Director: Riccardo Freda
Notable Cast: Klaus Kinski, Christiane Kruger, Gunther
Stoll, Annabella Incontrera, Sydney Chaplin, Barbara Nelli, Margaret Lee
When Arrow Video announced that they would be releasing Double
Face, I really had no reaction. There is a sense of trust from the cult
cinema community concerning what Arrow aims to accomplish with their releases
and I share in that trust, but Double Face was a film I had never come
across previously. Thus, I had no expectations for it prior to watching the
film. I saw the cover, but I even refrained from reading the synopsis to go in
with as fresh eyes and mind as possible. Not everyone will be able to see the
film that way, but it made for a very different experience for me. Double
Face is a strange and stylish spin on the usual murder mystery film. The
narrative tends to get muddled underneath what it feels is a relatively clever
premise, but the style is effective and a couple of key performances make it an
interesting film even if its foundations start to crack under the weight.
More or less, when someone mentions an Italian murder
mystery, it’s easy to assume that the film is a giallo. Particularly when it
comes from this era. However, Double Face is more akin to an
exploitative and Italian version of a Hitchcockian mystery film than a giallo. As
it unravels its plot, the film loves to play things light and loose with its
story and narrative. It even makes the problematic choice to start the film with
a car wreck sequence (complete with questionable toy model effects) that is
from the third act before leaping back in time to explain who the story made it
to that point. It’s just the first of many questionable choices in narrative
that arise. Most of them arise in the first act, whether it’s inconsistent voice-overs or vague time jumps, and it makes for a hard film to buy into as it
attempts to lay the groundwork for the rest of the murder mystery.
To its benefit, Double Face does gather momentum in
style and quality once it establishes the main plot where our main character,
played for the entirety of the film in a state of stern confusion by Klaus
Kinski, begins to believe that his supposedly deceased wife is not actually
dead. Unfortunately, that first act does not spend enough time establishing the
key characters in a way that creates the best arc for the narrative. Despite
the best efforts of surprise reveals or twists within the plot that unravel into a
much larger conspiracy, Double Face cannot find its footing as it tries
to run. There are intriguing elements embedded within the framework of its
script and director Freda has a knack for slathering the film in just enough style
that it passes by a decent watch. There are some erotic thriller aspects that
arise in the second act that indicate there was perhaps a better exploitation
film to be unearthed here, particularly in how Kinski’s character starts to
spiral into a world of sex, drugs, and partying that betray his stern
businessman life, but those exist to get the film from point A to point B and
rarely add the depth they might have.
Fortunately, for those Italian cinema connoisseurs that are
going to leap into Double Face with the usual vigor they bring to everything
relating to cinema from this era, the latest Arrow Video Blu Ray is a fantastic
addition to the collection. The new 2K restoration brings to light all of the
solid visual moments that Double Face has to offer and once again Tim
Lucas’ encyclopedic knowledge of cinema makes his new commentary the true
highlight of the entire release and gives a mediocre film a much-needed lift.
Various other features, as listed below, are great for cinephiles and a new
visual essay on the director is a fitting addition.
Double Face features a few key elements that Italian
cinema consumers will want to experience for themselves. Director Freda gives
the basic Hitchcockian murder mystery premise an intriguing Italian visual
punch and it’s fun to see how far that interpretation goes as the film plays
out with some fun left turns and wildly outlandish reveals that pop up in the
third act. It’s just incredibly unfortunate that the script and narrative of
the film are so cracked and underdeveloped that the rest of the film cannot build
much on top of them. Every time it starts to add in some layers, the foundation
it’s built on crumbles under the weight. For fans of the era, genre, or various
creative players involved, Double Face is a middle of the road
experience that is worth seeing at least once to see how it plays out. However,
the impressive Blu Ray release of the film is far more deserving of praise than
the film itself.
ARROW VIDEO FEATURES:
FIRST PRESSING ONLY: Illustrated collector s booklet featuring new writing on the film by Neil Mitchell
Written By Matt Reifschneider
Double Face Full free movie
ReplyDelete