Rating: **
Review Date: 8/4/24
Director: Sergio Martino
Cast: Edwige Fenech, Anita Strindberg, Luigi Pistilli, cameo by
Daniela Giordano
Oliviero (Luigi Pistilli) is a depraved alcoholic writer who regularly beats, torments, and humiliates his timid wife, Irina (Anita Strindberg). When their house servant is murdered under mysterious circumstances, Oliviero hides her body in the cellar to avoid having to talk to the police. Irina questions his sanity, but his endless stream of abuse is making her insane as well. Then Oliviero's 20-year old niece, Floriana (Edwige Fenech), shows up and starts manipulating (and sleeping with) both of them. The twisty plot and false leads leave you guessing right until the end.
Despite the nonsense title which comes from an earlier Sergio Martino film, the movie is actually based on "The Black Cat" by Edgar Allan Poe. A black cat named Satan plays a critical role in the film and is seemingly Irina's nemesis. The film wastes no time in presenting Oliviero as a sadistic maniac, and opens with an exceedingly uncomfortable party where he torments his wife and humiliates his servant in front of a bunch of hippies, one of which starts dancing naked on the dinner table for no apparent reason.
Anita Strindberg gives a fantastic and unnerving performance as the frail and psychologically tormented Irina, and her voluminous updo and piercing blue eyes are mesmerizing. However, it's Edwige Fenech who gets star billing, even though she doesn't show up until thirty minutes into the film. But when she does show up, she's full throttle and completely changes the tone and direction of the story. Floriana marks Fenech's first bad girl role, which proved that she was capable of much more than being just another pretty face. She's a feisty, independent, forward-thinking, pansexual woman of the 70's, who sleeps with nearly everyone in the film, but always on her own terms. Unfortunately, while her hairdo is appropriate for the era and her character, it's not particularly flattering. Another standout is Daniela Giordano, whose sexy cameo nearly steals the show early on, but she disappears all too quickly.
It's an unpleasant film in nearly every regard, and director Sergio Martino does an excellent job of setting up and subverting many common giallo themes. The typical killer dressed in black with a knife is present, but not in the way you'd expect. Misogynistic sexual violence and murder run rampant throughout the film, and attractive young women are senselessly killed for no apparent reason. Fenech is the wild card, and her motives and allegiances are constantly shifting. She's pure poison, and even though she seemingly has the upper hand, she's really just another pawn in a larger game. It's admittedly a difficult film to watch and enjoy, but fans of Edwige Fenech will be delighted by her stunning presence and performance.