L'assassino fantasma

Shadow of Death is a little known Italian thriller, but also a very interesting one and it's certainly a film that doesn't deserve to be missed. The film is often considered a part of the Giallo genre; and although it lacks many of the genre trademarks, the fact that it features a few; as well as the fact that it was released in 1969, mean that it just about qualifies as a part of the genre. The film takes in the classic thriller plot line of a wife wanting to kill her husband for financial gain and mixes this with the idea of wanting to send someone insane (this was also featured in Umberto Lenzi's well revered Giallo Orgasmo) and the idea of identical twins. The film begins as we witness a stranger arrive in town. He quickly goes to see his ex-lover Denise, who is not so happily married to John; and is having an affair with his identical twin brother Peter. They are also plotting to send John insane. After the stranger (later revealed to be a man named Gert) has his blackmail attempts rebuked, the pair decide to enlist his help for their plot.

Director Javier Setó cleverly gives his film a very claustrophobic setting, which ensures that the focus is always on the main characters. The storyline is twisted and clever; and the characters play a very important part in the proceedings. The director ensures that there's a good reason for all their motivations; and while most of them do wear their emotions on their sleeves, it still provides a relatively engaging viewing. There isn't a great deal of variety in terms of the locations used but the style and atmosphere always fits the film, and this makes up for it. The plot at times does get a bit choppy and it doesn't always make complete sense; but generally speaking the film flows fairly well and does more than enough to keep the audience interested for the eighty five minute running time. As we boil down to the climax and more twists come into play; things do get very interesting. Overall, this is a well thought-out and well put together little thriller and while I wouldn't quite call it a must see, it is very much worth a look if you can find a copy.

This is an entertaining Italian giallo, but one that might not appeal to newcomers to the genre because even by giallo standards the plot here is especially absurd. The movie starts with what appears to be a simple case of blackmail, but the hapless blackmailer (Giacomo Rossi-Stuart) finds that his intended target (Larry Ward)is actually the identical twin brother of the target, a crooked pharmacist who is having an affair with his brother's wife (Spanish actress Teresa Gimpera). The adulterous pair enlist the blackmailer in a ridiculously complicated scheme to drive their brother/husband insane. This involves, among other things, the twin pretending to be his brother and picking up and abusing a streetwalker (the gorgeous Silvana Venturelli, who appeared in several Radley Metzger movies). Perhaps the most ridiculous conceit, however, has the villainous pair implanting false memories in the brother/husband through auto-suggestion after drugging him and triggering grand mal seizures! (They can't just kill him because of a provision in his will, so they have to mentally incapacitate him somehow). Anyway, the whole thing only gets more ridiculous from there, but the ending is excellent.

Although it suffers the usual indifferent English dubbing job, the acting all seems pretty good. The otherwise unknown Larry Ward is surprisingly good as the two brothers. Giacomo Rossi-Stuart is good as always, if a bit wasted in a small role. The two women are also both good, but this is obviously Spanish-Italian production and I apparently saw the more conservative Spanish cut, so Venturrelli quite uncharacteristically keeps her kit on here (if you want to see a lot more of her though check out "The Lickerish Quartet"). I also saw a relatively decent bootleg but one that was still obviously substandard compared to a legitimate release, so it was a pretty hard to appreciate any visual stylings the film might have. Spanish director Seto doesn't seem to be in the category of Argento, Martino, Lenzi, Fulci, et. al. when it comes to visually exciting work , but who can really tell with one of these bootlegs?

This rather ridiculous and ridiculously convoluted movie will probably only confuse newcomers to the generally crazy, madcap giallo genre, but hardcore giallo enthusiasts will probably like it.

(Excerpt from "Giallo Standard Grade Examination 1990: Question Three")

3) In your own words, please take the following scenario and create your own Giallo plot from it:

John and Peter are identical twins who work in a pharmacy. John is married to Denise, who hates John and loves Peter. Gert is an ex-lover of Denise who is trying to blackmail Peter. John has recently been diagnosed with epilepsy that is causing John to have blackouts. Annie is a sometime lover of Peter.

Answer by Baz Enby, Colomba High School:

"Annie dresses up as Denise to get rid of Annie but then John has an eppy that knocks over a knife collection onto Denise dressed as Annie then he wakes up and thinks he's killed Annie then buries Denise but also accidentally buries his own brother too right before both of them are to go up in front of a Pharmacy Regulation panel so John gets a full length mirror and pretends to be both of them then Gert shows up but he's really John wearing a mask with another full length mirror then the panel is Annie and her three twins then the cops show up and kill everyone."

Examiner's remarks: "I think this pupil is brain damaged! What kind of spaz wouldn't figure out that John's epilepsy was actually caused by Peter injecting him with drugs and depriving him of sleep? They work in a pharmacy for God's sake! Baz also clearly has no understanding of the Giallo genre. It's obvious that Peter would impersonate John, go into town, bed Annie (as John though, not Peter), then meet Gert as Peter, but then reveal himself as John (impersonated by Peter), then kill Gert but not really kill him, then return home John and inject him with drugs and then act out the entire night's goings on in front of John so that when John wakes up he thinks he bedded Annie and killed Gert! It's COMMON SENSE AND PRETTY STRAIGHTFORWARD!

Fail. Will probably end up being a civil servant or something.

Macabre emerges from the late 1960s European thriller landscape as a competent yet unremarkable entry in the burgeoning giallo tradition. This Spanish-Italian co-production possesses the requisite atmospheric ingredients - shadowy cinematography, labyrinthine plotting, and psychological manipulation - but never quite achieves the fever-pitch intensity that defines the genre's finest offerings.

The film's visual palette draws from the classic giallo playbook with moody interiors bathed in amber light and stark contrasts that mirror the moral ambiguity of its characters. Setó demonstrates a keen eye for composition, particularly in scenes where the camera lingers on architectural details that seem to close in around the increasingly paranoid John. The production design effectively captures the claustrophobic world of upper-class Spanish society, where pristine facades conceal festering corruption.

Teresa Gimpera delivers the film's strongest performance as the calculating Denise, imbuing her character with a cold sensuality that makes her machinations believable without ever making her sympathetic. Her chemistry with both Ward brothers creates a palpable tension that drives much of the narrative's psychological complexity. Larry Ward handles the dual role of the twin brothers with adequate distinction, though his American presence in this distinctly European thriller occasionally feels jarring.

The supporting cast, including Giacomo Rossi-Stuart, provides solid grounding for the central triangle of deception. However, the film suffers from pacing issues that prevent it from building the mounting dread essential to psychological thrillers. Scenes that should crackle with tension instead meander, and the psychological deterioration that forms the story's core never feels as urgent or inevitable as it should.

While "Macabre" contains moments of genuine unease and showcases some striking visual flourishes, it ultimately feels like a missed opportunity. The premise holds considerable promise, but the execution lacks the precision and intensity needed to elevate it beyond a middling thriller that will primarily appeal to completists of European genre cinema.