Angoisse

Follia Omicida is the original title of this Italian horror. Typical for Italian flicks is the use in other countries of different titles which makes it all confusing. And not even that alone. Now out on DVD and Blu Ray before that it had two versions out on the same label. It came out on Wizard Video on a T-90 cassette. That was the normal release but it also had a big box release on a T-105 cassette. That was the fully uncut version.

From there things go awry for the flick. In the UK it was released as The Wailing. But is was missing 2 minutes. The Wizard release came out under the title Fear and the Greek and Venezuelan videotapes bore the original English export title Unconscious. An alternate Greek release had Satan's Altar. Not only all those different titles and releases made it hard to know which one was correct. It also was released in English and Italian with subs.

The Blu Ray and DVD version now out is even full of mistakes (even the score is changed) so I can only advice to catch the Wizard big box release (with the Italian credits).

All that cleared out it's a weird flick. It has giallo elements but also has a few cheesy moments when for example the black mass scene where we see a big spider and a big spider web as fake as it can be. It also has a few eery moments and a lot of nudity.

Laura Gemser is in it and the first second she appears in this flick she's undressed. And one scene she's even does a full frontal nudity. There are also a few gratuitous nudity shots involved in a forest.

The story itself I can't really explain because it has so many elements of different genres. Michael (Stefano Patrizi) an actor invites his girlfriend to his remote country house. There they will have a on-location shoot. But Michael has a bad backstory which he remembers clearly at the house. His mother is possessive and Michael starts a incestuous relationship with her. But from then on once the crew is at the country house murders abound and all girls have nightmares of a black mass.

Having a lot of nudity it is for an Italian flick low on red stuff. It was Riccardo Freda's (the director) last flick. Sergio Stivaletti made his first special effects here in his first flick to move further to Demon (1985) and other Argento gialli. In the uncut version we can see the work of Sergio by an axe going into a head and a slashing and of course the mutilated body of Laura Gemser.

A collectible flick for so many reasons although it isn't really a good flick due the different elements and not knowing what it really wants to be.

Gore 1/5 Nudity 2/5 Effects 2/5 Story 3/5 Comedy 0/5

Michael is a successful actor,but he has a scandal in his past:it seems that at a tender age he knifed his father to death.He and his girlfriend Deborah go to his mother's for the weekend and are joined by the director and others from a recent film project,who are given a rather unwelcome reception by the superstitious housekeeper Oliver.Soon ghastly things begin happening to some of the guests and Michael fears a repeat of his nightmare past is in progress.The vicious black gloved killer is preying on its victims."Murder Obsession" is perhaps the sleaziest offering of Riccardo Freda to date.It features plenty of nudity provided by Silvia Dionisio,Laura Gemser and Anita Strindberg.This often confusing giallo provides some gruesome killings including death by chainsaw and laughably fake spider attack.There is also a Black Mass,a live chicken beheading,a grubby rape scene and some random gore.7 out of 10.

Members of the cast and crew of a horror movie take a well-earned break at the family home of actor Michael, whose mother (who has obviously been keeping to a tight exfoliation/moisturising regime, since she looks no older than 40) lives a reclusive life with her creepy manservant Oliver. Whilst relaxing at the house, the group are attacked one-by-one by a leather-gloved killer, and Michael begins to fear that a horrific event from his past—one which he has kept suppressed in his mind for years—has finally returned to haunt him.

Murder Obsession opens in fine style with a gleefully trashy scene in which exploitation babe Laura Gemser has her clothes torn from her body by a mysterious assailant who then proceeds to try and strangle her. However, fans of sleazy giallo movies shouldn't get too excited, for director Ricardo Freda soon disappoints by having the camera pull back to reveal that the woman, Beryl, and her attacker, Michael Stanford (Stefano Patrizi), are actors performing their final scene in a horror flick.

Yes, it's the tired old 'movie within a movie' trick! The rest of this wearisome film is just as clichéd and deceptive in style, with numerous silly red herrings during the dull-as-ditch-water first half (nearly every character seems to own a pair of leather gloves!), mucho nudity throughout, cheesy gore towards the end, and a convoluted, logic-free script that is harder to swallow than a broken glass sandwich. Even a genre great like Argento, whose own work is rarely that cohesive, would struggle to make this inept garbage work, so what chance does Freda have?

