The Crimes of the Black Cat

A blind pianist overhears a suspicious conversation in a bar. Shortly afterwards his girlfriend is mysteriously murdered. This leads to a series of serial killings that have some connection to a fashion house.

The above synopsis is one that you could come up with if you were to toss a dozen giallo scripts in the air and see what random parts fall onto your head. In fact, this film borrows elements from several popular gialli from the time. Throw in adultery, blackmail, an enigmatic drug addict, lesbians, fashion models and dark secrets from the past and you have the makings of a typical effort. However, this movie does have some tricks up its sleeve to differentiate itself from all others. Chief amongst them being what is perhaps the most insane method of murder ever devised. I won't spoil it for first time viewers but it is truly deranged. In addition to this there is also a mind-bogglingly vicous shower murder that comes out of the blue and genuinely shocks. Further strangeness comes with the fact that the blind protagonist appears to be working on a score for Lucio Fulci's A Lizard in a Woman's Skin. We see clips from this film on a couple of occasions, which is rather bizarre.

Everything is wrapped up at the end with an explanation that I found completely baffling. But, that's hardly a surprise in these flicks to be fair. At the end of the day, it couldn't be said that this is exactly a prime example of the genre. But it still remains entertainingly batty and does have some visual flair and some good set-pieces. It's unfortunate that the current legitimate DVD release appears to be a non-anamorphic copy of a VHS tape though. A better transfer would improve this one.

(aka: THE CRIMES OF THE BLACK CAT)

Filmed in Denmark with a largely Italian cast in a setting away from the usual Italian locations for this genre. So forget that these people are Danes speaking Italian. You can't be too specific with a film like this.

OK so you've seen this before and if you've seen BLOOD AND BLACK LACE, then you'll know how it turns out. Even so, this really isn't bad watching and the story is constructed well despite a couple of suspense contrivances for the audience like footsteps approaching a door, expecting the viewer to believe it's the killer when it turns out to be the hotel bellboy delivering breakfast.

Blind composer Peter Oliver (spaghetti western star, Anthony Steffen) helps sleuth the murders of fashion models in swanky Copenhagen after his close friend Paola is murdered. He suspects something is wrong when he overhears a conversation about a crime in a restaurant while waiting for Paola to show up. She never does. It turns out Paola is blackmailing Victor (Giacomo Rossi-Stuart), threatening to expose some incriminating photographs to his wife (Sylvia Koscina).

Of course when it comes to this genre, the murders can't always be done in a straightforward way and one particular device is using a black cat who's hands are dipped in curare, scratching the victims and causing them to have heart attacks. Strange, yes, but that's typical of the genre so one has to suspend disbelief if you want to watch films like this.

I won't reveal who the name of the killer is. You'll have to see that for yourself, but I will say that it ends in one of those typical freeze-frame endings that were popular in the 1970s.

The DVD by Degored is of poor quality, taken from videotape source with dropouts appearing occasionally and muffled sound, although the subtitles in English look pretty accurate.

There are worse out there.

5 out of 10

"Sette scialli di seta gialla" (Crimes of the black cat) takes place in Copenhagen. The grey subdued skies of Copenhagen and the meditative soundtrack of Manuel de Sica, are a preparation for the giallo we are about to see - a blind pianist, Peter Oliver (Anthony Steffen) investigating a string of murders of fashion models.

Paola Whitney (Isabelle Marchal), Peter Oliver's girlfriend, is murdered, and the police, the other models… no one knows exactly what happened and the reason why it happened. She was alone in her room in the fashion house, and then suddenly…

Peter Oliver suspects that one of the reasons may be blackmail (fragments of a strange conversation overheard in a bar led him to this conclusion), but nothing really seems to explain the mystery. So Peter Oliver, with the help of his butler Burton (Umberto Raho) and beautiful Margot (Shirley Corrigan) - secretary of Françoise Ballais (Sylva Koscina), owner of the fashion house - , decides to investigate on his own the death of Paola. Other murders happen, the killer seems to anticipate each step of Peter, and there are other developments. As to the police, Inspector Jansen (Renato de Carmine) learns to respect the deductive powers of Peter. Sometimes the case seems about to be solved, but…

Besides the characters already mentioned, there are, of course, many gorgeous fashion models (some about to be sacrificed), there's Victor Morgan (Giacomo Rossi-Stuart) that is, so to say, married to Françoise Ballais, and has already experienced troubled waters, and there's also a mysterious junkie woman (Giovanna Lenzi), an important piece in this chess game, and we should not forget the reviled black cat, a very important tool, always followed by a yellow shawl!.

In spite of its many curves, the story is not as convoluted as it seems, and there's one scene in particular that may please gorehounds.

Anthony Steffen, as the blind pianist, demonstrates again his talent and screen charisma and Giovanna Lenzi, as the junkie woman, is another highlight of the film (and the black cat too, of course!).

