My Dear Killer

My Dear Killer

Genre: Giallo, Horror

Original title: Mio caro assassino

AKA: Time To Kill, Darling

Director: Tonino Valerii

Year: 1972

A mysterious decapitation leads Inspector Peretti into a case of blackmail, deceit and the unsolved kidnapping of a young girl.

My Dear Killer directed by Tonino Valerii (best known for being the screenwriter & assistant director on A Fistful Of Dollars) is decent yet hugely disappointing Giallo from the genre's peak period. 

The film starts off well with one of the most imaginative kills I've ever seen with a really well shot decapitation by way of a giant crane! There's also a spectacularly gory killing of a schoolteacher by way of a power-drill which is fantastic in its execution. Unfortunately in terms of blood & thrills theres barely anything else worth mentioning. 

Gialli superstar George Hilton is the lead here, what should of been more appropriately titled George Hilton Investigates as a good 90% of the film is exactly that. Hilton tries to pull the pieces together to find a missing school girl whilst each time he gets nearer a witness is taken out. He'd give Sherlock Holmes a run for his money with his clue solving. Some of this is entertaining however, there's just so fucking much of it! Questioning, investigating, plot, plot, plot, it never lets up. Even the final 10 minutes is anticlimactic with Hilton revealing the ridiculous plot in a room full of suspects until he reveals the killer & the film ends

. 

Ennio Morricone provided the score although my must say it's not one of his more memorable ones. It works best in tension filled scenes with a jarring type of quality but unfortunately there's not enough moments in the film for the score to blossom like it perhaps should have. 

This review probably sounds like I disliked the film, I didn't. There are some really great moments in here, Hilton is never dull despite his characters constant questioning & despite there only been limited kills the ones we get are incredibly memorable. 

My Dear Killer had many of the elements needed for a great Giallo in place however it didn't hit the sweet spot nearly as often as it should of.

Rating: ★★★

George Hilton Investigates, again & again & again.

A Reason To Live, A Reason To Die

A Reason to Live, a Reason to Die

Genre: Spaghetti Western

Original title: Una ragione per vivere e una per morire

Director: Tonino Valerii

Year: 1972

Branded a coward for surrendering his New Mexico fort to the Confederates without firing a shot, a Union colonel attempts to redeem himself by leading a band of condemned prisoners on a suicide mission to recapture it.

A Reason To Live, A reason To Die is a wonderful War-Western which is sadly overlooked by most. The story is completely lifted from the Dirty Dozen but thats alright with me, men on a mission films are my kind of movies! 

James Coburn is great as always & Bud Spencer plays a right deviant git who talks himself out of almost every situation & then there's Telly Savalas as the confederate major. There's humour thrown in (mostly via Bud Spencer) but there's always a sense of doom that looms over the characters, it's never played for cheap laughs. 

Reading up about this picture it seems I love it way more than most people. Though I do wonder if the people who weren't keen had seen the much shorter version where Coburn is dubbed by another actor. The version I saw ran at nearly two hours & I can't imagine a single second of it being removed. In my view, an underrated gem.

Rating: ★★★★

The Dirty Dozen go West