Los crímenes de Petiot

Even when he was not wearing his familiar "Hombre Lobo" make-up, Paul Naschy was an omnipresent and versatile leading man of Spanish-made horror and exploitation. He appeared in movies about the inquisition, stories dealing with satanic rites, he depicted the devil himself, and starred as a hideous hunchback as well as a hunky womanizer in multiple Gialli. In short, Naschy was a genre monument and I strongly recommend everyone to seek out the documentary "The Man who Saw Frankenstein Cry" about his life and work.

This review ironically covers one of the weaker films in Naschy's extended oeuvre. Or better said, I personally consider it one of his weaker efforts. "The Crimes of Petiot" is extremely obscure, and perhaps righteously so because the story, the horror aspects, and the plot-twists are quite disappointing. Oh, and the soundtrack saddled me up with a terrible headache since it primarily exists of monotonous and mind-penetrating noises.

The name in the title refers to the notorious French serial murderer Marcel Petiot, who was a deeply deranged doctor and politician during World War II. The plot of the film doesn't have anything to do with the real crimes of Petiot, though, and - in fact - takes place more than 20 years after the war, and in Berlin. There are Giallo-trademarks, like for example a black-gloved killer who's stalking his/her victims in a park at night, but his/her modus operandi is very anti-giallo because they are shot with a Luger pistol rather than stabbed, strangled, or sexually molested. Naschy stars as the fiancé of a newspaper journalist who wants to set an ambush for the killer together with a colleague of hers who's also one of the prime suspects. Positive points for the use of settings, which are eerie tunnel networks under the park, and - like another reviewer already mentioned - the police detectives on the case aren't dumb for once. Negative points for the dull and predictable end-twist, the uninspired kills, and the misleading title.

The killer in this one dispenses with the knife but keeps the standard issue black hat/mask/raincoat combo to gun down couples in Berlin, killing the man on the spot and taking the woman off to be murdered while a tape recording condemns a woman named Magdelene. The police are baffled but have identified the area where the serial killer operates - a snow blown park in Berlin.

Paul Naschy plays a businessman drawn into the case via his nosey journalist wife, who, with the help of her journo-friends Heinrich and Conrad, thinks that she can bring down the killer without the help of the police. Of course, this doesn't work out for anyone as the killer then makes off with her female colleague, and to make matters worse sends a threat to everyone involved, saying he's going to kill the lot of them one by one.

There's not much by way of violence, gore, or nudity in the his one but it's got a fast pace to it, and quickly makes clear that the killer is either Heinrich, Conrad or Paul, with suspicion drifting between all three of them. The killer certainly works his way through the people of Berlin to keep your interest, and the last half hour is more of a lengthy chase scene with an even lengthier flashback thrown in for good measure.

The film keeps you guessing throughout and it must be mentioned that the police are more competent than usual for this type of film. One thing I noticed was a fairly bizarre shot of Paul, Heinrich, and someone else standing on an escalator that went on forever for no reason whatsoever.

This is a fairly rare giallo that I watched in a subtitled version with horrendous audio. I found it zipped by quickly, as most Naschy films do, and was entertaining, as most Naschy films are.

Some Nazi killings during World War II seem connected to a string of present-day murders committed by masked assassin clad in black.Are they based on revenge or is there another motive?Both civilians and police try to solve the mystery.Marcel Petiot was a French doctor and medical serial killer convicted of multiple murders after the discovery of the remains of 26 people in his home in Paris after World War II.He is suspected of killing more than 60 victims during his life."The Crimes of Petiot" is very loosely based on his story.This rare giallo with Paul Naschy is suitably bloodless.The masked killer dressed in black murders his victims with pistol Luger.The snowy setting is pretty atmospheric as is the score.6 out of 10.

The engrossingly dark-hearted 'Los crímenes de Petiot' has a delectably deviant plot featuring a Luger-wielding, black-masked maniac meticulously murdering trysting couples in a rather oblique, twist-headed fashion, leaving obscure clues that make for a singularly confounding case. Naschy's gloomy, frost-bitten 70s serial killer chiller plays out excitingly like a vintage Edgar Wallace Krimi. Wintry Munich provides a suitably inclement backdrop to the bleak milieu of matriarchal treachery, violent retribution, and the monstrous realities of inhuman cruelties perpetrated during WW2.

