Il tuo vizio è una stanza chiusa e solo io ne ho la chiave

Sergio Martino's effort "Your Vice is a closeted room and only I don't have the key" is a crossover between the giallo genre, horror and sexy atmosphere as they were many during the 70's in Italy. It's (very)freely adapted from Edgar Allan Poe's The Black Cat while keeping a giallo narrative structure for an hour and so...then move back to the Poe territory. Il tuo Vizio... has quite daring visuals for one hour, Martino's usual trademark in his early 70's works : wild camera angles, edgy editing. Then it suddendly cools down as the story sticks around with the Black Cat thing.

The screenplay developped a maniac on the loose killing young girls (again) in a very nasty way (gore galore!) while Anita Strindberg fights with drunken & debauched husband Luigi Pistilli. he's a no good writer who writes all night...only one sentence over and over. Then comes sexy Edwige Fenech who stands for Strinberg's cause...before sleeping with her husband and the delivery man. Lesbian scenes, straight scenes, stuntss,sex scenes, murders scenes, sex again then murders...this is a very well known territory that brings up finally some good surprises in the end.

This is definitely Anita Strindberg's best work to date. She is absolutely fantastic as the cheated wife who goes over the edge, showing every human emotion with a professionalism rarely seen on the screen. Too bad her career went dry after 1975, she was a real winner here with great acting capabilities. Miss Fenech got a THEOREM-like character but still very eager to drop every clothes she got. She gets a very bitchy part here which is very unsual in her career as she went along either with victims characters or sexy ones. Oh, and there's still weird Ivan Rassimov as the mysterious stranger (as usual) snooping around Strindberg's house : he was already in Martino's previous TUTTI I COLORI DEL BUIO.

Apart from the screenplay's weaknesses and incapacity of bringing something fresh and new to the Poe's story, this Martino flick is quite memorable and fun to watch.But as it tries to link several genres, it really doesn't know where to go and who to please and finally ends up as a curisoity from the 70's. Nevertheless a gem strictly for genre addicts.

Superwonderscope says :7.

Author Oliviero Rouvigny (Luigi Pistilli) is, simply put, a vile pig. His long-suffering wife, Irina (Anita Strindberg) endures most of his abuse, along with his vast array of lovers and mistresses. When one of them is slashed to death, Oliviero is suspect number one on the police inspector's list, along with the horde of hippies that hang out at the writer's enormous estate. When another murder takes place right in the mansion, Oliviero decides to cover it up.

What could all of this have to do with Oliviero's mother? Annnd, what's going on with her old gown? Annnnd, just what is the deal with that irascible black cat named "Satan"?

Enter Floriana (Edwige Feneche), a long-lost relative, who just happens to come for an extended visit. Her stay definitely livens up the place, for Oliviero AND Irina! Meanwhile, more vicious attacks occur.

YOUR VICE IS A LOCKED ROOM AND ONLY I HAVE THE KEY is a classic, suspenseful giallo with some wicked twists and turns. Ms. Faneche is both seductive and strong in her wily role, while Pistilli plays Oliviero as the perfectly washed up hack he's become, plagued by his addictions and weaknesses.

EXTRA CREDIT FOR: #1- Ms. Strindberg and her... metamorphosis! #2- A grand finale for the ages! Great stuff!...

YOUR VICE IS A LOCKED ROOM AND ONLY I HAVE THE KEY is a fairly typical example of the giallo genre, directed by old hand Sergio Martino. It's certainly a watchable enough effort but lacks the kind of drive and impetus that makes the best of this type of film. Having previously watched WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO SOLANGE? a few nights previously, that masterpiece shows up YOUR VICE by comparison.

What we have is a slow-burning potboiler for the most part, once the eye-opening orgy scene at the film's opening is disposed of. Martino's stylish direction is one of the film's strengths but the script is a little sub par, particularly in the middle section of the movie which seems to be propelled by endless sex scenes more than anything else. Things do pick up the last half hour, where it gets very good with some shocking plot twists and turns, and it's a pity the rest of the film wasn't of the same quality.

