Casa d'appuntamento
| The French Sex Murders | |
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| Directed by |
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| Screenplay by |
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| Story by | Paolo Daniele |
| Produced by |
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| Starring |
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| Cinematography |
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| Edited by | Bruno Mattei |
| Music by | Bruno Nicolai |
Production companies |
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| Distributed by | Variety Distribution |
Release date |
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Running time | 88 minutes |
| Countries |
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| Language | Italian |
The French Sex Murders (Italian: Casa d'appuntamento (Translation: House of Rendezvous) is a 1972 giallo film directed by Ferdinando Merighi under the pseudonym "F. L. Morris", and edited by Bruno Mattei. It was released as The French Sex Murders in the US, The Bogey Man and the French Murders in the UK, and Meurtre dans la 17e avenue in France.[1] It stars Rosalba Neri, Anita Ekberg, Barbara Bouchet, Howard Vernon and Gordon Mitchell.[1] The actor who played the police inspector in this film (Robert Sacchi) was a professional Humphrey Bogart lookalike, which explains the alternate "Bogey Man" title.[1] Special effects technician Carlo Rambaldi handled the throat slashings and beheadings that take place in the movie.[1]
Plot
A petty criminal named Antoine (Peter Martell) is blamed for the murder of a prostitute who was killed at Madame Collette's exclusive whorehouse in Paris. He is sentenced to death by guillotine, and he swears revenge on everyone who helped convict him. At the last moment, he manages to escape from the prison – but is then decapitated in a motorcycle accident. A scientist Prof. Waldemar obtains the criminal's severed head from the morgue for purposes of experimentation. The judge, who sentenced Antoine to death later turns up murdered, and then one by one, the prostitutes at Madame Collette's begin turning up murdered as well. Everyone believes that Antoine is causing the murders to happen, and that he is wreaking vengeance from beyond the grave.
Cast
Main
- Anita Ekberg as Madame Colette
- Rosalba Neri as Marianne
- Evelyne Kraft as Eleonora (Credited as Evelyne Elgar)
- Howard Vernon as Professor Waldemar
- Pietro Martellanza as Antoine Gottvalles (Credited as Peter Martell)
- Barbara Bouchet as Francine
- Robert Sacchi as Inspector Fontaine
- Eva Astor as Florence
- Renato Romano as Mr. Randall
- Rolf Eden as Pepi
- Franco Borelli as Roger Delluc
- Piera Viotti as Tina
- William Alexander as George
- Ada Pometti as Doris the Maid
- Alessandro Perrella as Doris' Lover
Cameo/Uncredited
- Flavia Keyt as Prostitute
- Gordon Mitchell as Man in Nightclub
- Mike Monty as Detective
- Xiro Papas as Thug in Bar
- Riccardo Petrazzi as Other Man Repairing a Van
- Dick Randall as Mr. Hassan
- Goffredo Unger as Man Repairing a Van
Critical reception
Allmovie gave it a mixed review, writing "The contrived script [...] is completely off the hook, which fans of the giallo form will be expecting, but those who come to the film cold may be somewhat nonplussed."[2]
wizzley.com noted: "trashy little piece of nasty entertainment that's not very good, but pretty fun".[3]
DVDTalk noted: "the production particulars of French Sex Murders are more interesting than the film itself"..." plot simply strings together a series of gory murders"..."poor lighting and direction only highlight the phony severed heads and poster paint blood"..."Action scenes are particularly incompetent".[4]
References
- ^ a b c d Luther-Smith, Adrian (1999). "Bogey". Blood and Black Lace. Stray Cat Publishing. p. 17. ISBN 978-0-9533261-1-2. Retrieved 25 March 2023 – via archive.org.
- ^ Robert Firsching. "Casa d'appuntamento (1973)". Allmovie. Retrieved 18 June 2012.
- ^ "Retro Horror Review: "The French Sex Murders" (1972)". wizzley.com. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
- ^ Erickson, Glenn (July 22, 2005). "DVD Savant Review: French Sex Murders". dvdtalk.com. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
External links
- "The French Sex Murders". Box Office Mojo.
- "Casa d'appuntamento". Rivista del cinematografo.
- "Meurtre dans la 17e avenue". AlloCiné.
- "Casa d'appuntamento". MYmovies.it.
- "Das Auge des Bösen". filmportal.de.
- "French Sex Murders (Casa d'appuntamento) s". Rotten Tomatoes.
- "The French Sex Murders (1972)". filmaffinity.
- "Casa d'appuntamento". Cinémathèque québécoise. Archived from the original on 2021-05-01.
- Casa d'appuntamento at IMDb
- Casa d'appuntamento at Variety Distribution