Dario Argento remains on familiar territory for this Turin based serial killer thriller.
The plot:
When a serial killer begins operating in Turin, an ageing detective believes that it is the work of a killer who has lain dormant for some 17 years. With the help of a technologically savvy rookie, the sleep deprived detective must solve the case before any more victims surface.
And it's all pretty much as you were.
Argento is the undisputed master of Giallo, at least as far as Smell the Cult HQ is concerned, but this does feel a little like treading water. Everything you would expect to be in place is present and correct: fairly savage death-scenes, primarily of women; lip-synching that is just off by a fraction; a sinister, faceless killer; plenty of knives, lovingly shot.
Though never reaching the heights of his late-seventies, early eighties Giallo masterpieces (Tenebre, Phenomena et al) this is still a masterclass in directorial flair, evidence of the fact that, really, Argento hates horror and does everything in his power to distance himself from the crowd.
I said it felt like treading water?
Well, Argento on auto-pilot is still better than most of what's out there.
Solid Giallo.
4 out of 5
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