Four Flies on Grey Velvet DVD

Virtually all of cult director Dario Argento's films have found their way on to the DVD medium, often in splendid transfers - as here. The film is by no means one of A... Read on

Virtually all of cult director Dario Argento's films have found their way on to the DVD medium, often in splendid transfers - as here. The film is by no means one of Argento's finest, but is nevertheless crammed with the kind of imagery that has made his films such cult successes. Rock drummer Roberto, played by the American actor Michael Brandon, is stalked by a mysterious figure, who he then follows in to what he thinks is an empty theatre. Roberto finds himself engaged in a fight, and stabs the assailant with his own knife. While this is happening, a masked figure has photographed the struggle, and Roberto is the victim of what appears to be a blackmailing scheme. All, of course, is not as it seems, and the murder in the theatre may not have happened at all. This was Argento's third film in the genre, and it is clear that he was beginning to spread his wings in terms of reinventing a genre that had already calcified into cliché. The main problem with the film is the uninspiring performance by Michael Brandon, delivering far less in the way of intriguing torment than (for instance) David Hemmings in Deep Red or other more charismatic male leads. Similarly, Mimsy Farmer as the female lead delivers a standard performance that doesn't make much of a mark. But many of the Argento's visual trademark flourishes are firmly in place, and the film remains essential viewing for those interested in the development of the director's technique. Hide