The Case of the Scorpion's Tail (1971)
"La coda dello scorpione" (original title)

The Case of the Scorpion's Tail begins with the mysterious death of a millionaire and spirals into the murder of his suddenly rich wife, which draws the attention of a dogged investigator, who follows a trail of blood to the bitter end.

Director:

Sergio Martino

Writers:

Ernesto Gastaldi (screenplay), Eduardo Manzanos Brochero (screenplay),

Stars:

George Hilton, Anita Strindberg, Alberto de Mendoza

Cast

Complete credited cast:
George Hilton	...	Peter Lynch
Anita Strindberg	...	Cléo Dupont
Alberto de Mendoza	...	John Stanley
Ida Galli	...	Lisa Baumer (as Evelyn Stewart)
Janine Reynaud	...	Lara Florakis
Luigi Pistilli	...	Inspector Stavros
Tom Felleghy	...	Mr. Brenton
Luis Barboo	...	Sharif
Lisa Leonardi	...	Hostess (as Annalisa Nardi)
Tomás Picó	...	George Barnet

Storyline

A plane explodes; one passenger is a London businessman who's insured for $1 million. His unfaithful wife is the beneficiary. The insurance agency arranges to pay, but also assigns their top investigator, Peter Lynch, to sniff out irregularities. The widow goes to Greece for the payout; Peter follows her, introducing himself. He becomes her protector and her companion, but the relationship is short lived. She has decided to take the money in cash and plans an immediate trip to Tokyo. Is she guilty of her husband's murder, and if so, who's her accomplice? An Athenian police inspector, an Interpol agent, and a French photojournalist join Lynch in the investigation.

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Plot Keywords:

murder | cash | blood | unfaithful wife | accomplice | 

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Genres:

Mystery | Thriller

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Details

Country:

Italy Spain

Language:

Italian

Release Date:

16 August 1971 (Italy)

Also Known As:

Scorpion's Tail

Filming Locations:

Greece

Box Office

Gross:

ESP 19,571,993 (Spain)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Copercines, Cooperativa Cinematográfica, Devon Film

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

70mm blow-up version released in Spain.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Lisa Baumer: Hello, this is Lisa. Yes, it's alright. Yes, his plane will be leaving in a few minutes. You know I'm dying to see you. Soon, hurry darling, I'll be waiting. Bye.

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Connections

Referenced in Violent Cop (1989)

User Reviews

Fairly run of the mill giallo

The most memorable thing about fairly run-of-the-mill giallo The Case of the Scorpion's Tail is the trailer, which shamelessly compares itself to other 'masterpieces on violence' such as The Golem, Battleship Potemkin and M. The film itself is fairly conventional. Director Sergio Martino admits that he padded out the first half after the film's running time came up short, and it shows: it's not until the halfway point that the film gets much in the way of energy. The Scope location photography in London and Greece is attractive and there's some amusement to be had from the terrible model work in a plane explosion or a sunglass wearing villain called Omar who looks like a hung over Charlton Heston in Touch of Evil after being dragged through a thorn bush, but overall the film is nothing to write home about.