Saturday, December 18, 2010

Strip Nude For Your Killer

Strip Nude for Your Killer (1975)
Dir: Andrea Binach (Burial Ground)
Starring: Edwige fenech (Hot Potato/Blade of the Ripper/All Colors of the Dark/ Hostel pt.2)

Strip Nude For your Killer follows the standard Giallo format made famous in Italy during the late 60's through the 70's, A typical stalk and slash film with  murder mystery overtones as opposed to the tried and true Hack and slash teenagers format made famous in the U.S. during the same time. For the most part Giallo films focus more on atmosphere and scenery as opposed to jump scares and graphic kills, Although this one gets pretty brutal at times. The film opens with a botched abortion procedure where the pregnant woman dies during the operation and the doctor calls a friend to help him move the body back to her house to cover up for his mishap.



Then following a funky score and opening credits we see the doctor from the operation brutally stabbed to death by a figure wearing motorcycle gear.


After this opening scene the abortion is never really even mentioned again until much, much later and the story begins as we meet Carlo, A photographer for a modeling agency which shoots for high fashion such as vogue and so on. He tries to smooth talk a would be model and seduces her into sex in exchange for a modeling shoot and promises of high fashion success, This is where we learn what a slime ball the films Hero is. Unusual as most films would want to paint the main character as a good guy this one takes a different approach. While at the agency we meet the rest of the group and for the most part everyone in this film is slimy , snobby and oversexed which I suppose is at least a more accurate approach then portraying them as all warm and fuzzy.
Magda (Edwidge Fenech) is a Female photographer who wants to be a model so she tries to seduce Carlo into shooting her and Thank goodness for this because we get to see her nude for the first time of many in this film and she is absolutely stunning.
Ok,Enough of that. So one of the agencies photographers Mario, Is killed after sneaking into the agency to retrieve some information for a co worker to blackmail someone but is killed before the info is shared. When the cops arrive we see Mario slashed and stripped naked and the agents question Gisella the Agencies owner about the killings and also mention that this may be the same killer that murdered the doctor months prior due to the similarities in the style.
After the questioning we see that Gisella and the newly acquired talent that Carlo had found Lucia are having a lesbian encounter and learn that Gisella is terribly jealous of Carlo and Lucia's relationship. After a argument Lucia is alone in the house when she hears water running when she goes to check it she is attacked by the murdering cyclists and again we are treated to the standard Giallo style black glove killer slashing the victim to death.

From here the questioning from the detectives continues and Gisella starts to look like our main suspect in the killings, especially after receiving a anonymous call from someone demanding a large ransom in exchange for not going to the cops with some important information regarding the murders.Meanwhile Gisella's Husband a heavyset pervert Mauricio is offed after trying to cheat on Gisella with a model from their agency again further solidifying the idea that Gisella is behind the killings.
After this more of the agencies employees are killed in similar fashion and each time someone is killed the reoccurring theme of water running continues and right before each murder there is a flash of a woman dead in a bathtub then a sink  running, giving clues to the ending.The case against Gisella continues to get stronger until the films first twist in which Gisella goes to meet with the blackmailer from the phone when she is attacked by the cyclist as the blackmailer escapes just in time, but Hiding in the shadows is Carlo who luckily takes pictures of the whole ordeal going down.
After our Red Herring is taken out of the equation , The film returns to the typical Giallo format where everyone is a suspect and the twists start to come at a rapid pace.As the remaining members of the crew are killed, Carlo and Magda start to investigate and then become the main target of the killer at this point. Carlo is hospitalized after the incident with Gisella when he is run down by the cyclist killer and he then sends Magda to develop the reel from the night to find out who the killer is. This of course leads to yet another suspect but in the most brutal scene in the film our second main suspect is killed along with his girlfriend with the man getting castrated in the process.
After the last of the suspects is killed off  the film heads to it's climax as Carlo and the killer have a final showdown revealing the killer and in order not to spoil the ending let's just say it has something to do with the forgotten abortion angle from the opening.Then in a rather strange ending we see Carlo and Magda in bed about to have sex when she says that he need not worry because she is on the pill, when he replies "not to worry" and goes for anal entry...What a way to go out. Strip Nude for your Killer is pretty good as far as Giallo's go. It is not the best I have ever seen but it is rather well made and it is entertaining. With that said it is one of the more Sleazier of the genre with all the nudity and sex , plus the murders are a bit more graphic then the typical Giallo. So I would put this one in the same league as New York Ripper which is acclaimed as the sleaziest of all. Not too much sets this one apart from the rest though so, if you like the genre this one is worth a watch and I would suggest it for someone getting into the genre, because sometimes the Giallo genre can lead you to a few boring films based solely on atmosphere and cinematography and building suspense as opposed to the straight out stalk by numbers style. I guess this could be considered a Giallo for those with short attention spans or that are bored easily by slow pacing. Plus you really cant go wrong with Edwige Fenech , Who is absolutely gorgeous in this film with her short hair, And she still looks good to this day and the proof is in her cameo as the art teacher in hostel 2 not too many years ago.okay that was just an excuse to post another picture of her topless.

After all is said , I would highly recommend this for fans of slashers and Giallo's alike. It is well paced, Decently acted, Well written and Gory  enough to keep the younger viewer interested. So here is the verdict.
Story: 6 ( not anything groundbreaking for the genre, but not bad)
Characters: 6 (Same as above)
Gore: 7 (Not over the top,yet graphic enough to please todays blood thirsty fan)
Nudity:7 (Plenty of nudity in this one, I think every woman in it bares herself at least once and Edwidge Fenech.....Yes Please.)
Overall: 6.5 out of 10 (Nothing to innovative but a good starting point for those interested in the genre,Will also keep the interest of the Purist as well)

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