Joe D'Augustine Reviews Mario Landi's Giallo a Venezia (1979)

I just watched a strange film, Giallo A Venezia, or Gore in Venice. An appropriate title if ever there was one. The film starts with a murder on the banks of a canal in Venice, the police arrive and begin an investigation. Inspector DePaul starts digging, he finds sex, drugs, orgies, pornographic photos etc. He tracks down a friend of the deceased couple and begins interrogating her.



While he’s there Marzia gets a psychotic threatening phone call. She tells the Inspector it’s nothing but he doesn’t believe her. In any case he gets her to tell the story of the deceased couple, Flavia and Fabio. Fabio suffers from a psychosexual compulsion, he wants to watch his beautiful young wife make love to other men. She loves him and goes along with it, even though she hates what he makes her do.



Now this is one of the reasons I love Italian films of this vintage. They were not afraid to take on any subject matter, no matter how taboo. There are a lot of men that have fantasies like this and I’m sure it is a problem for a lot of people but no American film would take on this subject in such an upfront way. The freedom of expression evinced in these films is liberating, creatively stimulating. They can really blow the cobwebs out of your brain. Sort of the way the Surrealists cherished the writings of the Marquis de Sade.



The film follows the flashback story interspersed with the Inspector following up new leads and constantly eating hard boiled eggs. It’s enough to make you sick watching this guy eat egg after egg and nothing else. The Inspector has a sergeant who does all of his leg work, in other words finds out everything for him. He is kind of an Italian Kojak, bald, big, funny. A cool character.



But it is Marzia’s philosophy student boyfriend that steals the show. He is so evil, so sick, so nasty, and he takes such delight in inflicting the most depraved tortures on people. He wears mirrored sunglasses because his eyes are sensitive to light, he does everything out of unrequited love for his Marzia. Including stabbing a prostitute multiple times in the crotch, shooting a guy in the arms and legs thereby incapacitating him, then dousing him with gasoline and lighting him up. One of the most disturbing images in the film is the burned and blackened face of this victim, you think he must be dead but then his eyes move in his head, he’s still alive! I enjoyed most of this film but several times I had to turn away from the screen. It was just too much! The sex is pretty graphic as well, it just stops short of being porno. Lots of female crotch shots, no erect penises but everything else.



The music by Berto Pisano is excellent, a light frothy, bubbly Italian jazz score that contrasts with the images of death and murder in a refreshingly different way. So watch it if you can find it but be forewarned, it’s not for the squeamish. I’m not even telling you about the worst scene in the film, I’ll leave that for a surprise.


This guest review was written for Bloody Italiana by filmmaker and blogger Joe D'Augustine. You can read more by Joe at Filmforno. Thanks Joe, a great review for this weekend long celebration of sleaze to commemorate the first birthday of the blog.

Joe D'Amato's Emanuelle Around The World XXX European Version (1977) Review

Once again, the fearless (and often naked) Emanuelle (Laura Gemser) is off fighting the evil that plagues our world; or the 70's in this instance. After a whirlwind romance with a UN member, Malcolm Robertson (Ivan Rassimov), Emanuelle leans of a terrible slave ring. Her whistle now truly wet, she sets about trying to bring this trade to an end.



To complete her mission she'll need help, and that's where her friend, and mentor, Cora Norman (Karin Shubert) swoops in to the rescue, Cora has been on the trail of these evil traders for sometime, and in Hong Kong the two reporters will get a first hand look at what evil these men do!

D'Amato's Emanuelle Around The World is one of his better entries into the franchise. Rivaling the mighty Emanuelle in America, in terms of nastiness, this is a flick for hardened D'Amato fans; there's also a standard version for those who like their Emanuelle strictly soft-core. This movie may not contain the horrid snuff sequences that made Emanuelle in America so foul and controversial, but it contains some truly horrific rape scenes – truly repugnant stuff.



The movie starts innocently enough, with Emanuelle in India interviewing a self-proclaimed 'love guru' (played by >George Eastman), orgies kick off and Emanuelle enrages the guru by making some chump ejaculate (something that is forbidden to this raunchy cult) and is asked to leave. Things take a turn for the worse when we get to Hong Kong, where women are violated by dogs and snakes!! The most horrific scenes are saved for the finale however, an act carried out by the real animals – bored, rich people!!



