Don’t Torture a Duckling

(1972) dir. Lucio Fulci
    Don’t torture a what? I know, I thought the same thing when I first read it. But thanks to the phenomenal success of The Bird with the Crystal Plumage, almost every giallo released in Bird’s wake had an animal in its title – The Cat o’ Nine Tails, Four Flies on Grey Velvet, Lizard in a Woman’s Skin, Tail of the Scorpion, Black Belly of the Tarantula, Seven Deaths in the Cat’s Eye, ad infinitum.

I suppose one could wax philosophic about the use of animals as reflections of the giallo’s cold brutality, man being just another animal himself, “man as meat”, etc., but in truth many of these titles were unessential to the film’s plot, and simply attempts to jump on the commercial bandwagon set in motion by Bird. However, such is not the case with Don’t Torture a Duckling, which next to Bird with the Crystal Plumage is one of the most intelligent, if not historically important, giallos ever made. Duckling’s title is not a red herring, but is rather a guarded yet integral shell for the film’s story – a perverse tale of child murder, pedophilia, good mommies, bad mommies, black magic, and ultimately, the agony (and the ecstasy) of Catholicism.

Installment 2 of four brings our exploration of the italian horror genre squarely into the 1970's, and more bloodthirsty territory... Please enjoy BobsBarb's continuing overview of the genre, and keep an eye out for future volumes in later weeks! -Mrheck

Blood & Black Lace

(1965) – dir. Mario Bava
So where (you might wonder) did all those ‘80s and late ‘70s body-count/slasher movies originate from? With film still being such a young art form, it’s easy to find the answers to such questions. Halloween, Friday the 13th, ad nauseam, all owe their red dye-stained DNA to Bava’s Blood & Black Lace.

PART ONE (of four)

Editor's note: Italian horror is of particular fascination to the staff of the late night picture show-- and judging by audience attendance for our previous italian horror engagements, you, the audience, feel the same way!

As the Clay's upcoming screening  of Lucio Fulci's THE BEYOND draws closer, we're taking it as a perfect excuse to share with you a retrospective on 20 influential italian horror films that constitute must-see viewing within the genre by Landmarkafterdark staff writer BobsBarbs, colossal italian horror afficianado in his own right. Enjoy, and if you love seeing these films, be sure to follow the 'contact us' link on the main menu or add a note to the suggestion box, and encourage us to bring you more of them! Read more after the link. --MrHeck