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Forgotten Gialli: Volume Six – Vinegar Syndrome (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Dates: Italy, 1973 (Death Carries a Cane), Italy, 1968 (Naked You Die), Italy, 1978 (The Bloodstained Shadow)
Directors: Maurizio Pradeaux (Death Carries a Cane), Antonio Margheriti (Naked You Die), Antonio Bido (The Bloodstained Shadow)
Cast: Robert Hoffmann, Nieves Navarro, George Martin, Anuska Borova, Serafino Profumo, Simón Andreu, Luciano Rossi (Death Carries a Cane), Mark Damon, Eleonora Brown, Sally Smith, Patrizia Valturri, Michael Rennie, Ludmila Lvova, Luciano Pigozzi (Naked You Die), Lino Capolicchio, Stefania Casini, Craig Hill, Massimo Serato, Juliette Mayniel, Laura Nucci, Alfredo Zammi (The Bloodstained Shadow)

Release Date: January 30th, 2024
Approximate Running Times: 91 Minutes 31 Seconds (Death Carries a Cane), 97 Minutes 33 Seconds (Naked You Die Italian Cut), 77 Minutes 44 Seconds (Naked You Die "School Girl Killer" Cut), 109 Minutes 49 Seconds (The Bloodstained Shadow)
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC (Death Carries a Cane, The Bloodstained Shadow), 2.35:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC (Naked You Die Both Versions)
Rating: NR
Sound: DTS-HD Mono Italian (Death Carries a Cane, The Bloodstained Shadow, Naked You Die Italian Cut), DTS-HD Mono English (Death Carries a Cane, The Bloodstained Shadow, Naked You Die "School Girl Killer" Cut)
Subtitles: English (Death Carries a Cane, The Bloodstained Shadow, Naked You Die Italian Cut), English SDH (Death Carries a Cane, The Bloodstained Shadow, Naked You Die "School Girl Killer" Cut)
Region Coding: Region Free
Retail Price: $79.98

Death Carries a Cane: "While enjoying an otherwise leisurely day, Kitty, a professional photographer, happens to witness the murder of a nude woman, via a sightseeing telescope. While she is unable to make out the black trench coat-wearing killer’s face, it’s not long before this mystery assailant begins stalking and gorily bumping off all potential witnesses to the crime. Fearing that she might become the killer’s next target, Kitty enlists the help of her boyfriend, Alberto, as the two launch their own investigation into the murders…" - synopsis provided by the distributor

Naked You Die: "Following the arrival of a mysterious trunk to an all-girls boarding school, a series of strange disappearances and murders begin to plague the institution. To appease the panic-stricken students and staff, Inspector Durand begins searching the school grounds in a bid to unmask the culprit. However, student and amateur sleuth, Jill, decides to solve the mystery on her own, unwittingly putting herself into the sights of a bloodthirsty killer!" - synopsis provided by the distributor

The Bloodstained Shadow: "In the 1950s, the body of a teenage girl was found strangled near a small village. Decades later, with the murder remaining unsolved, a young man named Stefano, who grew up in the area, returns home to visit his older brother, Paulo, who has become the local priest. Shortly after his arrival, more mysterious murders begin to plague the community, with the victims being members of a strange local sect. But when Paulo begins receiving menacing warnings from an unknown source, Stefano, with the help of his girlfriend Sandra, begins looking into the seemingly ordinary town’s sinister past..." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4.25/5 (Naked You Die Italian Cut), 4/5 (Death Carries a Cane, Naked You Die "School Girl Killer" Cut), 3.75/5 (The Bloodstained Shadow)

Here’s the information given about Death Carries a Cane's transfer, “Newly scanned & restored in 4K from its 35mm original camera negative.”

Death Carries a Cane comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 30.7 GB

Feature: 25.9 GB

This transfer looks very good for most of the presentation. That said, there are some minor instances of source-related damage. Flesh tones look healthy, colors are nicely saturated, image clarity, black levels, and compression are solid, and the image always looks organic.

Here’s the information given about Naked You Die's transfer, “Newly scanned & restored in 4K from its 35mm original camera negative.”

