A Face

'Phantom of Death' is an enjoyable late 80's Giallo slasher flick with a macabre atmosphere, an interesting plot and some well staged death scenes that enhances the bleak tone of the movie. The genre was pretty dead by this point, so it was nice to have a well-made Giallo flick with a different point of view from this time period, even if it does go off the rails with its choppiness change in direction.

The plot = A gifted pianist Robert Dominici (Michael York) is stricken with a genetic disease called Progeria which causes him to age rapidly and to lose his sanity and goes on a killing spree prompting a police inspector Datti (Donald Pleasence) to try and stop him.

The movie starts out like a typical Giallo with an interesting set up, but the mystery element is thrown out the window when the main character gets the disease and becomes the killer, which isn't a spoiler its literally revealed in the synopsis and trailers. The movie then shifts focus to a more crime thriller slasher film which I thought that was an interesting twist by making this more of a character study and it does subvert the genre tactics, but the filmmakers could have done more with this idea as it basically comes out of nowhere and makes this a rather confusing first time viewing. The haphazard editing doesn't help with these matters as there's a lack of flow from scene to scene and you're not entirely sure how much time has passed between certain scenes. Despite the scripting problems this is a solid enough entry in the genre with enough craziness going on to sustain momentum.

The cast here are excellent with Michael York delivering an entertaining performance as the main lead and provides a stellar screen presence with believability and conviction in such a demanding role. Donald Pleasance is always a joy to watch and injects the movie with much needed enthusiasm even if he is treading on familiar ground. Then of course there's the ultimate genre queen Edwige Fenech who despite being in such a small role, brings elegance to the flick and its great to see her in what would be her final Giallo outing.

Overall 'Phantom of Death' is a decent late offering from the genre.

mediocre slasher is very bloody but poorly made and wastes genre favorite Donald Pleasence badly this is poorly written and kind of dull too while it has it's effective moments this is just one sluggish and mediocre time that is not worth seeing oh and Michael York gives a somewhat decent performance *1/2 out of 5

This horror/giallo was directed by Ruggero Deodato, who was more famous for extremely controversial films such as the very unpleasant The House on the Edge of the Park. With The Phantom of Death he reigned in his excesses and produced a far more restrained affair. Its story does have an original angle. A famous pianist discovers he has a rare disease which ages him extremely rapidly. This sets off a homicidal impulse in him and he thereafter goes about murdering women. He becomes hard for the police to track down seeing as the evidence suggests a much older man is responsible for the killings.

The cast in this one is very good on paper. Michael York is the pianist, giallo legend Edwige Fenech is his wife and Donald Pleasance is the cop pursuing the killer. York and Fenech put in a bit of effort with their characters but Pleasance seems to be going through the motions a bit. The lethargy is reflected in the film overall as it is a little dull for the most part and generally lacks suspense. There is a series of murders to enliven things a little but even they don't make too much of an impact. It's a shame in some respects that it is such a pedestrian effort because the central concept is at least an attempt at something a bit different. It's definitely a watchable enough film, however, just a little disappointing considering the potential.

Mediocre horror fare has good makeup effects (used to show the rapid aging of Michael York's character), but poor continuity (when a man says "...and all this in the course of a year", you're completely baffled: when did a whole year pass?). York does an acceptable job, but Pleasence has never looked more tired. (**)

Italian horror/thriller director Ruggero Deodato gives us this somewhat introspective, blood and guts tame by Deodato standards film about an Italian pianist who contracts a very rare disease that makes him age at an incredible rate. The pianist has bouts of memory loss and periods of losing mental control in which he kills, naturally mostly beautiful young women. The deaths are bloody(I saw the Uncut version) but not over-the-top fortunately. In fact the movie really works best as a cat and mouse game between Michael York as the pianist and Donald Pleasance as a plodding policeman not so hot on his trail, as long as you can get past the point that York and Pleasance are supposed to be Italians. The film is in no way great, but I was pleasantly surprised with its effective pacing, decent acting, and heart. York is a man not wholly evil, in many ways a victim of circumstance. He ages before our very eyes. He kills with anger and spur of the moment passion rather than cold-blooded calculation(at least most of the time). He is almost a man to be pitied, and York plays on this for the second half of the film with some obvious talent. Pleasance is Pleasance. A steady presence on film. He does a good job, but he looks physically exhausted and old. The rest of the cast is very adequate with particular attention going to Edwidge Fenech as York's girlfriend. A beautiful woman! A tense thriller!