My Dear Killer (DVD)

...when this film was made. My Dear Killer was directed by Tonino Valerii, who only made one giallo, but names like Aldo Lado, Lucio Fulci and Dario Argento are better known. One of the quirks of the films, or at least those that I've seen, was that actors were allowed to speak their native languages, which were then dubbed into the target language, meaning that lip synchronisation is way off at times.

Probably because most of the actors ...
...is a limited audience for My Dear Killer. You really have to enjoy dubious retro horrors made on a budget in order to appreciate it, or at least know what to expect. However, if you do fall into that category, then I'm sure that you will enjoy it as much as I did. Recommended.

The DVD is available from play.com for £5.99.

Classification: 18

Running time: 96 minutes  ... more

When a man is decapitated at a building site, Inspector Luca Peretti begins the investigation into his death and the death of the last man to apparently see him alive. Before long, Peretti realises that there is a link with the death of a small girl a few years before - Stefania Moroni was kidnapped and left to die of starvation. Her father was also murdered when he tried to pay the ransom. Her kidnapper was never found, but now it seems as if someone outside of the police has decided to re-open the investigation. Can Peretti work out who was responsible for all the deaths? Or is it too late after all this time?

Just a brief word on giallo, because not everyone will be familiar with it: Italian giallo is an interesting genre of film (and literature) - and usually indicates a thriller of some sort, sometimes with an erotic element to it. It was most popular in the 1970s, which was when this film was made. My Dear Killer was directed by Tonino Valerii, who only made one giallo, but names like Aldo Lado, Lucio Fulci and Dario Argento are better known. One of the quirks of the films, or at least those that I've seen, was that actors were allowed to speak their native languages, which were then dubbed into the target language, meaning that lip synchronisation is way off at times.

Probably because most of the actors are foreign, I am not familiar with any of the names. The rather English-sounding George Hilton plays Luca Peretti, but that is a stage name, the actor actually hails from Uruguay. His performance is slightly dubious; he just about manages to pull it off without turning it into a complete farce. To be fair, this isn't always his fault; sometimes it is because of the dubbing, other times it is because whoever was doing the dubbing has a voice that delivers lines woodenly to say the least. Still Hilton does do a fair amount of Joey Tribiani-style staring into the distance trying to look intelligent, which he doesn't always pull off.

Unfortunately, the level of acting doesn't really get any better. The only decent performance comes from Patty Shepard, an American actress, who plays Stefania's teacher. However, she doesn't have a particularly big role, so doesn't make much of an impact on the overall level of acting. The mother and aunt of Stefania, played by Dana Ghia and Monica Randall, are particularly bad. The mother has obviously been mentally disturbed by her daughter's death, and thinks that she is still alive - unfortunately the exaggerated acting doesn't work well. The aunt is very serious and prissy, so much so that she isn't in the slightest bit convincing. Still, I don't watch giallo for the high standards of acting (I know it won't be), so I wasn't particularly disappointed by this.

This isn't a comedy - the death of a young girl like Stefania can never be funny - but there is a certain element of humour that creeps in, often because of the rubbish acting and weak dialogue, that makes the film more entertaining than it would otherwise have been. There is also an attempt to resemble an Agatha Christie story in that the 'clues' are fed in slowly, along with a few red herrings, culminating in a Hercule Poirot-style ending when Peretti gathers all the suspects together before telling them who the real killer is. It was so obviously a pastiche that it was hard to take it too seriously, but that really is part of the charm of the film.

Mickey-taking aside, the plot was actually very entertaining. The pacing is brilliant, because it starts with one death and then moves on to others, so there really is no time to get bored. If you like your crime fiction, then the chances are you will enjoy this - so long as you are prepared for the weird lip synching, which obviously isn't everyone's cup of tea. The ending is slightly abrupt - there is little detail given on the reason behind Stefania's killing, for example, but it doesn't have too much of an impact on the overall quality of the plot.

Giallos are often known for their vivid colours and poor editing. I didn't feel as though either were an issue here - director Tonino Valerii has made a film of reasonable quality with no attempts at trying anything clever or arty, and that was fine by me. There are a few gory scenes; a decapitation and someone being killed with a circular saw, but they aren't particularly graphic, and to be honest, the decapitated head doesn't look all that realistic anyway! Nevertheless, there is a rating of 18 on the film, so it definitely isn't one to watch with the kiddies.

There are just a couple of extras; a trailer of the film, and a selection of introductions to other giallos released by Shameless, the distribution company responsible for distribuing these films in the UK. I've seen most of these intros before, accompanying other releases, and enjoyed seeing a glimpse of Black Cat (based on the Edgar Allan Poe story) and Night Train Murders again. Definitely worth watching if you like this type of film.

This is a film with many flaws. Nevertheless, I really enjoyed it. However, there is a limited audience for My Dear Killer. You really have to enjoy dubious retro horrors made on a budget in order to appreciate it, or at least know what to expect. However, if you do fall into that category, then I'm sure that you will enjoy it as much as I did. Recommended.

The DVD is available from play.com for £5.99.

Classification: 18

Running time: 96 minutes 

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