Death Walks at Midnight (1972)

Director: Luciano Ercoli

Notable Cast: Susan Scott (Nieves Navarro), Simon Andreu, Peter Martell, Carlo Gentili, Claudie Lange, Ivano Staccioli, Fabrizio Moresco, Claudio Pellegrini, Luciano Rossi, Raul Aparici, Alessandro Perrella

After watching the latest release of Death Walks on High Heels, contained in the same box set as this film, I was stoked to dig into Death Walks at Midnight. If it was even half as clever and artistic as a giallo as the former, then this film was going to be impressive too. Fortunately, Death Walks at Midnight is a pretty effective little murder thriller, despite not being quite as good as High Heels, and the combination of actors, director, and writer proves to work effectively once again. The first half of the film is a bit rough when it comes to flow and narrative distinction, but by the time that Midnight hits full stride with its death walk it’s a vicious and shocking crime film worthy of the praise it receives. It might be a film that’s somewhat saved by the third act, but it’s a miraculous save that redeems a lot of the awkward set pieces from the first two acts.

Death Walks on High Heels (1971)

Director: Luciano Ercoli

Notable Cast: Susan Scoot (Nieves Navarro), Frank Wolff, Simon Andreu, Carlo Gentili, George Rigaud, Jose Manuel Martin, Fabrizio Moresco, Luciano Rossi, Claudie Lange

While the giallo film era only lasted a handful of years in the late 60s and early 70s, there seems to be a very robust selection of films in that style that came out in a very short span. As someone decently new to the genre, I tend to go by recommendations from those around me and early on my brother touted the films of Ercoli as some that I needed to see. With the release of Arrow Video’s newest boxset Death Walks Twice (which includes Death Walks on High Heels and Death Walks at Midnight), the time seemed perfect to jump in. The earlier of the two films, Death Walks on High Heels, seemed the right place to start. Considering that both films form a sort of very loose trilogy of films featuring Ercoli’s wife in the lead role – the first one being Forbidden Photos of a Lady Above Suspicion, already conveniently reviewed by my brother HERE, but not included in this boxset – it seemed perfect for my further exploration of the giallo genre. Death Walks in High Heels is a rather intriguing film too. Similar to the giallo I reviewed earlier called What Have You Done to Solange?, High Heels is more intent on developing a mystery than it is about showcasing the stronger exploitation elements of killers and sex (although both obviously play key roles in that development) and it makes for a film that rises above a lot of the gimmicks of the genre and comes off as an artfully complex film that giallo fans are certain to enjoy.

The Forbidden Photos Of A Lady Above Suspicion (1970)

Director: Luciano Ercoli
Notable Cast: Dagmar Lassander, Pier Paolo Capponi, Simon Andreu, Osvaldo Genazzani, Salvador Huguet, Nieves Navarro

Mysterious and reclusive director Luciano Ercoli is a somewhat underrated Italian director that made a handful of quality giallo murder mysteries in the early 70's. His most memorable film is the wonderful Death Walks at Midnight but his first foray into the genre was the exhaustively long titled The Forbidden Photos of a Lady Above Suspicion and he proves that even at the beginning of his career he had a knack for making good suspense mysteries.

The plot starts with a housewife of a successful business man being cornered by a potential rapist that tells her that her husband was a murderer and that he killed a business partner that he owed money to. She later finds out that one of her husband's business partners was mysteriously killed and then she is phoned by the mysterious man who blackmails her with a recording of her husband admitting to the murder. She agrees to pay the man and even offers up her body but his blackmailing doesn't end there. With the help of her nymphomaniac friend (the beautiful Susan Scott), she has to escape the potential killer and find out the truth about her husband.