As with so many productions, the script is based on Poe's short story THE BLACK CAT, although this is only an incidental part of the narrative as these things go. There's a cast here who give fine performances, particularly the stylish and sultry Edwige Fenech who captivates the screen throughout and keeps the viewer guessing as to her character's motivations. Anita Strindberg is an arresting presence as the abused wife, while Luigi Pistilli is thoroughly horrible as her cruel husband. Genre favourite Ivan Rassimov also has a small but pivotal role.

Possessing what could be the second-best title in film history (after 1963's "The Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living and Became Mixed-Up Zombies," of course), "Your Vice Is a Locked Room and Only I Have the Key" (1972) reunites director Sergio Martino and stars Edwige Fenech and Ivan Rassimov, who had previously collaborated on such wonderful films as "The Strange Vice of Mrs. Wardh" (1970) and "All the Colors of the Dark" (1972). (Indeed, this film's title was copped from a line of dialogue in "Mrs. Wardh"). This time around, though, the story mainly concerns a decadent writer, Oliviero, well played by Luigi Pistilli, who spends most of his days drinking booze and abusing his wife (giallo regular Anita Strindberg) both physically and emotionally. While a wave of murders sweeps through their small town, Oliviero's niece pays a visit, and so we finally get to see our Edwige, a full 1/2 hour into the picture. Gorgeous as always, Edwige here sports a short-haired bob for a change but looks smashing still. Anyway, truth to tell, I had no idea where this picture was going for at least the first hour. The film concludes very neatly, though, with some nifty surprises, and always keeps the viewer intrigued by combining a truly decadent atmosphere with bits of Poe's "The Black Cat," echoes of Clouzot's "Diabolique" (1955), some jolting murders, soft-core lesbianism and, typical for gialli, some red herrings. The fine folks at No Shame have come up with yet another great-looking DVD package, containing recent interviews with both Martino and Fenech. Edwige's interview suggests that the woman has made some kind of unholy pact with the devil himself; no woman could possibly look as beautiful, at 57, as she does today. Just remarkable!

Behind the dynamic title of this Sergio Martino giallo is an adaptation of Edgar Allan Poes' 'The Black Cat', albeit a rather loose one for a while. Luigi Pistilli ("A Bay of Blood") plays Oliviero, a washed up author living on a villa with his very put upon and frazzled wife Irina (Anita Strindberg). Irinas' neuroses soon manifest themselves in her antagonistic relationship with Olivieros' black cat (amusingly named Satan), while assorted characters occasionally get murdered on or around the premises. Complicating matters is the arrival of Olivieros' sultry niece Floriana (genre star Edwige Fenech).

Martinos' film does go on longer than it needs to, with a subplot about Florianas' romance with a delivery man / motorbike racer not really adding anything to the story. It might disappoint viewers hoping for more sleaze, or a higher body count, or more flamboyant stylistics. It actually functions more as a character study and portrait of a descent into debauchery (for Oliviero) and madness (for Irina). This domestic drama is interesting stuff, with some pointed dialogue, but the film is never more fun than when it's giving in to the more exploitative tendencies of the genre. To that end, viewers will be satisfied with some lesbian sex and nudity, and some pretty good (but never overdone) gore. Bruno Nicolai composed the wonderful music score, and this benefits further from the location shooting and photography. (Those opening credits are particularly well done.) This definitely hits its stride once Fenech shows up, and the story more closely follows the classic Poe tale.

The acting is solid from all concerned (Ivan Rassimov plays a mystery man named Walter, Franco Nebbia the standard police inspector character you always get in this sort of entertainment), with special mention going out to Ms. Strindberg. You do feel pretty bad for this lady given the treatment that she must put up with. Fenech is at her absolute sexiest.

Enjoyable for fans of the genre.

Seven out of 10.