While the film contains horrible images of bestiality and rape, it's one of the entries that doesn't bore. Sure, the shock tactics will have most people picking their jaw off the floor, but even in the tamer cut; it's a fun little movie. The globe-trotting antics provide the audience with some great visuals of exotics cities and the bed-hopping antics prove more erotic than most entries in the Black Emanuelle movies.



This XXX European version, as previously stated, if for the fans of D'Amato's harsher material. Those offended (with good cause) by Emanuelle in America will want to give this version a miss; but I would suggest checking out the softer version, as the movie is sleazy entertainment gold.

Joe D'Amato's Porno Holocaust (1981) Review

Holocausto porno also known as Porno Holocaust is at the bottom line more of a porno flick than a 'balls out' horror movie.

Before going into it I had read a little bit about it; a brief synopsis and to check what year it was made.I wasn't quite sure whether to watch this film as a porno or as cheap exploitation. I believe that Joe D'Amato shot this film back to back with Anthropophagus (1980), using some of the same locations. I could be wrong so feel free to leave a comment and correct me with any information or interesting trivia regarding this film.



But this film starts out by having a 'mystery' edge to it, with the fact that anyone who goes near the 'cursed island' will die a horrible death. No one really knows what is on there some say a monster others blame black magic, voodoo etc. The story is centred around a group of scientists who are going to the island to do some 'real' investigation work.

When they finally reach the island they find it deserted with no signs of life; no insects, rodents or birds. Though we are treated to some classic monster P.O.V. shots of the troop as they look round the island. From the look of it it's the same island as Fulci's Zombi 2. You don't actually get to see the 'monster' until your just over an hour in. When he decides to 'off' the professor then receive something from the professors wife. Classy.

The scientists then find that their boat has drifted out to see as the ropes at the dock had been cut, leaving them stranded on the island. Meanwhile the monster kidnaps one of the scientists; Annie and keeps her in his cave.



After having a fling with her earlier on in the film the captain decides to go rescue Annie from the monster's cave. After searching most of the island the captain finds his Annie, they defeat the monster with a trusty harpoon then decide to top it off with a bit of the old 'in out in out' on the dead reporters boat. During the end sequence when they are waving to a boat to be rescued you can see someone else's head pop up out of their boat.

I'm not exactly sure what Joe D'Amato set out to accomplish by making this film or maybe that's the reaction he wanted. However I did manage to spot 2 bottles of J&B in this film.



If you love sleaze then you need to watch this film.

Frightened Woman Trailer

Here is the funky trailer for the delightful Frightened Woman.

Piero Schivazappa's The Frightened Woman (1969) Review

Femina Ridens also known as The Laughing Woman or The Frightened Woman is a fascinating study of power and the exercise of the will over an other individual.

Maria, played by Dagmar Lassander (Forbidden Photos of a Lady Above Suspicion and The House By the Cemetery) is a researcher compiling and article on the need for male sterilisation as a method of population control. Deciding that she would like to complete the article over the weekend she approaches her employer Dr. Sayer (Philippe Leroy, Mother Of Tears and Milano calibro 9) who states that he has the books needed for the research but he is appalled at any suggestion of a threat to male virility betraying his fear that women intend to take over the world by chipping away at this sexual source of power. He suggests that he can bring the required books next week but Maria insists that she works better over the weekend and so in turn is invited to the doctors house.



Upon arrival at the house Dr Sayer offers Maria what turns out to e a drugged glass of J and B and she collapses and wakes some time later to find herself chained up and Sayer begins his attempts to control Maria totally, explaining that his aim is to kill her at the point of orgasm. It seems that his views on sexuality relate to his childhood when he witnessed a pair of scorpions having sex then the female scorpion killing the male.



Over time, Maria convinces the Doctor who humiliates her time and again by hosing her down, forcing her to have sex with a doll effigy of himself and other such whatnot, that love is the answer and that it would be better for him to encourage a woman to succumb to his charm than to give herself over due to force. Gradually his resolve weakens and Maria begins to gain the upper hand.





