Quiet,
reserved politician’s daughter Carol (Florinda Balkan), married to the equally
sensible and reserved Frank (Jean Sorel), is having recurring nightmares
involving passionate lesbian sex and brutal murder. When the woman at the
centre of her erotic, alarming and psychedelic fantasies, her neighbour Julia
(Anita Strindberg), is found murdered for real, the boundaries between reality
and the unconscious become blurred as Carol descends into madness. With
acid-dropping hippies, psychotherapy, beautiful Italian actresses, shocking
scenes of experimental vivisection (Carlo Rambaldi’s effects were so realistic
that many audience members believed it was real), London locations, a fantastic
Ennio Morricone score and a starring role for British stalwart tough guy
Stanley Baker as the police detective on the case, A Lizard in a Woman’s
Skin is a masterpiece of the Italian giallo.
The
film was directed by Lucio Fulci, who made his name in Italian comedies (most
notably with the Sicilian duo Franco and Ciccio) and pop musicals before
turning his hand to the crime thrillers he would become known for throughout
the 1970s. Although Fulci’s name is synonymous with Italian gore films like Zombie
Flesh Eaters (1979), The Beyond (1981) and New York Ripper
(1982), he had an incredibly eclectic career, also dabbling in westerns,
adventure stories, historical dramas, sex comedies, post-apocalypse action,
erotic thrillers and poliziotteschi crime films. Despite being so prolific (around
sixty feature films as director and writer in a career spanning forty years),
he was no pedestrian, workmanlike artisan directing to order. Fulci had style. This
is particularly evident in A Lizard in a Woman’s Skin (also known as Schizoid
in the States), which despite being an Italian production, features many
British actors in the cast and was shot on location around London, with
Alexandra Palace and The Royal Albert Hall being two recognisable backdrops to
the action. Fulci worked with fantastic art directors, costume designers, an
extremely accomplished cinematographer and the aforementioned Enno Morricone,
and the result is a film that still looks fresh and exciting over fifty years
later.
Australian
company Umbrella Entertainment, who are rapidly developing the reputation as
being one of the finest boutique labels, have put out a fantastic collector’s
edition of this important entry in Italian genre cinema. The restoration itself
looks terrific, but it’s the overall package that truly makes this release
special: The disc itself features archival and new bonus material, including an
entertaining and informative commentary from experts Troy Howarth and Howard S.
Berger, new visual essays on Fulci and the film itself and an interview with
the ubiquitous Kim Newman on Stanley Baker. The package includes a reversible
poster featuring the original Spanish and American posters, art cards reproducing
original promotional stills and a 48-page booklet crammed with art and new
essays, all housed in a rigid case. For Fulci and giallo fans, this is a very
special edition and is sure to become highly collectible. Unfortunately, it
already appears to be sold out but can still be found on third party sites if you are quick! There
is also a regular edition of the Blu-ray available with a slipcase featuring
original artwork that can be ordered here.