Naked You Die comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 45.3 GB

Feature: 23.8 GB (Naked You Die Italian Cut), 16.3 GB (Naked You Die "School Girl Killer" Cut)

These two versions, in most areas, look comparable. There are some minor instances of source-related damage. Flesh tones look healthy, colors are nicely saturated, image clarity, black levels, and compression are solid, and the image always looks organic.

Here’s the information given about The Bloodstained Shadow's transfer, “Newly scanned & restored in 4K from its 35mm original camera negative.”

The Bloodstained Shadow comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 46.1 GB

Feature: 29.2 GB

This transfer looks very good for most of the presentation. That said, there are some minor instances of source-related damage and at least one noticeable instance of source damage. Flesh tones look healthy, colors are nicely saturated, image clarity and compression are solid, black levels are strong, and the image always looks organic.

Audio: 4.25/5 (DTS-HD Mono Italian - Death Carries a Cane, DTS-HD Mono Italian - Naked You Die Italian Cut), 4/5 (DTS-HD Mono Italian - The Bloodstained Shadow, DTS-HD Mono English - Death Carries a Cane, DTS-HD Mono English - Naked You Die "School Girl Killer" Cut), 3.5/5 (DTS-HD Mono English - The Bloodstained Shadow)

Death Carries a Cane comes with two audio options, a DTS-HD mono mix in Italian and a DTS-HD mono mix in English. Both audio tracks sound clean, clear, and balanced. Range-wise, the Italian language track sounds fuller than the English language track. Included are removable English subtitles for the Italian, a second removable English subtitle for the Italian text, and removable English SDH for the English language track.

Naked You Die, the Italian cut, comes with one audio option, a DTS-HD mono mix in Italian with removable English subtitles. The audio is in great shape. Dialog comes through clearly, everything sounds balanced, and range-wise, this audio track sounds very good.

Naked You Die "School Girl Killer" cut comes with one audio option, a DTS-HD mono mix in English with removable English SDH. The audio is in good shape. Dialog comes through clearly, everything sounds balanced, and range-wise, this track sounds good.

The Bloodstained Shadow comes with two audio options: a DTS-HD mono mix in Italian and a DTS-HD mono mix in English. There is a disclaimer before the film that explains the limitations of the English language track. That track has some hiss, crackle, and sibilance issues. That said, the dialog comes through clearly enough to follow, everything sounds balanced, and the score sounds robust. The Italian-language track is in great shape. Dialog comes through clearly, everything sounds balanced, ambient sounds are well-presented, and the score sounds robust. Included are removable English subtitles for the Italian language track and removable English SDH for the English language track.

Extras:

Extras for Death Carries a Cane include a promotional image gallery with music from the film playing in the background, an interview with editor Eugenio Alabiso titled A Life in the Suite (21 minutes 19 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), and an audio commentary with film historians Eugenio Ercolani, Troy Howarth and Nathaniel Thompson.

Extras for Naked You Die include a promotional image gallery with music from the film playing in the background, a video essay by Pier Maria Bocchi on the lesser-known films of Naked You Die director Antonio Margheriti aka Anthony Dawson titled Giallo Dawson (11 minutes 40 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), a video essay by Mike Foster on Naked You Die and the early days of the giallo film titled Hello Giallo: Death Finds Its Feet (13 minutes 56 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an interview with actress Malisa Longo titled Last Shower (15 minutes 30 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), an interview with actress Eleonora Brown titled School Girl Killer (15 minutes 37 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), an interview with actress Sally Smith titled Young, Evil & Savage (10 minutes 48 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), and an audio commentary with Eugenio Ercolani, Troy Howarth and Nathaniel Thompson for the Italian cut.

