Black Belly of the Tarantula (1971)

A series of victims are paralyzed while having their bellies ripped open, much in the same way tarantulas are killed by the black wasp. The victims all seem to have a connection with a spa.

Director:

Paolo Cavara

Writers:

Marcello Danon (story), Lucile Laks (screenplay)

Stars:

Giancarlo Giannini, Claudine Auger, Barbara Bouchet

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Giancarlo Giannini	...	Inspector Tellini
Claudine Auger	...	Laura
Barbara Bouchet	...	Maria Zani
Rossella Falk	...	Franca Valentino
Silvano Tranquilli	...	Paolo Zani
Annabella Incontrera	...	Mirta Ricci
Ezio Marano	...	Masseur
Barbara Bach	...	Jenny
Stefania Sandrelli	...	Anna Tellini
Giancarlo Prete	...	Mario
Anna Saia	...	Maria's friend
Eugene Walter	...	Ginetto, the waiter (as Walter Eugene)
Nino Vingelli	...	Inspector Di Giacomo
Daniele Dublino	...	Entomologist
Giuseppe Fortis	...	Psychiatrist

Storyline

Inspector Tellini investigates serial crimes where victims are paralyzed while having their bellies ripped open with a sharp knife, much in the same way tarantulas are killed by the black wasp. As suspects keep dying, Inspector directs his attention to a spa all the victims had a connection with.

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Plot Keywords:

giallo | female nudity | pantyhose legs | psychotronic film | tarantula | 

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Taglines:

With needles dipped in deadly venom the victims are paralyzed - so they must lie awake and watch themselves die!

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Genres:

Horror | Mystery | Thriller

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

The shot where a man falls to his death from a building featured a falling mannequin. However, it strikes a window and breaks it during the plunge, which was an unintentional fluke. The blunder remains in the film.

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Goofs

The scientist who is arrested for drug smuggling refers to the tarantula as an insect. Spiders have 8 legs and belong to the class of arachnids. No scientist would make such an error.

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Connections

Referenced in Reel 2 (2020)

User Reviews

Some Giallo-style lessons in entomology

THE BLACK BELLY OF THE TARANTULA (Paolo Cavara - France/Italy 1971).

A deranged killer is injecting beautiful women with the poison of a rare wasp, paralyzing them and forcing them to witness their own brutal murders. When nymphomaniac Barbara Bouchet and somewhat later her husband have been disemboweled, inspector Tellini (Giancarlo Giannini) is called in to stop the killer's venomous rage. He loves his wife, but is dedicated to his police work above anything else and is away from home a lot, so this leaves his wife a little unhappy at times. Pressure on their marriage is rising, but when the killer targets him and his wife, his blasé attitude towards life won't do the trick anymore.

This is a fine Giallo with great cinematography and style to burn. And I'm very forgiving when a film opens with a buck-naked Barbara Bouchet parading around in the first five minutes. Definitely one the better gialli made, beautifully filmed, gorgeous sets, a sumptuous score by Ennio Morricone and on top of it, three Bond-girls, Barbara Bouchet (CASINO ROYALE), Claudine Auger (THUNDERBALL) and Barbara Bach (THE SPY WHO LOVED ME).

The film boasts some superb and highly stylized cinematography with evocative use of locations by Marcello Gatti, who lensed THE BATTLE OF ALGIERS five years previous and would later work on Polanski's WHAT. The film has a rather unusual setting, with many scenes filmed in Rome around modernist housing blocks. It's a shame so few of Paolo Cavara's other films are available on DVD. Perhaps "Black Belly" is not covering any new ground, but as far as perfection in Giallo mysteries goes, this comes very close.

Giannini looks a bit bored throughout the whole film. Perhaps he is contemplating about his appearance in yet another Italian B-movie. Speaking of Giannini, what's the deal with that little mustache he's cultivating? He looks almost exactly like Alain Delon in LE CERCLE ROUGE, made just a year earlier.

Camera Obscura --- 8/10

Details

Country:

Italy France

Language:

Italian

Release Date:

9 June 1972 (USA)

Also Known As:

Black Belly of the Tarantula

Filming Locations:

Roma, Lazio, Italy

Company Credits

Production Co:

Da Ma Produzione, Produzioni Atlas Consorziate (P.A.C.)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

89 min 98 min (uncut)

Sound Mix:

Mono Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1