Director – Marco Antonio (Riecco Aborym)
Starring – Marco Antonio, Annie Belle (House on the Edge of the Park, Lips of Blood), and Gordon Mitchell (Nightfall, Dr. Jekyll Likes Them Hot)
Release Date – 1987
Rating – 2/5
Several months ago I saw posts in horror groups going around about the blu release of the 1987 Italian horror film Cross of the 7 Jewels. The image on the poster looked very familiar so I did some looking and discovered that this was actually a film, in a round about way, that I had previously seen under the title Talisman during a Halloween watch party several years ago. The film was notable for having random shots from another film that currently escapes me. A few weeks back Tetrovideo reached out to me to review their blu release of the film. I was actually looking forward to seeing the original cut of the film instead of the one I had previously seen. I want to thank Tetrovideo for sending this release all the way to me for review. I truly appreciate it.
**Spoiler Alert** The film follows a man who is cursed with lycanthropy that uses the Cross of 7 Jewels to suppress his transformations. However, while traveling to Milan to visit an estranged cousin he finds himself robbed by a gang of mini-bike thieves. He get’s the police involved but they are unable to retrieve the cross. This doesn’t bare well for him and he soon finds himself at the mercy of the moon. **Spoiler Alert**
I didn’t know what to think about Cross of the 7 Jewels when I was asked to review it. I had watched the weird cut some time back but I didn’t remember anything about it aside from it featuring scenes from another well known horror title. I liked the idea behind the film but the execution made this one extremely difficult to finish. I hate being negative especially about a film that was sent over for review but this one was rough to sit through.
The acting in this one is not the worst I’ve seen but most of the cast does feel like they have short attention spans and wondering eyes. The characters are wonderfully written but a lot of the scenes just feel forced and a lot of the emotional reactions do not feel genuine. I don’t know the behind the scenes of the film here but I get the feeling the cast was allowed to do as they wish with very little guidance.
The story for this one really peaked my interest. A werewolf using a sacred charm to hold back the transformation only to have it stolen while visiting family by a group of street thugs is actually pretty fucking brilliant if you think about it. It has so much promise but the execution is all wrong. The film has one of the best premises for a horror film but it feels like a dull drama with horror influences. I would have loved to see more werewolf action along with a little more backstory but the way it was made for a very daunting film to finish.
Finally, the film has a few scenes with seriously impressive practical effects. One scene in particular really stands out but I won’t go into too much detail for fear of spoiling this amazing gag. With that being said, I wasn’t really feeling the werewolf. In promotional images I thought I would but once you see it in the film you can’t help but laugh at it. Overall, Cross of the 7 Jewels really isn’t what I was expecting. I saw that it was called the worst Italian horror film from several critics and I somewhat agree with them. I wanted to love it but I just couldn’t. The release from Tetrovideo is a seriously awesome release but the film is not.
Special Features:
Artworks gallery;
Marco Antonio Andolfi Photo Gallery (photos taken from the archives of M. A. Andolfi and Luca Ruocco);
Cross of The 7 Jewels – Official Trailer;
Cross of The 7 Jewels – Deleted Scene;
Jekyll/Hyde – Short film by Luca Ruocco starring Eddy Endolf;
Luca Ruocco and Ivan Talarico Audio Commentary;
“In short: Marco Antonio Andolfi” by Luca Ruocco;
Riecco Aborym – Medium-length film directed by Marco Antonio Andolfi;
Riecco Aborym – Luca Ruocco Backstage;
Riecco Aborym – Trailer;
Riecco Aborym – Photo Gallery (photos by Alfonso Spezza);
Talisman (Feature film) – Cross of the Seven Jewels (alternative version) directed by Allan Fleming;
Talisman – Trailer.