Extras for The Bloodstained Shadow include a still gallery featuring behind-the-scenes photos and promotional images with music from the film playing in the background, English language theatrical trailer (3 minutes 26 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), Italian language theatrical trailer (3 minutes 27 seconds, Dolby Digital mono Italian with removable English subtitles), alternate English titles and credits (3 minutes 4 seconds, Dolby Digital mono), an interview with musician Claudio Simonetti titled A Bloodstained Sound (23 minutes 51 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), an interview with production assistant Luciano Lucchi titled The Bloodstained Set (23 minutes 42 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), actor Lino Capolicchio interviewed by Antonio Bido titled Rural Horror Hero (16 minutes 26 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), actress Stefania Casini interviewed by Antonio Bido titled Beauty in the Darkness (16 minutes 47 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), an interview with screenwriter Marisa Andalò titled Inkstained Shadow (24 minutes 44 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), an interview with director Antonio Bido titled Deep Black (54 minutes 20 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), and an audio commentary with Eugenio Ercolani, Troy Howarth and Nathaniel Thompson.

Summary:

Death Carries a Cane: Directed by Maurizio Pradeaux, whose limited filmography only includes one other giallo, Death Steps in the Dark.

The narrative revolves around a woman who is waiting for her boyfriend to show up, and she accidentally sees a murder as it happens.

By the time Death Carries a Cane came knocking, the giallo genre was already in decline. And it should not come as a surprise that the audience was starting to feel Déjà Vu. Content-wise, Death Carries a Cane bears several similarities to Luciano Ercoli’s Death Walk’s at Midnight. Both films feature a heroine who witnesses a murder, and this puts her life in grave danger. Most importantly, they both utilize the ever-exquisite Nieves Navarro (Forbidden Photos of a Lady Above Suspicion) in the role of the witness, albeit in much different ways. And the similarities do not end there, as there are at least two more cast members from Death Walks at Midnight who appear in Death Carries a Cane: Simón Andreu (The Blood Splattered Bride) and Luciano Rossi (Forgotten Pistolero).

Narrative-wise, Death Carries a Cane has all the ingredients that one would want in a giallo. Unfortunately, the ways in which said assets of the genre are employed greatly affect the outcome of Death Carries a Cane. After a very good opening sequence in which a young woman’s murder sets everything in motion, the film goes slightly awry. As the narrative shifts its focus away from its leading lady, who saw said crime, and puts the investigation into the hands of her boyfriend, things move along slowly but surely, and things don’t quit getting back on track until the finale act.

And then, when it comes to the all-important kill sequences, there is a lot to be desired. Sure, the killer has a disability that affects their mobility. And yet, despite this, the killer is able to outfox and subdue, in a timely fashion, his victims. Out of all of the kill scenes, only one leaves a lasting impression, and it is a death scene that takes place in a moving car. Besides this scene, the bulk of the film and its kill scenes are rather bland, even by Giallo standards.

As mentioned before, Death Carries a Cane’s biggest misstep is its misuse of its leading lady, Nieves Navarro, which is all but regaled in the background for large sections of the film. And it is safe to say that the moments she is in, especially the finale, which involves a scene where her character hides in a green house from the killer, are Death Carries a Cane’s most satisfying moments.

Without a doubt, death carries a Cane’s weakest link is its leading man, Robert Hoffmann (Spasmo), in the role of Nieves Navarro’s boyfriend. He gives a wooden performance that makes him a hard protagonist to care for. There is one other performance of note, and that would be Luciano Rossi, who plays a minor role as one of this film’s many red herrings. Ultimately, despite its shortcomings, Death Carries a Cane is a lot of fun. Nieves Navarro delivers a scene-stealing performance, and for most Giallo fans, it delivers when it comes to this genre's staples.

Naked You Die: Directed by Antonio Margheriti, whose notable films are The Virgin of Nuremberg, Castle of Blood, The Long Hair of Death, and Seven Deaths in the Cat's Eyes. Before Antonio Margheriti made a name for himself in the gothic horror genre, he was the premier Italian filmmaker working in the sci-fi genre, directing Assignment: Outer Space, Battle of the Worlds, and the Gamma One Quadrilogy (The Wild, Wild Planet, The War of the Planets, War Between the Planets, and Snow Devils).

The narrative revolves around the students and faculty of an all-girls school finding themselves the target of a psychopath, who knocks them off one by one.

When Naked You Die was released theatrically in the U.S. under the title School Girl Killer. The U.S. release was also 20 minutes shorter than the Italian-language version.

With a salacious title like Naked You Die, one would expect that there would be a lot more flesh on display. The nudity in Naked You Die occurs in two scenes. The opening sequence and a shower scene later on. Another area where some die-hard Giallo fans may feel let down is the lack of blood in the kill scenes. The killer's primary weapon is their hands, which are often used to strangle victims. The most violent death in Naked You Die involves witnessing the killer's handiwork, who is killed with a sickle. That said, if you can get past the lack of nudity and gore, Naked You Die is actually a lot of fun. Sure, the premise is nothing more than your standard body count film. And though such predictability can stop a film dead in its tracks, the way things unfold in Naked You Die is far from conventional.

Naked You Die’s strongest asset is a quirky character named Jill, an amateur sleuth and one of the students at the school where the killer is wreaking havoc. And while there are countless other giallos in which amateur sleuths find themselves at the center of a murder mystery, it is safe to say that Jill is far removed from the type of amateur sleuth that one would associate with the giallo genre. Jill is a mischievous young woman who lacks investigating experience, and she employs the most unusual ways to gather information. It is her tenacity that helps catch the killer and the inept police who do things by the book. Another amusing character is the school’s caretaker, who also happens to be a pepper tom in his spare time.

Outside of Sally Smith's performance in the role of Jill, none of the other cast members left any lasting impressions. The rest of the performances are best described as adequate. That said, the cast does feature many recognizable faces like Mark Damon (House of Usher), Michael Rennie (The Day the Earth Stood Still), Luciano Pigozzi (The Italian Peter Lorre), Malisa Longo (Ricco the Mean Machine), and Eleonora Brown (Two Women). Also, the main theme, a music cue titled Nightmare, sounds like the main theme from the 1960s Batman TV series. Ultimately, what Naked You Die lacks in gory set pieces, it more than makes up for with its abundance of style and off-beat humor.

The Bloodstained Shadow: The Bloodstained Shadow is the second of two giallo’s that were directed by Antonio Bido, the other being Watch Me When I Kill.

Memories of an unsolved murder ignite fear in a remote local village when it appears the killer has returned to tie up any loose ends that could incriminate them.

Red herrings are an integral part of the giallo genre, and The Bloodstained Shadow does a remarkable job in this regard. Just when you thought you had figured out the identity, along comes a red herring that forces you to rethink your position. In fact, The Bloodstained Shadow starts off with its best use of misdirection, as it shows the murder that drives the narrative. Without giving too much away about the killers’ identities, let’s just say that everyone in The Bloodstained Shadow is guilty of some crime.

As mentioned before, Antonio Bido’s direction is rock solid, especially when it comes to the death scenes. He delivers the goods, and then some. Actually, The Bloodstained Shadow has two moments regarding its leading lady, Stefania Casini. The first is being stalked by an unseen assailant as she frantically tries to unlock the door to her home. Another similar moment is a scene where she is all alone in her home and the killer shows up to remove evidence that she poses. Both of these moments are classic examples of building and sustaining tension to its boiling point.

From a performance standpoint, the cast is all very good in their respective roles. With the standout performance coming from Stefania Casini (Suspiria) in the role of Sandra Sellani, it was her character's sister who was murdered in the opening credits. Another notable performance is by Craig Hill in the role of a priest named Don Paolo. The most disappointing performance comes from Lino Capolicchio (The Garden of the Finzi-Continis) in the role of Stefano D'Archangelo. He is the younger brother of Don Paolo, and this character is romantically linked to the Sandra Sellani character.

Content-wise, The Bloodstained Shadow has all the ingredients one would want and expect from a giallo. And his previous foray into the genre, Watch Me When I Kill, showed signs of a filmmaker with a firm grasp on the genre. The end result was still far from one of the genre's defining moments. Fortunately, with The Bloodstained Shadow, he has learned from his previous mistakes, and the end result is a revisited thriller that far exceeds expectations.

Vinegar Syndrome add another solid release to their Forgotten Gialli series, highly recommended.