Sette Orchidee Machiate de Rosso (1972)

	Also Known As: The Half-Moon Killer, Le Tueur à l'orchidée
	Year of first release: 1972
	Director: Umberto Lenzi (Cannibal Ferox)
	Actors: Antonio Sabato, Uschi Glas, Pier Paolo Capponi
	Country: I
	Genre: Thriller
	Conditions of visioning: 14.09.2011, cinema St Ex, Strasbourg, SFFF2011
Synopsis: The husband of a woman whole barely escaped a serial killer starts his own investigation to find him.
Review: Projected as part of the Edgar Wallace retrospective, this movie uses the classical recipes of this Krimi series, i.e. investigation about some murder(s), but adds to it elements of what would become the Giallo genre in Italy: murderer with black gloves, funky/jazzy music, flashy colors, extraordinary setting of the murders, and lots of blood. In that particular movie the investigation follows the rules of a Krimi, while the murders themselves the ones of the Giallo. The story is rather classical. The investigation is a bit long and tortuous, with the introduction of many characters that the hero has to visit in order to accumulate clues. The music is repetitive but definitely adds some quality to the movie. Discovering this movie makes me want to watch some more Krimis and Giallos. The projection was dubbed in German (although all actors are clearly Italians) and I suspect the most bloody murders were censored, so I recommend to rather watch the Italian version.
Rating: 6 /10