Film Review: Dario Argento's GIALLO

In the world of Italian horror cinema the name Dario Argento is king and his most internationally acclaimed film is Suspiria (1977) followed by Deep Red (1975). Like many of the classic horror film directors (John Carpenter, Wes Craven, George A. Romero, Tobe Hooper) a new film would be cause to celebrate so it is with great trepidation that I review Argento's latest film Giallo, which has yet to receive a US distribution. Despite Academy Award winning actor Adrien Brody (who is also an Executive Producer) presence in the film it still has yet to receive US distribution even though you can find a Region Free DVD online.

I'm a huge fan of Argento as I own every film he's ever directed (with the exception of The Five Days) with the two previously mentioned films a must watch for Argento virgins but you can add Phenomena (1985), Tenebre (1982), Opera (1987), and The Bird With the Crystal Plumage (1970). Giallo could not be included with that list. Argento has been in the movie making business for over forty years so you'd think that his latest film would actually be a good film but like his previous debacle Mother of Tears: The Third Mother (2007), Giallo is one of Argento's least affective horror films. Whereas Mother of Tears was an exercise in excessive gore and ludicrous plot, Giallo has very little gore and a more straight forward plot. Because the film's title is giallo I was hoping that this would be a return of Argento to the genre of Italian films that made him famous but this is an oddity even by Argento standards.

The film concerns a Inspector Avolfi (Brody) who is in charge of solving the most notorious murders in the city. He gets entangled in the kidnapping of Linda's (Emmannuelle Seigner) sister Celine (Elsa Pataky) whom he soon believes may be another victim of a serial killer in the city. This serial killer is kidnapping his victims with the use of a taxi cab and mutilating their facial features before killing them. This film is more straight forward that most of Argento's film as it is revealed early on why the film is called "giallo." It not only represents the genre of the film but also describes the physical deformity of serial killer which is that his skin is yellow due to the liver disease that he suffers from. If you didn't already know "giallo" means yellow in Italian and represents a popular form of Italian pulp books or "yellow" books as they were known as.

Traditionally the serial killer is not revealed in an Argento film until the climax of the film, so, revealing him so early in the film is unusual. Also, he never really kills anyone. The first victim we see in the film is mutilated (mostly off screen) but eventually dies of shock after she's been released and Celine is held captive for most of the film but very little violence is ever done to her. Written by Jim Agnew, Sean Keller, and Argento himself this is a very Argento-lite film. The mystery is slight and the way in which the story plays out is mundane and pedestrian. Argento's The Card Player (2004) and Do You Like Hitchcock? (2005) were more exciting than this film. There isn't even the Argento-style present in this film. This film plays out like a by-the-numbers thriller that Argento just phoned in. Although I thought Mother of Tears was the worst films of 2007, it had the style and violence of some of his best work and thus far was at least an interesting film to watch (plus it doesn't hurt that his daughter Asia Argento was the star). Giallo may be a more mainstream film with its name star and toned down violence but it is in no way a good film. It is interesting to point out that Brody gives a very interesting performance as a haunted Inspector forced to handle the most heinous crimes. If you're a Brody fan than the film is worth a look (or if you're an Argento fan like myself) but other than that this film is a throw away like Argento's Mother of Tears and Sleepless (2001).