Director – Mario Landi (Super Sexy Market, Patrick Still Lives)
Starring – Leonora Fani (Hotel Fear, The House by the Edge of the Lake), Jeff Blynn (Weapons of Death, Blue Tornado), and Gianni Dei (Sex of the Witch, The Angels from 2000)
Release Date – 1979
Rating – 3/5
Blu Release – 2.5/5
Full Moon is known for their little creature films like Puppet Master, Demonic Toys, Gingerdead Man, Weedjies, and Evil Bong along with monster movies like Subspecies, Castle Freak, and Killjoy. Aside from the occasional sci-fi flick and softcore porn, Full Moon is known the world over for their puppets and haunting horror tales that began with Charles Band and his Empire label.
However, Full Moon has released the occasional giallo from time to time. These are fairly middle of the road films that are easily forgettable, but they are still enjoyable for first time watches. A few months back they released Giallo in Venice on blu under the title Gore in Venice. I had never seen this one before, so I reached out to my friends at Full Moon who were kind enough to send a copy my way.
**Spoiler Alert** The film follows a police detective investigating the murder of a young couple. The woman appears to have drowned while the man was violently stabbed. As they look for possible leads and speculate why they two were murdered, a deranged killer is going around town killing people after they have sex. **Spoiler Alert**
Gore in Venice is not what I would call a textbook giallo or even one I would consider a classic but the sleazy story and murders are enjoyable if you are looking for something for your late night viewing. I don’t see myself watching this one anytime soon but if some friends wanted to check it out I could sit through it without suffering.
The acting in this one is extremely uneven. The film’s leads and supporting cast is done very well. In fact, I really liked Jeff Blynn as the egg eating inspector. With that being said, the performances from the smaller roles are horrible. Their eyes are bouncing all around the scene like they don’t know where to look while remaining emotionless and robotic. I think it would have been cheaper to cast cardboard cutouts instead of the talent they went with for these roles.
The story for this one is sleazy and violent at times but the story feels almost like two films playing out simultaneously. The detective investigating the murder of the couple as who runs down leads, drug connections and so one was very giallo like. The mystery aspect is exactly what I would expect from a giallo. We then move over to what feels like a second story following the killer who murders those after they screw. It adds some skin and violence to the film but they never fully mesh until the end. Crossing paths throughout the film would have made it flow so much better. It’s still fun for what it is but the story just doesn’t flow like it should.
Finally, the film has some skin and violent deaths. The effects are minimal, yet they find a way to work. They make your mind follow through with the acts while using classic camera tricks and angles. It’s not a gory film but it’s enough to hold your attention. Overall, Gore in Venice is not a gory flick but giallo fans will appreciate it. I liked it and those of you looking for something different would appreciate it as well. Check it out.
Special Features:
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