Though not a Giallo film in the strictest sense, this crime/revenge film merits attention by fans for its genre cast and an unusual approach to familiar themes. Raf Vallone plays anguished father Avanzio Berzaghi, whose 25-year old daughter Donatella has been kidnapped. Donatella has the mind of a toddler, and her beauty and agreeable naivete make her a perfect choice for Milan's seedy prostitution racket. Frank Wolff is a dedicated Inspector with bad sinuses who shakes down a sleazy pimp and a desperate black prostitute (Beryl Cunningham of The Snake God), as well as visiting scores of local brothels for clues. Tragically, he is too late, and Donatella's corpse is found in a field, still smoking from having been burned alive. Wolff redoubles his efforts, but it is Vallone, using nothing more than his daughter's teddy-bear and a father's lust for justice, who finally tracks down the killers. His laundromat vengeance is brutal, but unsatisfying, leaving him a broken man. Director Duccio Tessari, best known for westerns and a memorable Giallo called The Blood-Stained Butterfly, imbues this story with a great deal more humanity than is typical for the genre. The plot, adapted from G. Scerbanenco's novel The Milanese Kill on Saturday, has its problems, but Tessari's focus on character minimizes the inconsistencies, presenting a gritty, powerful portrait of a dehumanizing urban Hell. This neglected gem suffers only from Gianni Ferrio's inexplicably bouncy music, but is otherwise a winner all the way.

The key words that sum up this 1970 Giallo from Duccio Tessari are downbeat, depressing and disturbing – and I mean those as compliments.

At the same time, one can easily appreciate how this would not help its recognition by closed-minded genre fans – good time, trashy entertainment it is not – while the same fact of being made by someone previously responsible for sundry pepla, spaghettis and superspies likely meant it tended to go under-appreciated by mainstream critics; as evinced by Tom Milne's Monthly Film Bulletin review of the time, wherein he argued that the film seemed “to be wrestling with ideas rather above its station”.

If only it were a case of 'their loss being our gain', but with only grey market sources available – and here I must thank Paul for giving me the opportunity to at least see the film – it is another instance where the limitations of the presentation mean that a certain degree of dedication to the cause, above and beyond what should really be required is necessary

Gary Tooze

April 23rd, 2014

Coming to the UK on Blu-ay by Radiance Films in January 2024: