Death Carries a Cane – Indicator Series (4k UHD)

Theatrical Release Date: Italy, 1973
Director: Maurizio Pradeaux
Writers: Arpad DeRiso, Alfonso Balcázar, Jorge Martín, Maurizio Pradeaux
Cast: Robert Hoffmann, Nieves Navarro, George Martin, Anuska Borova, Serafino Profumo, Simón Andreu, Luciano Rossi

Release Date: September 29th, 2025
Approximate Running Time: 91 Minutes 19 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen / 2160 Progressive / HEVC / H.265 / Dolby Vision HDR10
Rating: 15 (UK)
Sound: DTS-HD Mono Italian, DTS-HD Mono English
Subtitles: English, English SDH
Region Coding: Region Free
Retail Price: £24.99 (UK)

"Tourist Kitty (Navarro) stumbles upon a murder whilst looking through coin-operated binoculars. When witnesses start being gruesomely bumped off, Kitty teams up with boyfriend Alberto (Hoffmann) to try and find the black-clad killer... if he doesn’t find her first!" - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 5/5

Here’s the information provided about the transfer, "Death Carries a Cane was scanned in 4K at Augustus Color in Rome using the original 35mm negative. 4K HDR color correction and restoration work was undertaken at Filmfinity, London, where Phoenix image-processing tools were used to remove many thousands of instances of dirt, eliminate scratches and other imperfections, as well as repair damaged frames. No grain management, edge enhancement or sharpening tools were employed to artificially alter the image in any way."

Death Carries a Cane comes on a 100 GB triple layer 4K UHD.

Disc Size: 72.4 GB

Feature: 64 GB

When compared to Vinegar Syndrome’s 2024 Blu-ray release, this new transfer improves upon it in every way. Vinegar Syndrome’s release has some minor debris; this new transfer is free of any debris. Flesh tones look correct, colors are nicely saturated, image clarity, contrast, black levels, and compression are solid, and the image always looks organic.

Audio: 4.5/5 (DTS-HD Mono Italian, DTS-HD Mono English)

This release 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, balanced, and robust when they should. Included are removable English subtitles for the Italian language track, removable English SDH for the English language track, and removable English subtitles for Italian text when watching the English language track.

Extras:

Extras for this release include an image gallery (52 images - stills/lobbycards/German pressbook/home video art/posters), a German theatrical trailer (2 minutes 45 seconds, Dolby Digital mono German with removable English subtitles), Tormentor VHS opening titles (3 minutes 10 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), an interview with Roberto Pregadio, the founder of Four Flies Records, who discusses Death Carries a Cane’s score and the work of its composer (16 minutes 43 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), an interview with Eugenio Ercolani who provides an overview of director Maurizio Pradeaux’s career (15 minutes 8 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an archival career spanning interview with editor Eugenio Alabiso titled A Life in the Suite (21 minutes 19 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Italian with removable English subtitles), an archival audio commentary with film historians Eugenio Ercolani, Troy Howarth and Nathaniel Thompson, and an 80-page book with cast & crew information, an essay titled A Man for all Seasons written by Roberto Curti, an archival interview with actress Nieves Navarro conducted by José Luis Salvador Estébenez, an archival interview with actor George Martín conducted by José Luis Salvador Estébenez, an archival interview with actor Robert Hoffmann conducted by Michael Cholewa and Karsten Thuran, and information about the restoration.

Summary:

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.

The giallo genre had already begun to decline by the time Death Carries a Cane arrived. It is not surprising that the audience was starting to feel déjà vu. Content-wise, Death Carries a Cane bears several similarities to Luciano Ercoli’s Death Walks at Midnight. Both films feature a heroine who witnesses a murder, putting 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 an exemplary opening sequence in which a young woman’s murder sets everything in motion, the film goes slightly awry. As the narrative shifts its focus from the leading lady, who witnessed the crime, to her boyfriend, who takes over the investigation, the pacing slows considerably. As a result, the story fails to regain its momentum until the final act.

When it comes to the crucial kill sequences, there is much left 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 strong 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, who is all but relegated to the background for large sections of the film. The moments featuring her character, particularly the finale where she hides in a greenhouse from the killer, are among the most satisfying in Death Carries a Cane.

Without a doubt, death carries a cane. The 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.

Death Carries a Cane makes its way to 4K UHD via a definitive release from Powerhouse Films, highly recommended.

Note: This release is a limited edition of 5,000 individually numbered units (4,000 4K UHDs and 1,000 Blu-rays) for the UK.

Note about the 4K screenshots: It is not possible to make Dolby Vision or HDR10 screenshots that faithfully match the experience of watching a film in motion on a TV. Instead of not having any screenshots, all of the 4K screenshots are m2ts taken with a MPC-HC player and lossless PNGs.

Written by Michael Den Boer