Supposedly atmospheric dream sequences are rendered laughable by giant rubber spiders; bats flap on clearly visible wires; Michael's girlfriend (Silvia Dionisio) runs through a foggy forest with her tits out; inept gore effects (an axe in the head and a chainsaw in the throat) look as though they were created by a five year old with modelling clay and papier-maché; dreadful dialogue turns emotional scenes into unintentional moments of comedy; and a desperate attempt at shoehorning black magic and psychic powers into the muddled plot severely backfires.

Take a look if a) you dig bad Italian cinema b) you're a rabid Gemser fan, or c) if you absolutely must see every giallo in existence—but be warned.... it ain't great.

This film deserves to be re-released, uncut and digitally mastered and whatnot. I guess it would be by now if it were more popular. You don't hear much about it. It's a shame, because this is one of the most overlooked Italian horror films I've ever seen. It is hard coming across the rare Wizard video, but I was able to find it for a low price and I have been enjoying it nonstop ever since I got it. The plot is strange, twisted, and full of bizarre touches of nasty murder scenes, perverse sexuality, nudity, and some very creepy tones of Satanism and the black arts which more than likely will chill you to the bone. It's hard to explain simply, but I'll try...it's basically about an actor named Michael (the very cute Stefano Patrizi) dealing with the painful memories of his childhood when he accidentally stabbed his father to death. He returns, along with his friends, which include a film director, some curvaceous actresses, and his girlfriend Deborah, to the creepy countryside mansion of his recluse mother. Well, you can guess that from there, strange events happen building up to a thunderstorm, gore murders, and some shocking twists in the finale. It sounds simple in a bare bones description like that, but just remember it also fits in hallucinagenic, trippy dream sequences of hooded Satanists sacrificing a nude girl in their Black Mass, lots of slimy spiders and spiderwebs, bleeding skulls, red herrings including a handful of suspicious characters, black gloves, murder attempts, and not to mention many softcore sex scenes which feature both male and female nudity (the gorgeous Patrizi shows off his firm, taut bare butt - another factor which makes this film a personal favorite). The gore murders, when they occur as the film reaches its peak, aren't really very scary, more cheesy, but they are still bloody and do provide effective shocks. The music is also effective in creating the creepy, stormy atmosphere of Satanism, murder and sex in a remote mansion in the countryside. This film is definitely not for everyone, but those who appreciate fine, classy Italian horror and do not mind complicated, twisted plotlines should enjoy it. A plus is the very talented cast which are very effective in their roles. Silvia Dionosio impresses as Deborah, the girlfriend, and John Richardson is an old favorite of many Italian horror films (he's just so cute even though he's pretty spooky in this movie). This is a great, overlooked film. Have fun seeking it out.

Michael, a successful actor with a secret in his past, returns to his family estate after a long absence.He arrives with his girlfriend in tow and he greeted by his mother who seems a bit too attentive to her son and distancing to the girlfriend. It isn't long before some more friends arrive for both business and pleasure. However ghosts of the past are reawakened and it isn't long before strange things begin happening and people begin dying.

This is Italian horror at its most silly. The film starts off interesting enough with Michael going home to a house full of eerie people and occurrences. There is a nice tension to the proceedings, however things begin to sputter a bit when the girlfriend has one of the funniest "scary" dreams ever put on film after 1965. It comes complete with fake spider web and rubber spider and is impossible to take seriously. From there things begin to move unevenly as bodies begin to pile up and the number of suspects begin to diminish. The film completely falls apart as it tries to explain and re-explain whats really going on and who these people are. Its a mess and I found myself giggling through the final 20 minutes or so.

I was disappointed. The early scenes created a nice tension that was lost when things started to become silly and illogical (I know one should not always look for reason and logic in Italian horror). It gets points for keeping me watching to the end, but that was because I kept hoping it would shift gears into reverse and go back to being the decent little thriller at the start.

4 out of 10. Disappointing thriller is probably worth watching if you stumble across it late at night and find there is nothing better on. Those who like Italian horror and giallo films can probably add a couple of points.