‘When I go beserk…you’re better off dead’
Watch Me When I Kill is a 1977 Italian giallo thriller film directed by Antonio Bido (The Bloodstained Shadow); it stars Corrado Pani, Paola Tedesco and Franco Citti. Trans Europa Express provide the Goblin-influenced score. The original Italian title is Il gatto dagli occhi di giada (“The Cat with Jade Eyes”) and it is also known as The Cat’s Victims.
Plot:
When Mara (Paolo Tedesco) stops by a pharmacy to pick up some painkillers she’s unwittingly signed up for a prescription in terror and a world of pain for those around her!
Told to come back another day, little does Mara realise that the chemist is lying dead in the back of the shop and she’s bought herself a stalker determined to wipe her out now that she’s a witness…
Reviews:
” ,,,a plodding, almost incomprehensible “killer on the loose” concoction featuring three mildly interesting deaths […] The explanations are ludicrous.” John Stanley, Creature Features, Berkley Boulevard, 2000
” …a minor work, yet engrossing enough — finds Bido (The Bloodstained Shadow) not shying away from bloodletting … or face-ovening. (Get ready to welcome an aversion to meat-based stew!) Graphic as these scenes are, their most chilling aspect lasts for a literal fraction of a second: a subliminal close-up of an indeterminate animal’s eyes.” Flick Attack
“Bido takes a much more Hitchcockian approach but manages to build tension nicely before Esmeralda’s death scene; and his handling of the bath strangulation — which is choreographed and edited to fit a snippet of Verdi opera — though inspired by Psycho, comes the closest to capturing the energy of Argento’s work.” Horrorview
“Bido is obviously a filmmaker of some talent, he elicits top notch performances from all those involved and keeps the whole polished proceedings rattling along at a fair old rate. And whilst Bido’s film doesn’t contain the breathtaking set pieces of most of Argento’s work, he still manages some highly effective moments.” Hysteria Lives!
“The nods to Hitchcock and Argento are fairly blatant but done as homage rather than theft so they add to the film rather than detract from it. By no means the best film to come out of Italy in the 1970s, Watch Me When I Kill is still a suspenseful and involving thriller and is a fine addition to the Shameless library.” My Reviewer
“I really like Watch Me When I Kill, even if it’s a bit dry and lacks that unique and spectacular atmosphere that we love so much in this genre, but the story is strong and acting is excellent.” Ninja Dixon
” …when the film switches locations to the more rural settings the visuals are opened to nice effect, providing some interesting visual contrast. That said, there’s nothing here that Argento didn’t do earlier or better for that matter. Still, this is worth seeing for some of its standout moments and its absolutely killer score.” Rock! Shock! Pop!
“It may lack much in the way of originality but it is competently made and does not overstay its welcome. Bido’s enthusiasm for the genre manifests here and there; some of the killings are unexpectedly effective, notably the bathtub demise of one of the key supporting players. Mario Vulpiani’s cinematography is professional if unremarkable, while the Goblin-esque score is effective.” Troy Howarth, So Deadly, So Perverse, Midnight Marquee Press, 2015
“Some nice atmospheric camerawork, a horrible cooking incident gone terribly awry, good pacing, and a decent plotline make this giallo stand strong.” The Terror Trap
Blu-ray release:
Watch Me When I Kill was released by Synapse Films on Blu-ray and DVD on October 29th 2019.
This 1977 giallo thriller was directed by Antonio Bido (The Bloodstained Shadow). The release has been restored in high definition in anamorphic 1.85:1 widescreen with DTS-HD MA English and 2.0 mono English and Italian (with English subtitles) soundtracks. Special features:
Audio commentary by film historian and author Nathaniel Thompson
Isolated music-only track
Interview with academic Mikel Koven
Three short films from director Antonio Bido: Danza Macabra, Mendelssohn Im Judischen Museum, Berlin, and Marche Funebre D’une Marionette
Theatrical trailer
TV spot
Radio spots
The Blu-ray will also include a bonus CD of the soundtrack score by Trans-Europa Express. The sleeve features reversible cover art.
Buy UK Shameless DVD: Amazon.com | Amazon.co.uk
Cast and characters:
Corrado Pani … Lukas
Paola Tedesco … Mara
Franco Citti … Pasquale Ferrante
Fernando Cerulli … Giovanni Bozzi
Giuseppe Addobbati … Judge
Gianfranco Bullo … Santoro, the pharmacist’s assistant
Jill Pratt … Signora Dezzan (as Yill Pratt)
Bianca Toccafondi … Esmeralda Messori
Inna Alexeievna … Old woman
Paolo Malco … Carlo
Cristina Piras … Pasquale Ferrante’s wife
Roberto Antonelli … Michele
Gaetano Rampin … Doctor Peretti
Giuseppe Pennese … Marco
Giovanni Vannini … Biagio Dezzan, the pharmacist (as Giovanni Vanini)
Antonio Bido … Cabaret’s director (uncredited)
Gino Cassani … De Maria, Lukas’s assistant (uncredited)
Arnaldo Momo … Madman in the abandoned mansion (uncredited)
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