L'uccello dalle piume di cristallo (1970)

User Rating:

7.1/10   

Director:

Dario Argento

Writer:

Dario Argento (writer)

Release Date:

12 June 1970 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

A stunning portrait in psycho-terror!

Plot:

A writer is stalked by a serial killer after witnessing a murder attempt on one woman's life.

Plot Keywords:

Serial Killer | Writer | Murder | Killer | Murder Attempt

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Tony Musante	...	Sam Dalmas
Suzy Kendall	...	Julia
Enrico Maria Salerno	...	Inspector Morosini
Eva Renzi	...	Monica Ranieri
Umberto Raho	...	Alberto Ranieri
Renato Romano	...	Professor Carlo Dover (as Raf Valenti)
Giuseppe Castellano	...	Monti
Mario Adorf	...	Berto Consalvi
Pino Patti	...	Faiena
Gildo Di Marco	...	Garullo
Rosita Torosh	...	4th Victim (as Rosa Toros)
Omar Bonaro	...	Police Detective
Fulvio Mingozzi	...	Police Detective
Werner Peters	...	Antique Dealer
Karen Valenti	...	Tina, 5th Victim

Also Known As:

Bird with the Glass Feathers
Das Geheimnis der schwarzen Handschuhe (West Germany)
Phantom of Terror
Point of Terror (USA) (alternative title)
The Bird with the Crystal Plumage (USA)
The Gallery Murders

Runtime:

98 min | Argentina:105 min | Germany:101 min | Netherlands:92 min | USA:96 min | Finland:97 min (1972) | Belgium:108 min (VHS version)

Country:

Italy | West Germany

Language:

Italian

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Netherlands:16 | Australia:MA | USA:Not Rated (DVD rating) | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Singapore:PG | Argentina:16 | Finland:K-18 | France:-12 | Italy:VM14 | Norway:16 (1971) | Sweden:15 (cut) | UK:15 (video re-rating) (2005) | UK:18 (video rating) (1983) | UK:X (original rating) | USA:GP (original rating) | USA:PG | West Germany:16 | Iceland:16

Filming Locations:

Incir De Paolis Studios, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company:

Central Cinema Company Film (CCC)

Trivia:

Shot in just six weeks.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: At Wilkinson foundation near the beginning of the movie, the silhouette of a cameraman can be seen in the displays glass.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Taxi für eine Leiche (2002)

Superior Thriller

Ominous music and lush cinematography override a sparse script to create a Jack-the-Ripper type thriller, which is deeply introspective, moody, and haunting.

Indeed, the script can be treacherous if used to try and solve this whodunit puzzle, which is best handled by removing psychological assumptions rather than by piecing together logical clues. Even so, the murder mystery plot is to some extent illogical.

The strength of the film though lies in its suspense, which is almost unbeatable. It rivals any of Hitchcock's works, to which it is repeatedly compared. The scene showing a knife chipping away at a wooden door is reminiscent of, and more frightening than, scenes showing bird beaks chipping away at a farmhouse door in Hitchcock's "The Birds".

I like the film too because it is so nostalgic. The reel-to-reel tape recorder and dozens of other props and visual cues, the references to philosophy and mysticism, the Morricone film score which at times sounds like the film scores from his spaghetti Westerns, all conspire to transport the viewer back to the Age of Aquarius.

The acting is fine. Tony Musante, Suzy Kendall, and Enrico Salerno are perfect for the roles they play.

This is one scary movie. Minor flaws notwithstanding, "The Bird With The Crystal Plumage" is top-notch entertainment for fans of suspense thrillers.