universzero’s review published on Letterboxd:
I am rating this film well because it has a very strong final act. It was glorious and quality Argento. To me this did not have the crisp and malicious elegance of The Bird with the Crystal Plumage, it was not magically sinister like his horror films, and it did not at any point until the ending produce in me a sense of tension or fear. This may be my individual response.
In the Bird with the Crystal Plumage, one of the earliest scenes has a woman menaced with a knife in a way that was utterly terrifying. I did not feel safe watching that film because it was absolutely clear that something horrible could happen and that the killer was sadistic. There was nothing at all alarming in that way here—until the ending. The ending really pulls it off.
The opening was also strong and had a resonance with neorealism. The plot was convoluted and clever in a matter that does end up making sense.
Entirely recommended but not my favorite. I'd prefer to rewatch most of his others over this.
