Wednesday, April 20, 2011

DEATH CARRIES A CANE

(Maurizio Pradeaux, 1973)
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I'm sure my opinions will be from here out dismissed, but I actually enjoyed Death Carries a Cane, despite the fact that it's obviously inspired by the work of Dario Argento and adds nothing new to the genre.
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Through a coin-operated telescope, Kitty (Susan Scott) spies a woman being murdered. The timer runs out before she can see the killer's face, and initially her boyfriend Alberto (Robert Hoffman) disbelieves her. The police, however, do find a corpse that matches the description given by Kitty, and an investigation is undertaken. Kitty and Alberto learn that the killer was not only seen by Kitty, but by a number of others whom are bumped off by the cane and razor-wielding assassin before they can be properly questioned.
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The story is pretty run-of the mill, but it does feature some nifty lighting and camerawork. The emphasis on voyeurism within this film cannot be missed, as someone is always spying through a telescope or camera. It contains all the trademark giallo elements, including the ol`straight razor `n gloves, plenty of red herrings, nudity, prostitutes, a striptease, etc. The deaths are nice and bloody, and the soundtrack is pretty groovy too. Naturally, it`s all let down by a slightly nonsensical ending, but worth a view. Still not available in North America.
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