a resale shop in Portland, Oregon. The reason I say this is that they both seem to be specialty videos dubbed from international sources and initially sold on a "request only" basis. Being a fan of La Baker, I was anxious to try both. This movie was lensed by a director primarily known for peplum and spaghetti westerns, but manages a nice steady clip and passable performances from the international cast. The plot involves Baker and her "twin sister" with international jewel thieves and a missing diamond. It appears that the criminal element believes Baker is her sister, involved with the potentate whose gem was stolen. Baker approaches solicitor Stephen Boyd and sidekick George Hilton for protection. Those with even a cursory knowledge of Italian gialli know that "all-is-not-what-it-seems" and perhaps knowing this will dilute some of the surprises.

The music is gloriously overblown Morricone-esque lounge, and Baker's blue wig worn at seaside is worth the price of viewing. If you can find this film, I recommend viewing for the sheer brilliance of having an action pursuit taking place in and around a windmill! The setting has been used before and since (most memorably in Black Windmill), but creates a nice frisson not usually associated with Italian thrillers.

"The Devil has Seven Faces" isn't a giallo, but admittedly it looks and sounds more like a giallo than most genuine gialli do. Now that was a weird sentence! Allow me to elaborate. The enticing title, the starring of George Hilton and Carroll Baker and the Stelvio Cipriani musical score have got written "GIALLO" all over it. Without even knowing what the plot is about, these elements are enough to convince all avid fans of Italian cult cinema that we're dealing with a bona fide giallo here. The plot, however, is that of a crime-thriller/mystery movie. There are no heavily breathing perverts with black gloves massacring scantily dressed fashion models here. Instead, "The Devil has Seven Faces" is an overly convoluted diamond heist thriller full of double-crossing and untrustworthy characters. Beautiful businesswoman Julie Harrison's life gets turned upside down when she suddenly receives threats, harassments and unwelcome visitors. It seems like her twin sister Mary stole a valuable diamond in London and vanished. Now the fellow jewel thieves that her sister double-crossed are mistaken Julie for Mary and terrorize her. She seeks help with a befriended lawyer Dave Barton and his hunky friend Tony Shane. Even though the men do everything to protect her, Julie's life is increasing danger. "The Devil has Seven Faces" is a fairly adequate Italian thriller, but like so often the case with these films, the screenplay tries to be overly clever and misleading, resulting in one too many convoluted plot twists. The film is also too talkative, especially during the first hour, and contains only a handful memorable moments of action, including a shoddy car chase and a tense confrontation inside a windmill. Speaking of windmills, for some reason the majority of the film (or at least all the exterior sequences) are shot in The Netherlands. I have no idea what the added value of that was, because it's weird to see all the road signs and newspaper clippings in Dutch. There are quite a number of shootouts and suggestive killings, but this definitely isn't a gory film. It's not even at all sleazy even though the cover image illustrates Carroll Baker in lingerie. Cipiriani's music is sensual and very lounge-like as usual.

This is one of those "slick" Italian movies where the world is populated with easy-to-bed don't ever wed women, well-heeled "where is my next lay"? wheeler-dealer men who are all connected to each other trying to pull off the big "heist", a dialogue that is fleshed out with the serving of drinks and the lighting of cigarettes, cinematography that looks like it was captured from an assortment from the airport post-card stand and music that is meant for the tourists.

The acting is uninspired, the action scenes do keep your interest and the scene at the windmill is a hoot since all of the nefarious parties become conglomerated like a row of pins that get knocked over in succession. Then? Ta-taaaaa...the police arrive to tell the still non-sleeping members of the audience that they knew what was going on all the time. As usual.

What is an endless fascination to me is these movies are usually starring some actors who had at one time some momentum in their careers but then fell flat. Two of these such performers are Caroll Baker in The Carpetbaggers & Stephen Boyd as the baddie in The Ten Commandments who tried to slice Chuck Heston's chariot in the Coliseum. Stephen Boyd went on to bigger and better things but never made it big on a consistent basis but his career lasted much longer that Baker's, who had a kind of unbuxsome Mae West/Jean Harlowe kind of thing going on.

This film is for the videohounds only, since you never know what you are going to find.

F.Y.I Never select an old movie title with two recognizable actors in it on the basis of the title since it RARELY has a connection with the film but is usually a loose translation of the original title name that is stylized to entice the American audience!

It could perhaps be argued that "The Devil With Seven Faces" shouldn't even be categorized as a giallo, but even though the gore is largely missing (most of the killings are simple shootings), many of the other typical characteristics of the genre are here: the colorful title, the convoluted, twisty and often nonsensical plot (one bit with an apparently dead old lady whose body disappears makes no sense at all!), the music, the European locations, the general "feel", and George Hilton as a charming/shady character. Carroll Baker is several cuts above the average giallo heroine (and boy does she have GREAT LEGS), but on the whole this film is merely passable. Still, those who enjoy the genre and have learned to accept its flaws should probably check this one out. (**)

Mary and Julie Harrison (both played by Carroll Baker) are in trouble with knife-wielding thugs. Julie turns to attorney Dave Barton and his detective friend Tony. A love triangle develops while the body count begins to rise.

The film was written by Tito Carpi (who also wrote Ruggero Deodato's "Last Cannibal World") and directed by Osvaldo Civirani. The film is Italian, filmed and set in the Netherlands, and dubbed by British actors. There is a lot of sexual nonsense going on, with Barton openly trying to get with Julie and a secretary with a boyfriend simultaneously. And succeeding wonderfully.

Luca Palmerini says the film "is rather short on thrills and lacking in action." Which, I suppose, is pretty accurate. I can say, though, the product placement is well done, with prominently displayed PEER brand cigarettes (made in Germany, but also available in the Netherlands).

The Alpha Video DVD is decent for a bare bones disc (all it has are some interesting and humorous exploitation trailers). Its biggest flaw is crediting Carroll Baker as "Carol", Dave Barton as "Steve" and titling the film "The Devil has 7 Faces" rather than "The Devil with 7 Faces", contrary to the opening credits.