Who Saw Her Die?

A new year and new, but old movies! This time it is:

Who Saw Her Die? (1972).

Minor spoiler warning, but it is nothing you won't learn if you look it up on IMDB.

Who Saw Her Die? starts with a young, red haired girl being brutally beaten to death by a woman in black. We then cut to five years later and watch as young Roberta Serpieri (Nicoletta Elmi) arrives in Venice to visit her father Franco (George Lazenby). Her mother Elizabeth (Anita Strindberg) lives in London as the couple has some issues. Franco is a successful sculptor who sells his pieces through art dealer Serafian (Adolfo Celi). Roberta has flaming red hair and it doesn't take a genius to see that she is doomed. Soon enough, the woman in black starts stalking her until the inevitable happens. Franco frantically starts investigating his daughters death since the police are dragging their heels.

That's what I'm willing to spoil. Now, first things first. Who Saw Her Die? is a quintessential Giallo. It is a joy to watch with Venice as the grim and gloomy but still impressive backdrop. The rich Serafian doesn't own a limo, he owns a chauffeur driven luxury boat to cruise the canals with. The movie feasts on the ancient and still elegant buildings and contrasts them with run down industrial structures.

The actors are all fine, and the music is okay, being composed by Ennio Morricone. The director, Aldo Lado did solid work and the cinematography is good but not brilliant. What Lado does do brilliantly however is create a magnificent feel of tension and dread as Franco puts life and limb on the line in order to solve Roberta's murder. One of the most typical tropes in Giallo cinema is the killers hands covered in black leather gloves. Here we have black lace gloves instead and it is a nice nod to the trope as well as a slight subversion. We even see what the killer sees though an old fashioned black veil. All dramatic and atmospheric.

Now for the bad. The ending is disappointingly dull. Obviously I'm not spoiling anything, but Who Saw Her Die? builds up to something it sadly can't deliver. In a lesser movie, the ending would have been fine, but in a movie this good, it is a real shame. In a sense, the movie is a victim of its own success. The end isn't outright bad, but I feel like I was promised more and got handed a lot less.

So, do I recommend this movie? Yes, absolutely! I thoroughly enjoyed the whole movie until the end, and that is what is the most important thing: Enjoying the ride. Giallo fans who haven't seen it really should and general thriller fans can enjoy it as well!

That's that and all that. Join me again next time and until then, have a great and safe week as well as a fantastic start of the new year!