In the post-war years, the proliferation of transnational European co-productions gave rise to a cross-pollination of genres, with the same films sold in different markets as belonging to different movements. Among these, Riccardo Freda's ('I vampiri', 'The Horrible Dr. Hichock') 'Double Face' was marketed in West Germany as an Edgar Wallace 'krimi', while in Italy it was sold as a giallo in the tradition of Mario Bava's Blood and Black Lace, combining elements from both genres for a unique and unforgettable viewing experience.
When unfaithful wife of wealthy businessman John Alexander (the legendary Klaus Kinski, giving an atypically restrained performance), Helen (Margaret Lee, 'Circus of Fear') dies in a car crash, it initially looks like a freak accident. However, the plot thickens when evidence arises suggesting that the car was tampered with prior to the crash. And John's entire perception of reality is thrown into doubt when he discovers a recently-shot pornographic movie which appears to feature Helen, suggesting that she is in fact alive and playing an elaborate mind game on him... Psychological, psychedelic, and at times just plain psychotic, Double Face stands as one of the most engaging and enjoyable films in Freda's lengthy and diverse career - a densely-plotted, visually-stunning giallo that evokes much of the same ambience of paranoia and decadence as such classics of the genre as 'One on Top of the Other' and 'A Lizard in a Woman's Skin'.
Up Next in Giallo
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Killer Nun
1979 • Italy • Directed by Giulio Berruti
Aging blonde-bombshell Anita Ekberg ('La Dolce Vita', 'Pick-up Alley') gives a full-bodied performance as a sex-crazed sister with some seriously bad habits in the lurid cult classic 'Killer Nun'. One of the most notorious 'nunsploitation' films, 'Killer...
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Who Saw Her Die?
Sculptor Franco Serpieri (Lazenby) welcomes Roberta (Nicoletta Elmi, 'Deep Red') - his young daughter from a failed marriage - to Venice, unaware that a disturbed child-killer is stalking the city's canals. When Roberta's body is found floating face-down in the river, the lives of Franco and his ...
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Strip Nude For Your Killer
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