ShangLuda
Admirable film.
FirstWitch
A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.
Geraldine
The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.
Leofwine_draca
DEATH OCCURED LAST NIGHT is a low-key Italian mix of crime thriller and giallo, although, sad to say, it fails as a film in both genres. The story is about a woman with the mind of a child who is abducted and forced to work in a brothel before something even more horrendous befalls her. Her father notes her disappearance and goes on a hunt to find her, becoming increasingly unhinged as he does so. Meanwhile, the stolid police team mechnically conduct the slowest investigation ever. And slow is the word here; although the film is well shot by Duccio Tessari, the amount of incident it contains is very low and there are only one or two shocking moments. It picks up in the last ten minutes but before then it's all so cold, lifeless, and, well, a little bit boring. It's a pity, as the photography is fine and Frank Wolff makes for a decent cop protagonist; this is one of those films that needed a lot more 'oomph' for it to work.
BA_Harrison
25 year old Donatella Berzaghi (Gillian Bray) is a total babe and a nymphomaniac to boot, but also has the mind of a three year old. Of course, there are some people who see her disability as a bonus and are willing to pay to do bad things to her, which is why she is abducted and put to work in a brothel.When distraught widower Amanzio Berzaghi (Raf Vallone) realises that his precious daughter is missing, he goes to the police, who begin a city-wide search for the young woman. After the girl turns up dead, having been burnt alive, Amanzio begins his own investigation, determined to make those responsible pay for what they have done.Although labelled as a giallo by some, probably because of its typically giallo-esque title, Death Occurred Last Night is more of a poliziotteschi, with the focus on the detective work carried out by cops Duca Lamberti (Frank Wolff) and Mascaranti (Gabriele Tinti). There's a lot of dialogue and little in the way of action, meaning that the film does tend to drag a lot of the time. Director Duccio Tessari sees fit to include some gratuitous female nudity to spice things up a little, and the climax is satisfyingly brutal, but on the whole this is a fairly mundane feature, with not a leather-gloved maniac brandishing an open razor to be found.4.5 out of 10, rounded up to 5 for the hilariously bad likeness of a suspect drawn by an interviewee at the police station, which the police sketch artist uses to create a portrait that is almost as bad.
gaddgodd
Spoiler warning! This early 70s movie, as the previous comments have already pointed out, is a mix of drama and "giallo" (in Italy a crime story is nicknamed "giallo", that is to say "yellow", because a very successful series of detective stories published before WWII by Mondadori had yellow covers). "La morte risale a ieri sera" is marred by poor acting, silly dialogues and forced plot lines, but remains enjoyable as an overall view of the (north)Italian society of almost forty years ago. However, the title is incredibly meaningless: it doesn't allow the occasional viewer to tell this movie from thousands of other Italian crime stories of the 70s. The book which the movie is based upon was written by Giorgio Scerbanenco and entitled "I milanesi ammazzano al sabato"(=People who live in Milan kill on Saturday): it ironically refers to the fact that "milanesi" are people so hard-working that they kill only when they do not have to go to work! This attractive sociological touch is completely lost in the ultra-generic title "The death occurred last night".
mogweezer101
SPOILER WARNING - There is information in this post which may upset you if you have not seen the movie. If this troubles you = Please do not read on.. SPOILERS AHEAD...I couldn't agree more with the user aboves comments. This is a first rate giallo directed with clinical precision by Duccio Tessari. Raf Vallone's performance as the troubled father is incredibly moving. The plot isn't really typical of a giallo; A retired parent (Vallone) investigates the disappearance of his retarded daughter, last seen at home. As he searches for clues, so do the police, headed by the police commissioner (excellently played by American actor Frank Wolff, in one of his last roles). Both parties follow their own different lines of investigation meeting up in the final reel for the inevitable bloody conclusion.Aside from innumerable Italo-Westerns, Tessari only directed one other pure giallo 'Una Farfalla con Le Ali Insanguinate' (The Bloodstained Butterfly). Also a fine example of the genre and his talents, but it's nowhere near as well executed as 'La Morte...'. Whilst 'Butterfly' looks great and really does deliver the giallo goods the performances always seemed quite lacking to me. In 'La Morte..' it's the performances that hold it all together, rather than the other way around.If anyone has the chance to re-release this film (The Death Occurred Last Night) Please do! It was available in Italy on the CHV label during the 80's and 90's, sadly, now it is almost impossible to find in any format. 'The Bloodstained Butterfly' is readily available (in Italian language only) on DVD.
