‘Raw… revealing… daring… with death as the uninvited guest!’
Death on the Four Poster is a 1964 Giallo thriller about young people who hold a party in a castle and play an occult game in which deaths are predicted by a psychic. Soon it turns into more than a game…
The movie was directed by Jean Josipovici (Pitié pour les vamps; L’inspecteur connaît la musique; Flesh and Desire) and Ambrogio Molteni from a screenplay co-written by Josipovici and Giorgio Stegani. Produced by Ulderico Sciaretta and Pasquale Tagliaferri.
Art director Demofilo Fidani went on to direct twenty films of different genres but mainly Westerns.
The movie stars Antonella Lualdi, Michel Lemoine (Seven Women for Satan; Kiss Me Monster; Castle of the Creeping Flesh; Succubus), José Greci, John Drew Barrymore (The Clones; War of the Zombies), Gloria Milland, Luisa Rivelli and Mario Valdemarin.
Reviews:
“Once the first body is discovered, the dialogue becomes more vacuous, the characters become dumber and the pacing slows to a crawl. When the characters aren’t moronically wandering around just asking to be killed, they’re sitting around the castle’s main room looking bored out of their minds. I could relate.” ★★ The Bloody Pit of Horror
“Overall, the entire cast does a great job and all the 1960s babes look wonderful – even Catherine the maid sexes it up at one point when she lets her hair out and slips out of her maid’s uniform. Simply put, Death on the Fourposter is a superlative early giallo that provides sexy, campy fun from beginning to end.” Euro Fever
” ….your basic “old dark house” thriller, with suspicious servants, seances, murders, secret passages, etc. About the biggest thing new that it adds to the recipe is an obsession with sex; part of the plot revolves around a pregnancy, and much of the footage in the movie consists of women stripping down to their underwear.” Fantastic Movie Musings and Ramblings
“Without revealing too much, Serena’s head games give way to a séance; it works, and not everyone lives to see the sunshine. Viewers’ unfamiliarity with the no-star cast works to the distinct advantage of this rough gem, in that conceivably, anyone could make an early exit.” Flick Attack
” …some of the usual ‘old dark house’ cliches, such as the sinister groundskeeper/servant, the dodgy fuses and a moving bookcase that hides a secret passage. Despite knowing there’s a killer on the loose, people persist in going off on their own and creeping about in the dusty passageways. However, there is an amusing sequence when Vittoria Prada gropes around on the floor for her lost glasses, foreshadowing the actions of Velma from many a ‘Scooby Doo’ cartoon!” Mark David Welsh
“I found myself increasingly frustrated with the film. Long stretches of underdeveloped, largely forgettable characters talking is not my idea of a good time. Had the film pared down its roster of characters and pushed the mystery angle up in the running time, I probably would have enjoyed the time I spent watching Death on the Fourposter. Unfortunately, there was far too much of far too little for me to stay interested.” You Have Died of Dysentery
Free online on YouTube:
Cast and characters:
John Drew Barrymore … Anthony; Gloria Milland … Franca/Frankie; Luisa Rivelli … Caterina; Antonella Lualdi … Serena; Michel Lemoine … Riccardo; Mario Valdemarin … Carlo; Joe Atlanta … Paul; Massimo Carocci … Georgie; Alberto Cevenini … Lulu; Maria Pia Conte … Nikki; Giuseppe Fortis … Aldo; José Greci … Kitty; Vittoria Prada … Lucy-Ann; Monique Vita … Edie
Original titles:
Delitto allo specchio “Crime in the Mirror”
Filming locations:
Castello della Castelluccia, Rome (now a hotel and restaurant; Naked You Die was also filmed at this same location).
Notes:
The title on the export print is Death on the Fourposter [sic].
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