KNIFE OF ICE -- Blu-ray Review by Porfle

Originally posted on 7/24/20

 

(KNIFE OF ICE is part of the "Lenzi/Baker 4-Volume Blu-ray Collection which also includes ORGASMO, SO SWEET, SO PERVERSE, and A QUIET PLACE TO KILL.)


The final entry in the four-movie collaboration between director Umberto Lenzi and Hollywood superstar Carroll Baker, KNIFE OF ICE (Severin Films, 1972), moves into territory which, perhaps more than the previous three tales, typifies the popular image of the Italian "giallo" film genre during the 70s.

Rather than being an edgy but picturesque erotic/romantic thriller with minimal horror elements, this tense and sometimes shocking murder mystery is replete with foggy streets, a dark, shadowy mansion next to a cemetery, murder victims with faces frozen in wide-eyed terror, and a black-gloved homicidal maniac stalking a beautiful woman while the police are baffled by multiple suspects, some much more obvious than others.

There's also a possible supernatural element this time, since the murders seem tied to a local Satanic cult whose followers tend to have alarmingly grotesque eyes and hostile dispositions.

We'll see a lot of the main suspect, cult member Mason (Mario Pardo), a feral type who's seen emerging out of the dense fog (which this small Spanish village seems to have piped in from London) or peering from the bushes at a victim's funeral when not actually creeping around the leading lady's villa at night.

The lady in question, of course, is the divine Carroll Baker as Martha Caldwell, who lives with her uncle and his servants and has been mute ever since witnessing the death of her parents in a horrific train crash. 

Baker is fascinating to watch as always, and even more so here as she must emote using only body movements and facial expressions. Even without dialogue, she manages to create a sympathetic character we can care for.

Director Lenzi switches with easy aplomb from the opulent world of wealthy jet-setters to the more simple setting of rural Spain with its lush countryside and Old World architecture as well as simpler folk whose quiet lives are turned upside-down by the brutal murders suddenly taking place in their midst.

Poor Martha seems to be the epicenter of it all, suffering the tragic loss of friends and loved ones before becoming the killer's main target herself. Naturally, just about everyone she knows and trusts becomes a suspect, as an abundance of possible clues and red herrings present themselves to us.

The capable supporting cast includes Evelyn Stewart (THE SWEET BODY OF DEBORAH) as Martha's visiting cousin Jenny, Alan Scott as trusted friend Dr. Laurent, Eduardo Fajardo (NIGHTMARE CITY) as strangely secretive family chauffeur Marcos, George Rigaud (HORROR EXPRESS, EYEBALL) as Uncle Ralph, and Silvia Monelli (YESTERDAY, TODAY & TOMORROW) as stern housekeeper Mrs. Britton, whose possible love affair with Dr. Laurent may have something to do with the murders.

The Blu-ray from Severin Films is scanned in 2K from the original negative and looks great. Sound is in both Italian and English mono, with English subtitles. The bonus menu consists of an interview with Umberto Lenzi himself, an interview with author Stephen Thrower ("Nightmare USA") entitled "Carroll and Umberto’s Final Stab", the film's trailer, and an alternate credit sequence.

Lenzi himself states in the bonus interview that he had tired of making films about the glamorous lives of the rich and wanted to do something more down-to-earth in his final giallo with Carroll Baker. With KNIFE OF ICE he succeeded in creating just the kind of old-fashioned woman-in-peril murder mystery he set out to do, ending his collaboration with the "incredible" (Lenzi's word) Miss Baker with an immensely satisfying twist ending you'll not soon forget.



Disc Specs for Knife of Ice:

    Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
    Audio: Italian mono DTS, English mono DTS
    Subtitles: Subtitles for Italian audio / SDH for English audio
    Region A

Special Features for Knife of Ice:

    Carroll and Umberto’s Final Stab: Interview with Stephen Thrower, Author of ‘Nightmare USA’
    Until the Silence Screams: Interview with Director Umberto Lenzi
    Trailer
    Alternate Credit Sequence