La morte accarezza a mezzanotte
| La morte accarezza a mezzanotte | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Luciano Ercoli |
| Written by | Ernesto Gastaldi Guido Leoni Mahnahén Velasco Mannuel Velasco |
| Story by | Sergio Corbucci |
| Produced by | Luciano Ercoli Alberto Pugliese |
| Starring | Susan Scott Simón Andreu Peter Martell Claudie Lange Carlo Gentili |
| Cinematography | Fernando Arribas |
| Edited by | Angelo Curi |
| Music by | Gianni Ferrio |
Production companies | C.B. Films S.A. Cinecompany |
| Distributed by | C.B. Films |
Release date |
|
Running time | 103 minutes |
| Countries | Italy Spain |
| Language | Italian |
| Box office | ESP 20,658,563 (Spain) |
La morte accarezza a mezzanotte is a 1972 giallo film directed by Luciano Ercoli. The film was written by Ernesto Gastaldi, Guido Leoni, Mahnahén Velasco and Mannuel Velasco; and starred Susan Scott, Simón Andreu, Peter Martell, Claudie Lange and Carlo Gentili.
Plot
Fashion model Valentina (Susan Scott) agrees to help her journalist boyfriend Giò Baldi (Simón Andreu) research the effects of LSD. While under the influence of the drug, Valentina sees a man bludgeon a woman to death with a spiked gauntlet. Baldi publishes a report of her hallucinations; however, Valentina believes what she has seen is real. She begins to realise that the killer is stalking her, although neither Baldi nor the police will believe what she tells them.
Cast
- Susan Scott: Valentina
- Simón Andreu: Giò Baldi
- Peter Martell: Stefano
- Carlo Gentili: ispett. Serino
- Claudie Lange: Verushka Wuttenberg
- Ivano Staccioli: prof. Wuttenberg
- Fabrizio Moresco: Pepito
- Claudio Pellegrini: Henri
- Luciano Rossi: Hans Krutzer
- Raúl Aparici: Juan Hernandez
- Alessandro Perrella: Van
Production
La morte accarezza a mezzanotte marks the third collaboration between director Luciano Ercoli and screenwriter Ernesto Gastaldi, who had previously worked together on 1971's La morte cammina con i tacchi alti and 1970's Le foto proibite di una signora per bene.[1] Ercoli's wife Nieves Navarro, credited here as Susan Scott, featured in several of his other films, often in similar roles as "tough, independent" women.[2] The director's preference for this type of character has been noted as being inspired by fumetti, a form of Italian photonovel often featuring such roles.[3]
Release
La morte accarezza a mezzanotte was released in Italy on 17 November 1972.[4] It has also been distributed under the titles Muerte acaricia a medianoche[5] and Death Walks at Midnight. It was released under the latter title in English by NoShame Films as part of a box set with La morte cammina con i tachi alti, titled Luciano Ercoli's Death Box Set.[6]
Reception
Writing for Allmovie, Robert Firsching gave the film one star out of five, calling it "laughably camp fun".[4] Writing for DVD Talk, Stuart Galbraith described the film as having "an exciting knock-down, drag-out climax". Reviewing the film alongside La morte cammina i tachi alti, Galbraith felt that La morte accarezza a mezzanotte had "a stronger, less-predictable screenplay [and] a bit more visual flair" than its companion film; he ultimately rated both films together three-and-a-half stars out of five.[6]
Footnotes
- ^ Jane, Ian (March 9, 2006). "The Forbidden Photos of a Lady Above Suspicion : DVD Talk Review of the DVD Video". DVD Talk. Retrieved May 31, 2012.
- ^ Shipka 2011, p. 93.
- ^ Shipka 2011, p. 95.
- ^ a b Robert Firsching. "La Morte Accarezza a Mezzanotte". Allmovie. Allrovi. Retrieved 17 June 2012.
- ^ "BFI | Film & TV Database | La morte accarezza a mezzanotte". British Film Institute. Retrieved 17 June 2012.
- ^ a b Galbraith, Stuart (February 28, 2006). "Luciano Ercoli's Death Box Set (Death Walks on High Heels / Death Walks at Midnight) : DVD Talk Review of the DVD Video". DVD Talk. Retrieved June 18, 2012.
References
- Shipka, Danny (2011). Perverse Titillation: The Exploitation Cinema of Italy, Spain and France, 1960–1980 (illustrated ed.). McFarland & Company. ISBN 0786448881.
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