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Time To Get “Giallo!” See The Best Italian Thrillers Here! Check Out “YOUR VICE IS A LOCKED ROOM AND ONLY I HAVE THE KEY!”

By johnrieber on May 5, 2016 • ( 0 )

PUT THE BLOODY KNIFE DOWN. Time To Talk More “Giallo!”

If you don’t know about the classic Italian “giallo” genre of film shockers, you are missing some of the most suspenseful thrillers ever committed to bloody celluloid!

“Giallos” are Italy’s version of “pulp fiction” – lurid thrillers with plenty of sex and violence – but they are also some of the best mystery films ever made!

Oh, they also have some of the wildest titles of all time: like “A Lizard In A Woman’s Skin” for one, and what about this subtle title?

The genre of Italian “giallo” film has resulted in some cinematic classics such as “Suspiria” and “Four Flies On Dead Velvet” – and I will share more about those in a moment….but first, time to explore a few more classics of the genre – starting with this classic title:

“Your Vice Is A Locked Room And Only I Have The Key!”

This cult classic is loosely based on Edgar Allan Poe’s classic tale “The Black Cat”, and is from director Sergio Martino – who also made the classic thriller “Torso”!

This is a classic cult film that you can read more about here:

https://johnrieber.com/2012/06/06/psycho-go-go-dancers-delinquent-schoolgirls-and-candy-snatchers-more-70s-grindhouse/

But now, back to “Your Vice Is A Locked Room!”

First, here is an international trailer, but don’t worry: it’s all scenes and images from the film with a classic 70’s giallo soundtrack!

Well, that poster doesn’t leave much to the imagination, does it?

Here’s a brief synopsis: Oliviero is an abrasive drunk who amuses himself by holding drunken orgies at his grand country manor – and no surprise, his wife, played by Actress Anita Strindberg, doesn’t like it much!

Soon, a series of murders rocks Oliviero’s sordid world….and here’s a great fact thanks to IMDB: the title is a reference to Sergio Martino’s earlier giallo “”The Strange Vice of Mrs. Wardh”, in which the same phrase appears in a mysterious note apparently sent by a killer!

So, are you getting an idea of just how entertaining and twisted this genre is? And believe me when I tell you – they are very entertaining!

Perhaps the most well-known Giallo Director is the legendary Dario Argento:

Argento’s masterpiece is “Suspiria” starring Jessica Harper, best known for her starring role in Brian DePalma’s “Phantom Of The Paradise”…but Argeno also made such great thriller as “Tenebrae”-