Director, José Luis Madrid's fascinating Los crímenes de Petiot's current obscurity is arguably due to its continued unavailability rather than any technical flaws in the robust film-making. The charismatic terror-Thespian Naschy delivers another bravura performance, and the oppressive, paranoid narrative maintains strong interest throughout. Naschy's gloomy, Giallo-esque thriller has an effectively eerie ambience, plus Ángel Arteaga's evocative score that greatly complements gifted writer, Paul Naschy's engagingly doom-laden screenplay. Made during a prolific period in the illustrious Iberian icon's filmmaking career, 'Los crímenes de Petiot' is one of maestro, Naschy's rare excursions into more mainstream thriller territory.

Naschy movie with usual elements of the ¨Gialli¨ sub-genre : suspenseful intrigue , twisted killings executed by a black gloved killer , violence , sadism , physical abuse , sensationalist murder pieces , though doesn't pack nudity . A series of murders are happening in Berlin , during World War II seem connected to a string of present-day murders committed . A wealthy art gallerist , single , called Boris (Paul Naschy or Jacinto Molina) is drawn into a twisted criminal case via his journalist sweetheart (Patricia Moran) , who along with help of other reporters believe they can bring down the killer without the police . Meanwhile , the police commissioner and his agents are investigating the heinous crimes , and the prme suspects are three of the journalists

This is a giallo with usual ingredients as chills , thrills , suspense and grisly killings committed by a masked assassin clad in black . Here Paul Naschy is a rich artist who helps his girlfriend to discover who is the heinous murderer resulting in fateful consecuences . Filmmaker Jose Luis Madrid designs a mediocre thriller , including some regularly staged murders plenty of startling visual content with blood and gore , though was submitted to limited censorship in Spain.

Freely based on Doctor Petiots life , the real deeds happened of the following way : Petiot's neighbors in Rue Le Sueur complained to police about a foul stench in the area and large amounts of smoke billowing from a chimney of the house. Firemenentered the house and found a roaring fire in a coal stove in the basement. In the fire, and scattered in the basement, were human remains. They found in his basement, human remains were also found in a quicklime pit in the back yard and in a canvas bag. In his home, enough body parts were found to account for at least ten victims. Also scattered throughout his property were suitcases, clothing, and assorted property of his victims. He escaped , Petiot hid with friends, claiming that the Gestapo wanted him because he had killed Germans and informers. He eventually moved in with a patient, let his beard grow, and adopted various aliases.During the liberation of Paris in 1944, Petiot adopted the name "Henri Valeri" and joined the French Forces of the Interior in the uprising. He became a captain in charge of counterespionage and prisoner interrogations.When the newspaper Resistance published an article about Petiot, his defense attorney from the 1942 narcotics case received a letter in which his fugitive client claimed that the published allegations were mere lies. This gave police a hint that Petiot was still in Paris. Petiot was recognized , and arrested.He claimed that he was innocent and that he had killed only enemies of France. He said that he had discovered the pile of bodies in 21 Rue le Sueur in February 1944, but had assumed that they were collaborators killed by members of his Resistance "network".But the police found that Petiot had no friends in any of the major Resistance groups. Some of the Resistance groups he spoke of had never existed, and there was no proof of any of his claimed exploits. Prosecutors eventually charged him with at least 27 murders for profit. Their estimate of his gains ran to 200 million francs.Petiot went on trial facing 135 criminal charges. Petiot taunted the prosecuting lawyers, and claimed that various victims had been collaborators or double agents, or that vanished people were alive and well in South America under new names. He admitted to killing just 19 of the 27 victims found in his house, and claimed that they were Germans and collaborators - part of a total of 63 "enemies" killed. His lawyer attempted to portray Petiot as a Resistance hero, but the judges and jurors were unimpressed . Petiot was convicted of 26 counts of murder, and sentenced to death and Petiot was beheaded.