The Giallo Essentials collection has three movies Arrow Films previously released some years ago and I guess if on sale might be worth picking up. In regards to the three movies included, one I thought was pretty good (What Have They Done to Your Daughters?) while the other two had their moments but nothing especially noteworthy.
Giallo Essentials: Vol. 2
— What Have They Done to Your Daughters? / Torso / Strip Nude for Your Killer —
(1973-1975)
Genre(s): Horror, Crime, Drama
Arrow Video| NR – 283 min. – $99.95 | December 21, 2021
Date Published: 12/18/2021 | Author: The Movieman
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THE MOVIES |
| WHAT HAVE THEY DONE TO YOUR DAUGHTERS? (1974) — A teenage girl is found hanging from the rafters of a privately rented attic, pregnant and violated. Hot-headed Inspector Silvestri (CLAUDIO CASSINELLI) and rookie Assistant District Attorney Vittoria Stori (GIOVANNA RALLI) are assigned to the case, the scope of which grows substantially when they discover that the dead girl was part of a ring of underage prostitutes whose abusers occupy the highest echelons of Italian society. Meanwhile, a cleaver-wielding, motorcycle-riding killer roars through the streets of Brescia, determined to ensure that those involved take their secret to the grave.
Quick Hit Review: Uneven at times but still compelling enough mystery-thriller has some poignant moments and some well done chase sequences. The culprit in this was on the unfulfilling side since they identify him early in the third act and how he’s taken down wasn’t terribly satisfying. However, on the whole this was a decent enough giallo picture and in addition, not real weird scenes outside of a newspaper publishing the fully nude picture of a woman. 3¾/5 TORSO (1973) — A sex maniac is prowling the streets of Perugia, targeting the picturesque university town’s female students. Alarmed at the plummeting life expectancy of the student body, Jane (SUZY KENDALL) and her three friends elope to a secluded country villa – only to discover that, far from having left the terror behind, they’ve brought it with them! Quick Hit Review: Kind of a dull movie for the most part only saved thanks to the final 15-minutes which were magnificent with plenty of suspense-filled scenes. Other than that, however, it’s on the forgettable side with performances that had no major standouts. 2¾/5 STRIP NUDE FOR YOUR KILLER (1975) — A spate of highly sexualized murders is rocking a prestigious Milanese fashion house. Ambitious photographer Magda (EDWIGE FENECH) and her on-off boyfriend, love rat Carlo (NINO CASTELNUOVO), team up to crack the case. But, with the motorcycle helmet-wearing killer clearing bearing a grudge against the agency’s employees, it’s surely only a matter of time before they too end up feeling the force of his wrath… Quick Hit Review: Over the past couple of years, I’ve become a fan of the giallo-style of horror with such movies like The Bird with the Crystal Plumage, Your Vice is a Locked Room and Only I Have the Key, so I was looking forward to Strip Nude for Your Killer not only for its tantalizing title, similar to those two examples, but it has what could’ve been a fun and engaging mystery yarn. Instead we get a glimpse of the giallo genre but it is far more a sexploitation with plot points that go nowhere and very little in the way of actual suspense. By the time we get to the finale, I honestly could not care less about the perpetrator, though like any Italian film, it’s not disguised very well. 2½/5 |
SPECIAL FEATURES – 4½/5 |
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This is the second volume of “Giallo Essentials” from Arrow, which are movies that from what I can tell already released individually before. The three movies are housed in their own HD keep cases which side-slides into a sturdy slip case and there’s a slip cover with a cut-out on the front. What Have They Done to Your Daughters? — 4¼/5
Torso — 4½/5
Strip Nude for Your Killer — 4½/5
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VIDEO – 4½/5, AUDIO – 4/5 |
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All three of these movies were previously released individually and I assume came with booklets. In any case, these movies received at the time of their respective release dates, received new 1080p high-definition transfers culled from 2K restorations from the original camera negatives. In short, all three movies look quite good, detail is sharp and while there were some minor specs, for the most part these are clean and nicely defined. (Copied from my “Giallo Essentials” Vol. 1 review) All three films come with Italian and English PCM Mono tracks which were perfectly serviceable for movies this old. Dialogue comes across with good clarity and there is some minor depth for the scores/soundtrack and other elements happening off-screen or in the distance. I didn’t detect any significant instances of pops or hissing. (Copied from my “Giallo Essentials” Vol. 1 review) |
OVERALL — 4/5 |
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Overall, the Giallo Essentials collection has three movies Arrow Films previously released some years ago and I guess if on sale might be worth picking up. In regards to the three movies included, one I thought was pretty good (What Have They Done to Your Daughters?) while the other two had their moments but nothing especially noteworthy. |
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