Not all is as it seems with Femina Ridens and the story takes unexpected turns that I do not intend to expand upon here but the differing titles of The Laughing Woman or The Frightened Woman provide ample illustration of the differing emphasis in this fine piece of pop art sexploitation with a strong anti fascist and feminist undercurrent.



The Shameless Screen DVD which was restored with the approval of creator Piero Schivazappa and according to his own script looks absolutely delightful. Shameless go on to describe the film as hip n horny and Dagmar Lassander in this as "kinky as she's slinky". As Piero Schivazappa states on the cover "This is the version of my film to watch" and who could argue with that.

DVD: Shameless Screen
Running Time: 86 mins 3 seconds
Extras: Trailers

Fabio De Agostini's The Red Nights of the Gestapo (1977) Review

Kier-La Janisse has a lot to answer for, she really does. Not only did her book A Violent Professional introduce me to the broader works of Luciano Rossi, who is incidentally pretty good in this, but also films such as the delightfully sleazy title The Red Nights of the Gestapo. Now as the title suggests this is a film about Nazis and is set during World War Two, or to be precise in 1941 before Germany opened the eastern front by going to war with Russia.



Leading up to what we are to be informed is the Schloss Grunewald massacre the plot premise is a simple one if a little contrived. In order to remove any opposition to the rule of Hitler a group of known assassination plotters are to be invited to a castle where they will be compromised by a specially recruited squad of women who's background ranges from artist to nymphomaniac mental patient and one little child. What transpires is largely a one hour or so long bonkathon followed by five minutes of massacre. So far so trashy and really camp fun.



Okay this is not at the nastier end of the genre and does have artistic and philosophical ambitions though neither can be taken especially seriously in a film which features a topless woman dressed in a Hitler moustache doing tricks with ping-pong balls. In all truth this is a film to be enjoyed, sometimes laughed at in its ludicrous high camp, but mostly just enjoyed.



The women in this film looked great and I did go over the top a little with my screen caps of this film and so had to narrow them down to a representative five, though I just had to keep in one ping pong picture just for the sheer madness of it all.



I did take a quick look on IMDB and it seems this film was banned in Iceland and was originally in Australia, though it is hard to imagine why. Sweden was far more sensible with a fifteen rating as despite the large amounts of nudity this film was not especially harmful, a little tasteless maybe, but mostly harmless.



Despite the fairly long one hour and fifty minute running time I never really lost interest as I got absorbed in the plot and clicked away taking screenshots of some really good looking ladies. This one is recommended for family get togethers and auntie will love it.

Running Time: 1hr 50 mins.

Radley Metzger's The Lickerish Quartet (1970) Review

Directed and co written by Radley Metzger this joint Italian, German and American feature opens in a castle where the owner played by Frank Wolff (star of Castellari's Cold Eyes Of Fear), his wife (Erika Remberg) and son (Paolo Turco) are watching vintage stag films and speculating about where they get the actresses for such films and waffle on about butterflies, prostitution and World War Two in an eight minute long pre-credit sequence. The son is disgusted and leaves, the owner plays the film backwards at high speed much to his amusement and they all set off to the funfair where they enjoy a wall of death act.





All three notice that the wall of death rider (Silvana Venturelli who had an uncredited role in Barbarella) resembles the star of their adult feature so they decide to invite her back to the castle for a party and to share in their viewing experience but not before the son performs some magic tricks.



When they play the blue movie again it seems to be edited differently and the leading lady seems to have her face obscured much to their confusion. The visitor states that she has never seen such a film though this does not convince her hosts who invite her to stay overnight.



The next day the visitor begins seducing her hosts, firstly the owner in the library falls to her charms and they make out on a carpet of words from a dictionary with emphasis on words such as penis and fuck. Later the son dances around the castle with the visitor and they then have sex up against a tree near the castle. Finally the wife shares a tender moment with the visitor while watching the stag film.



The film closes with a repeat of the opening scene with a group of people viewing the stag film except the stars of The Lickerish Quartet have now become the cast of the blue movie and there are different viewers delivering a commentary.



All this is beautifully shot and scored but at times a little confusing as this is a bit of a tripped out existentialist mind bender of a movie and it offers up no easy answers. Enjoyable enough it is though and at times pretty sexy.

Running Time: 1hr 27 mns