A wealthy English lord is suffering a mental breakdown following the death of his red-headed wife, Evelyn, whom he feared was cheating on him. He tours local bars and dives, scouring for lovely red-heads willing to come back to his decaying castle in the country, where he seduces them, then tortures and kills them.
This is the first of two giallo films directed by Emilio Miraglia, and both revolve around a woman named "Evelyn" who has died. Is there something behind this? Probably, but who knows. Miraglia had a bit of a history in Italian film at this point, working his way up to director after assisting others, including Lucio Fulci. Miraglia only directed a total of six films of any genre, so no surprise if you are less than familiar with him.
Troy Howarth actually says the film is not strict giallo, but calls this a hybrid of giallo and modern Gothic, which is a fair claim. It stars Anthony Steffen, the royal-blooded Italian Clint Eastwood, best known for "Django the Bastard" (if he is remembered at all). But the biggest name in this film is Erika Blanc (known for Bava's "Kill Baby Kill" among others). She may in many ways be here more for her looks than her acting, but her acting is nothing to sneeze at.
Bruno Nicolai, second only to Ennio Morricone (and maybe Caludio Simonetti) supplies the soundtrack, though not all of it is fresh. We have, for example, a re-use of Nicolai's "Criminal Sex" for the early, memorable naked whipping scene. But when you already have a good tune, why use something else?
On VHS and DVD, the film has been released by various labels over the years with questionable legitimacy to the rights and subpar, truncated presentations. Finally, thanks to Arrow Video, we get the ultimate release -- uncut, in both English and Italian, and loaded with extras. Of particular interest is the audio commentary from author Troy Howarth, an expert on this sort of film. Erika Blanc also has an interview.
This is the first of two giallo films directed by Emilio Miraglia, and both revolve around a woman named "Evelyn" who has died. Is there something behind this? Probably, but who knows. Miraglia had a bit of a history in Italian film at this point, working his way up to director after assisting others, including Lucio Fulci. Miraglia only directed a total of six films of any genre, so no surprise if you are less than familiar with him.
Troy Howarth actually says the film is not strict giallo, but calls this a hybrid of giallo and modern Gothic, which is a fair claim. It stars Anthony Steffen, the royal-blooded Italian Clint Eastwood, best known for "Django the Bastard" (if he is remembered at all). But the biggest name in this film is Erika Blanc (known for Bava's "Kill Baby Kill" among others). She may in many ways be here more for her looks than her acting, but her acting is nothing to sneeze at.
Bruno Nicolai, second only to Ennio Morricone (and maybe Caludio Simonetti) supplies the soundtrack, though not all of it is fresh. We have, for example, a re-use of Nicolai's "Criminal Sex" for the early, memorable naked whipping scene. But when you already have a good tune, why use something else?
On VHS and DVD, the film has been released by various labels over the years with questionable legitimacy to the rights and subpar, truncated presentations. Finally, thanks to Arrow Video, we get the ultimate release -- uncut, in both English and Italian, and loaded with extras. Of particular interest is the audio commentary from author Troy Howarth, an expert on this sort of film. Erika Blanc also has an interview.