The Bird with the Crystal Plumage (1970)

	Also Known As: L'uccello dalle piume di cristallo
	Year of first release: 1970
	Director: Dario Argento (Suspiria, Profondo Rosso)
	Actors: Tony Musante, Suzy Kendall, Enrico Maria Salerno
	Country: D, I
	Genre: Thriller
	Conditions of visioning: 11.11.2012, Blu-ray, Home cinema
Synopsis: An american writer (Musante) spends some months in Italy to find inspiration. Two days before leaving he witnesses a murder attempt, believed by the police to be the work of a serial killer. He will become a target as he starts his own investigation.
Review: The story is quite classic for a thriller of that period, especially Italian, but Argento integrates the first elements of Giallo: black coat, leather gloves, first-person view of the murders, some vivid colors and jazzy music. I have seen some thrillers that are supposed to have started the Giallo genre (What have you done to Solange?, Seven Blood-Stained Orchids, The Hunchback of Soho) but those ones have defects, usually they are too long and slow, while The Bird... stays interesting all along. Argento also shows us a side of Rome that we might not know: no Colliseum or Vatican, but small suburban streets, paved roads, narrow alleys. He benefited from the influence of three persons to do this movie: his father Salvatore who produces it, Ennio Morricone, friend of his father who promised to score Dario's first film, and Sergio Leone that Dario met several times and from whom he learned to shoot nice view like the close-up on the actor's eyes, full-screen. I think I still prefer the following thriller by Argento  Deep Red (Profondo Rosso), and the giallo Suspiria, but then The Bird with the Crystal Plumage comes third. With no doubt a cornerstone of Italian cinema. So, I have finally watched the first movie directed by Dario Argento, and in its best existing copy. Indeed this Blu-ray by Blue Underground is supposed to be better than the UK version published by Arrow, in terms of original aspect ratio and colors rendering. It is now out of print and took me some effort to finally find it at a reasonnable price and import it from Canada. The result is indeed pretty good for a 40-year old movie.
Rating: 7 /10