The Girl In Room 2A (1973)
Directed by William Rose
Prism VHS
THE FILM
I've got Giallo Fever. And, I've got a rash. A Giallo Rash. You don't use a salve on that 'cause you'll set your britches burning. In Italian they would say, "Tu Burnasto del Britches no Salve."
And, I haven't even seen Edwige yet.
A young woman is kidnapped and killed by a strange batch of loonies. Another young woman moves into the same apartment house...staying in the same Room...Room 2A. (If you knew it was 2A before I said it, maybe you got the Fever?) Is there a strange red-hooded figure sneaking into her room at night? Who is the strange man across the alley in the room opposite hers? Why does her landlady seem so nutty? Who is that odd friend that gives her money? Why isn't the large prison guard featured more prominently?
I can't answer all those questions: 1. It might ruin the movie for you. 2. I don't really want to. All I will say in the "possibly giving something away" department is...it reminded me of Short Night Of The Glass Dolls. And that's all I'm saying there.
Maybe I do have Giallo Fever. Autumn is almost here. These Continental Feelings pass over me and, yes, this is good stuff. I know I'm just waffling on but this movie is supposed to be a mystery thriller. I've already said all I can before I start giving the whole game away. And, that is the main reason to watch the film.
The leading lady is charming but I thought she a had a little mole under her lip but it wasn't there a few scenes later. Was that part of the mystery? The weird people are sufficiently weird and there are a couple of good creepy moments. The movie moves at a decent pace. In fact, the feeling that I missed a few minutes here and there kept me going to the end. All the bits that I needed closure on I got. But, If I went back and watched it again, I'd probably see a slew of things that don't make sense.
The great thing about Giallo Fever is that I don't care if it makes sense. I just enjoy the feeling. And that feeling is...I feel idiosyncratic and strangely dubbed. Come on over, I don't know if it spreads but we'll find out.
AUDIO AND VIDEO
It's an old VHS. The sound is fine. The picture is kind of yukky, to be honest. It never distracted me away from the movie but I do wonder what a nice print of this would look like. Who am I kidding? No I don't.
EXTRAS
A trailer for...Jesus, what was that trailer for? It wasn't Eaten Alive or Bog.
FINAL THOUGHTS
A fun giallo. It's no world-beater, just a slightly twisted mystery with a bunch of nudity and some violence. Hell, this could have been a Faux-Val Lewton film without those elements in it. If you come across a copy, it's nice for an afternoon. If you want Top Class Giallo, this is not it. But, there were so many of these things made so quickly and the Italians were actually ripping off their own trend rather than someone else's, so you can never go far afield as long as you keep it in Italia. Unless, this wasn't made by Italians. Is William Rose an Italian name? It sure is...Real name: Salvatore Kakooch.
— Dan Budnik, 09.16.10 |
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