[Blu-Ray] FILM REVIEW: Four Flies On Grey Velvet

Four Flies on Grey Velvet - Shameless Films Blu Ray Release Review

Director: Dario Argento

Starring: Michael Brandon, Mimsy Farmer, Calisto Calisti, Francine Racette, Jean -Pierre Marielle

Written by: Dario Argento, Luigi Cozzi, Mario Foglietti

Produced by: Salvatore Argento

Cinematography by: Franco Di Giacomo

Original Score by: Ennio Morricone

Synopsis:

A musician is stalked by an unknown homicidal maniac, who blackmails him for the accidental killing of another stalker.

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Thoughts:

There's nothing quite like watching a Dario Argento picture, particularly those early, experimental features. 'Four Flies on Grey Velvet' was originally released in 1971 just a few years before Argento's epic run of masterpieces and although this one tends to get overlooked, due mainly to the fact it was essentially "lost" for decades, it still leaves a lasting impression. Famously Part 3 of his "Animal Trilogy". Watch it as Argento intended all his films to be watched, in complete darkness.

The Blu-ray contains two very brief optional introductions from lead star Michael Brandon and assistant Director Luigi Cozzi before we are treated to a mesmerising opening sequence in which we are introduced to our protagonist Roberto (Michael Brandon) and his hip rock band. They're jamming together in a rehearsal space and Roberto is giving it stacks, as a fly dances around his face and then his hi-hats. This scene is entertainingly spliced with various other scenes of Roberto getting followed by a strange and mysterious fedora wearing man.

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Roberto eventually catches up with his stalker in, you've guessed it, an expansive but dseserted opera house. After confronting him, the stalker denies it and then pulls a knife which leads to a struggle and Roberto ends up stabbing the man. And suddenly a camera light flashes. Another mysterious figure wearing a hilarious cartoonish mask is high up in the Gods taking photographs. The next day Roberto begins to receive blackmailing messages and the people close to him get taken out one by one.

Argento has admitted that this film is very personal to him, almost autobiographical, and that he let himself go crazy with it. Argento going crazy? Say it isn't so. I'm not entirely sure, outside of Roberto's intense paranoia, what parts of the film Argento related to the most. There's definitely a visual resemblance between the leading man and the filmmaker. He mentions his personal nightmares too and there are nightmare sequences in this film of a man publicly beheading another man. So we are to assume that Argento possibly had this recurring nightmare himself or maybe one of his nightmares was in fact a vision of the future and he used that to inspire this particular project. It was written and shot around the time of a divorce so it was clearly a tough time for Argento.

'Four Flies on Grey Velvet' might not be one of Argento's most memorable films but it's full of all the hallmarks that help make him one of the most exciting, ambitious and innovative filmmakers of all time. Shadows. Lots of shadows. Questionable English dubbing. Incredible freeze frames. Invasive, grisly kills. A mysterious masked killer. Inspirational shots and unusual camera angles. Jarring smash cuts and surprising musical cues that almost feel dreamlike. Argento is a visionary and he allows his creative juices to overflow here. Director of Photography Franco Di Giacomo, who worked as a camera operator on various classic Sergio Leone projects and interestingly enough shot 'Amityville II: The Possession', did an amazing job at capturing some gorgeous imagery.

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I was taken aback a little by Michael Brandon's surprisingly good performance. So often the leading man in Argento films struggle to carry the picture and that's usually because his films are really all about the story rather than the character. Mimsy Farmer, who initially delivers a somewhat demure portrayal of Roberto's wife Nina and then turns into something entirely different, is the standout and her explanation of her actions in the final scenes should have inspired an entire generation of slasher films. Another huge inspiration is of course the masked killer. The mask itself is a bit silly but that sort of makes it all the more terrifying and uncanny.

The story is a bit convuluted and it feels like some of the characters included could have easily been left on the cutting room floor. That being said the characters of God, the Professor and the Private Detective Arrosio do bring an element of humour to the picture.

I can't conclude this review without mentioning Ennio Morricone's encompassing score. Supposedly the maestro and Argento had a rocky relationship and this score rarely turns up in Morricone "Best Of" lists but the 'Come Un Madrigale' leading theme is hypnotising and quite moving actually. Notably there's a fair amount of drumming in the score for obvious reasons and it does get a bit distracting at times but it's worth it for THAT final death scene. A pretty breathtaking finale.

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In terms of the transfer, it's difficult to really give a definitive critique. The Blu-ray I watched stated that is was a 1080p edition encoded from the 4K restoration of original visual and audio materials. Considering the film is 45 years old I was very impressed by this edition from Shameless. Audio is always a bit suspect in Argento films though. The release includes brand new interviews with Argento, Michael Brandon and Luigi Cozzi and the 4K UHD Edition also contains 2 artcards, a poster and a booklet by Argento addict and FrightFest founder Alan Jones.

'Four Flies on Grey Velvet' is Dario Argento beginning to find his true voice and vision, full of bold images and audacious albeit slightly confusing storytelling. It's not his finest work, that would come a few years later, but it's still a must see in my opinion.

Verdict: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

-Gavin Logan

'Four Flies on Grey Velvet' is out on separate 4K UHD and Blu-ray releases April 28th from Shameless Films. Available to PRE-ORDER now from Shameless Films

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