Murder in Paris

Casa D'Appuntamento

Murder in Paris

Italy 1972

D: F.L.Morris (Ferdinando Merighi)

P: Dick Randall & Marius Mattei//sT & Sc: Paolo Daniele, Marius Mattei//DP: Mario Mancini, Gunter Otto//E: Bruno Mattei//M: Bruno Nicolai//Art D: Giovanni Pratalocchi//Makeup: Telemaco Tilli//SPFX: Professor Carlo Ran(m)baldi//Color

Cast: Anita Ekberg, Rosalba Neri, Evelyn Kraft, Howard Vernon, Peter Martell, Barbara Bouchet, Robert Sacchi, Renato Romano, Eva Astor, Rolf Eden, William Alexander, Piera Viotti, Alessandro Perrella, Ada Pometti.

The police chase a wanted criminal up the Eiffel Tower until he falls to his death. Inspector Fontaine flashes back on the events leading up to this. Antoine steals precious jewels from a church and hides out at a Madame Colette's, a high class brothel. When he loses his temper and stars to beat up Francine, one of the prostitutes, he runs away. The bloody body of Francine is found soon after and so the police begin a search for Antoine. He is captured, brought to trial and sentenced for death. He swears revenge from the grave and eventually escapes, only to be decapitated in a motorcycle accident. Professor Waldamar wants Antoine's head so he can perform experiments on his brain. His friendship with Judge Tessia helps him acquire the severed extremity. Meanwhile, all those people who new Antoine are being killed off. Madame Colette is the first to go, quickly followed by his former wife Marianne, her husband Pepe, Randall, a writer who lived at the brothel for "research" purposes, and Judge Tessia. For a time Antoine is suspected of keeping his promise, until one of the victims writes a clue in his own blood. It looks like the letter "M" (or is it actually a "W"?) and so Inspector Fontaine locates the murderer and the film ends where it began.

When you look at this film's cast and then watch it, you can't help but be very angry at director Merighi for wasting such a plethora of talent. Never before has so many veterans of Euro-trash appeared in one place and do absolutely nothing. When you have Rosalba Neri and Barbara Bouchet together you expect nudity and sleaze (for the definitive film with those two, see Silvio Amadio's Amuck aka Alla Ricerce Del Piacere), not a quicky death (for Bouchet) and singing in a night club (for Neri). And why is Gordon Mitchell in only one scene, fighting with a woman and getting his ass kicked by a diminutive bouncer! He doesn't even have any dialogue. Howard Vernon acquits himself quite well as the mad doctor Waldamar. He appears to be the only one having a good time. Evelyne Kraft as his daughter is wasted in a do nothing part (though it's easy to see why Vernon's character secretly lusts after her). She was much better having a giant ape as a partner in the Shaw Brothers' Goliathon. Anita Ekberg is well on her way to being the size of a tugboat so I guess we can be thankful she had no nude scenes. Peter Martell as Antoine does his usual job of overacting. His tantrums are painful to watch. Why couldn't any director ever keep him under control? Finally there's the surrealistic casting of Robert Sacchi, future star of The Man With Bogart's Face, as Inspector Fontaine. With trenchcoat in hand and cigarette in hand, at times you will think Humphrey Bogart returned from the grave to resurrect his career in an Italian Giallo. And in case we're too dense to make the connection, the English language dubbers have given him a "Bogart-like" voice to complete the picture. Director Merighi only directed 3 films and it's easy to see that he learned nothing as an assistant to Director Roberto Mauri. The technician who really earned his money in this fiasco is the editor and  future director,Bruno Mattei. He has to make do with substandard camera angles, laughable lighting that makes the night scenes appear like daylight and inept special effects (future superstar SPFX man Carlo Rambaldi must have had a bad day here!). Even though I sound negative, everyone should see this film at least once for it's once in a lifetime cast and lurid storyline.