This is a fine little giallo which borrows from and credits Poe for elements from The Black Cat. However, that comes about halfway through the tale, which makes you wonder if this was two partial plots made into one for a full film.
You have a struggling writer who has a rather brutal relationship with his wife and they live together in a nice old château. But, strange things...like Murder!...start happening, sometimes within the walls(so to speak) of their own home. However, this sort of comes to a halt, as I said, about halfway through the movie, then we move on to the Black Cat portion of the tale. And, if you know the story, then you know exactly where the plot is going.
Their niece comes to live with them and she's a delightful little firecracker who starts to play and play with all involved for her own desires and personal gain. All the major players are jerks, so you don't feel too bad when they each meet their own well-deserved fate(not that this necessarily means they all die). However, you have to laugh at an inspector working with a patrolman to learn the nature of a complaint about possible "cat abuse"---that's a sorry way to move a story along.
The gore effects are more bloody than gory, but they're not bad. I was disappointed when the plot hit the fork in the road and went down the wrong trail. But, this is still a good film to see if you're into gialli, as I am.
You have a struggling writer who has a rather brutal relationship with his wife and they live together in a nice old château. But, strange things...like Murder!...start happening, sometimes within the walls(so to speak) of their own home. However, this sort of comes to a halt, as I said, about halfway through the movie, then we move on to the Black Cat portion of the tale. And, if you know the story, then you know exactly where the plot is going.
Their niece comes to live with them and she's a delightful little firecracker who starts to play and play with all involved for her own desires and personal gain. All the major players are jerks, so you don't feel too bad when they each meet their own well-deserved fate(not that this necessarily means they all die). However, you have to laugh at an inspector working with a patrolman to learn the nature of a complaint about possible "cat abuse"---that's a sorry way to move a story along.
The gore effects are more bloody than gory, but they're not bad. I was disappointed when the plot hit the fork in the road and went down the wrong trail. But, this is still a good film to see if you're into gialli, as I am.