Four Flies on Grey Velvet (1972)

Highly Overrated But Still Good

Admirable film.

There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

Four Flies on Grey Velvet like most of Dario Argento's films is striking in its use of music, editing, and cinematography, but otherwise it is confusing, talky, aimless and slow moving. The main character played by a dull Michael Brandon responds to the situation he's got himself into with only mild concern and considerable stupidity. The actions of various supporting characters make little sense as well, and except for a few well-done Hitchcock-inspired scenes, the film is not gripping and you don't really care about the fate of its characters. It's rather unpleasant and pointless like the repeated shot of a beheading that foreshadows the film's arbitrary ending. The film contains a number of Argento's trademarks, but it lacks pace, and the plot lacks shape and cohesiveness. Like DePalma, Argento spends most of his energy on a few set pieces.

I have been waiting a long time to view this film, after the first 2 parts in Argento's brilliant animal trilogy "Bird with the Crystal Plumage" and "Cat O' Nine Tails" which were both excellent in their own ways, and "Four Flies on Grey Velvet" has always been hard to find and perhaps least remembered. Then when I finally got round to seeing it, well I was pleasantly fulfilled, okay it's not as strong as the other 2 and may be a bit flawed, but still manages to shine with yet another intriguing storyline and fascinating characters and plot twists.The storyline here is we have a drummer in a rock band named Roberto Tobias whose straight away being stalked by a man and when he confronts him, he pulls out a knife and tries to attack him, but after the struggle the stalker gets stabbed. A mysterious masked stranger took photographs of the entire incident and later begins to taunt him and starts to murder people in his life.Okay "Four Flies" may lack the elegance and style of the first part of the animal trilogy, but it still packs a punch, especially the masked stranger, with that freaky mask which is truly terrifying and you definitely feel a sense of dread whenever this person is around and the opening of this movie was a very interesting concept and then the growing paranoia of the lead character begins to grow and grow as he wonders what's gonna happen next is truly tense. Along with several stylish murder scenes such as the maid in the park as she's running towards the gate, was beautifully shot and terrifying, and the girl hiding in the cupboard kept me on the edge of my seat and the nerve racking outcome made me jump out of my skin. Even the final reveal was well executed and was a total shock, and the medical experiment which utilizes the four files was truly exciting, especially when it's played out in the end, and the shocking aftermath was a truly brilliant and thrilling experience and one that will be remembered forever.The performances were solid in this one and even the supporting cast were memorable and great as well. Michael Brandon gave a good performance as the lead character and Mimsy Farmer also gave an interesting performance and gives a great screen presence, especially towards the end. Jean Pierre Marielle also gives a standout supporting performance as the private investigator and was truly hilarious and really makes you feel for his character.All in all a good ending to the animal trilogy and okay may not be as strong as the other two, but still worth a watch with its good storyline, intriguing mystery and fantastic ending that neatly wraps everything up.

(Credit IMDb) A musician is stalked by an unknown killer who's blackmailing him for an accidental killing of another stalker. But is everything what it appears to be?One thing I'll have to say about this Giallo from Argento that it's watchable for the most part, but it does have moments where it gets rather dull as well. It has some OK suspense, but nothing really stands out about it in my opinion. Argento is known for his stylish antics, and I wasn't really wowed with anything here. It doesn't help that our hero Roberto (Michael Brandon) is really bland, and uncharismatic. The gore is disappointingly tame, aside from a few things here and there, and a very memorable sequence at the end, which I won't spoil, but it's nasty. The twist ending is definitely the most memorable thing in the movie. I honestly didn't see it coming, and it shocked me. I give props to Dario on that. Aside from that, nothing is really special about this Giallo. Argento has done worse, but he's also done much better5.3/10

It is rare that this flick was until a few years ago almost know as the lost flick of director Dario Argento. There were a lot of VHS available but most of them were Italian spoken and didn't had any subtitles. Another problem was that most copies were too dark, that was meant to be that way. Still, a lot of DVD's that came out later were cut. Now 40 years after it's release it is available on Blu Ray. And what a great release it is. It's available in English and it's full uncut. You can choose between the normal version or the full uncut which has a few scene's that are in VHS quality and others that are spoken in Italian. All with English subtitles.Was it worth the wait? Well, it's one of his earlier flicks and if you know Dario then you might be disappointed by the fact that there's almost no blood or gore in it. On the other hand it is still watchable due the many first person shots involved and the score by Morricone. Also to see is the acting by Michael Brandon in one of his first roles before he became famous in Dempsey and Makepeace (1985 1986). The story itself isn't that god sometimes but it is really the way of filming that let you keep watching it. The acting is by some a bit laughable (the postman) so don't watch it for that reason. Funny is that Dario made an ode to Sergio Leone by adding the fly scene at the beginning, remember Once Upon A Time In The West (1968) were he was involved by watching Sergio.I liked it for the reasons mentioned before, and for the use of special camera's to film the bullet and the end scene. It's not a Deep Red (1975) or Suspiria (1977) but it's a straight Giallo that is a must have for the Dario fans. Pick it up, it's on Shameless label. And for the pervs, Francine Racette (Dalia) go naked. Gore 1/5 Nudity 0,5/5 Effects 4/5 Story 3/5 Comedy 0/5