"Crimes of the black cat" has the visual beauty and style usual in many gialli, the editing is smooth and the film is pleasant to see – feminine beauty peppered with some thrills and violence. Sergio Pastore pays homages to Bava, Argento and... (surprise!), but the film has its own world and atmosphere.

Cats, and particularly the black-colored ones, are quite popular animals to feature in horror movies. Mainly thanks to the influence of Edgar Allen Poe's legendary writings, but also because they're sinister and mysterious animals whose actions are largely uncontrollable. Particularly the Italian horror industry used a lot of (black) cats and the story lines often try to fool us into believing these vicious animals are responsible for the ongoing terror, even though there's always – duh – a human culprit behind it. Sergio Pastore's "Crimes of the Black Cat" is a very competent Giallo, perhaps a bit standard and obviously borrowing ideas from similar efforts, but nevertheless entertaining enough to please the majority of fans of this marvelous Italian horror sub genre. What story aspects are borrowed from other Giallo-titles? Well, the victims of the maniacal killer are nearly all gorgeous models working for the same fashion house, as it was the case in Mario Bava's "Blood & Black Lace"; generally considered as THE movie that started the whole Giallo-madness in 1964. Also, the male lead – who begins to investigate the murders on his own – is blind, like Karl Malden's character in Dario Argento's "The Cat O'Nine Tails". The most important elements in Sergio Pastore's script are original however, like the modus operandi used for the killings and the large amount of red herrings & convoluted plot twists when approaching the finale. The lifeless body of a young model is found in her dressing room. She seemly died of a sudden heart attack but closer investigation shows that the claw of a cat dripped in poison caused her premature death. Since the police don't seem to be in a hurry to find the person behind this fiendish murder, the girl's former boyfriend Peter (a blind pianist) starts his own search, assisted by his loyal butler and the murdered girl's roommate. They slowly unravel a whole criminal network involving adultery, blackmail and drug-addicted circus artists. "Crimes of the Black Cat" is reasonably well paced and features a satisfying amount of action and excitement. The first 15 minutes are rather tame, but this is widely compensated by the outrageous and suspense-laden climax. The cat-claw murders aren't very spectacular, but there's a truly sadistic and stomach-churning scene near the end in which a poor girl is stabbed to death in her, "Psycho"-style in her shower. This particular murder surely belongs in the top ten grossest Giallo-moments! Unlike other contemporary Giallo-highlights, the musical score is unmemorable and there isn't that much female nudity on display. Pastore's direction and the performances of the ensemble cast are just adequate without surpassing any exceptional boundaries. "Crimes of the Black Cat" perhaps shouldn't be the first film to watch when you're new to the Giallo-sub genre, but it's definitely a good film that I warmly recommend.

Following the death of his ex-girlfriend, a film-score composer finds himself and those closest to him in jeopardy when the killers' spree turns to them, forcing him to piece together the strange clues left behind in order to make sense of the mystery and put a stop to the killings.

For the most part, this one proved to be a rather fun giallo. Among the film's best aspects here is the enjoyable storyline that serves the film nicely. There's some fantastic storylines and subplots at aplay, as the initial start with the half-heard conversation and murder the next day at the fashion house launches some fun here with the blackmail revelation, adultery and secret drug-ring that caters to most of the models at their studio, giving the potential for the usual red-herrings and double-crosses throughout the film. The way the connections slowly build together, from the motive of the cat attacking the victims and how the trick was accomplished to the detective work uncovering the real killer detailing all the different incidents that have taken place which is wrapped together for an extremely engrossing, fast-moving mystery. As well, there's quite a lot to like here with the absurd killing method which offers a real change of pace in the genre. The idea of a cat trained to attack using a special poison mis on it's claws being carried around in a wicker basket covered by a yellow shawl is a wholly unique and original tactic that gives the film something different. As the handler still comes with the traditional look and getup, the mix of styles creates some fine shock jumps of the victims suddenly getting attacked by something or the scenes featuring the killer striking in more traditional manners. The stalking scenes are incredibly suspenseful as well, from the train station encounter, the confrontation in the abandoned factory and the incredibly tense finale in the house which has plenty of suspense and graphic kills which give this one a lot to like. There are a few issues with the film. The first problem is a rather distressing inability to really go for its own charge instead of doing the genre's hits like a checklist. This one pulls off every point in the style, from the continuous half-hearted revelations of the blackmailing attempts and secret keeping, the amateur detective following along the nature of the crimes by his inadvertent involvement that comes about through happenstance and the need for continuing on the killing spree in order to keep the secret hidden because the deaths uncovered an unrelated secret. These are all brought about by the needs of the genre and run through here in a generally routine manner, giving it a wholly cliched feel. The other issue is the underwhelming and abrupt finale that is shocking for the suddenness of it's ending, making this one a little lower with these issues.

Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Violence, Full Nudity and Language.