KnotStronger
This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.
Juana
what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.
Dana
An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.
Caryl
It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties. It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.
davepolit-83057
Why is this film not available on DVD? I saw it twice on German TV, many many years ago. And then lost all trace of it. Even in Italy I tried to find it in Video shops. Nobody even knew what I was talking about. So finally I started thinking, well, perhaps I had only imagined the film. But thanks to your website, I realise it all wasn't just a figment of my imagination.Now for the concrete thing: Is there any way I could buy an Italian copy of this film? Can we ask the producers to provide it in one form or other before it complete disintegrates? That would be a great contribution to keeping cultural works alive.
Zbigniew_Krycsiwiki
Small cast does well in small setting; claustrophobic film largely takes place in their flat, as weird husband and his wife, who calls out another's name while asleep, try to sell a the biggest yellow rug, which doesn't even fit in their flat and was given to her by her now dead father. Potential buyer appears, while hubby is out, and proceeds to psychologically taunt and terrorise her, knowing personal information about her, before turning violent, and she kills him in self defense. His wife shows up looking for him, and that first of several twists is where the real fun begins. Surprisingly for a giallo, it mostly shows restraint in regard to violence and gore, using them sporadically, in only a couple of scenes, relying on acting and atmospheric photography to create tension and suspense. Interesting composure as well, and the film doesn't over do the dark lighting.
tedg
For the first 4/5s, this is a cheaply done version of a few similar films, where a husband concocts a drama to fool his wife. In this case, it is validate a perceived infatuation with another (albeit deceased) man.But as it starts to wrap up, we relax and things start to spring all over the place, just when we are at our most vulnerable. Just as the supposed affair is passionate misdirection, so too is the first part of the movie where the primary deception occurs.But there is a secondary deception, that of the deceivers. It seems that while we watched, we were being doubly fooled. First the visiting man is a potential buyer of a carpet, then he is a murderer, then an actor, then a psychiatrist and finally some novel combination of them.This is based on a play and largely presented in a single apartment. it is clear that the play worked out all the necessaries.
Coventry
What we have here is another sublime yet criminally neglected giallo-highlight that urgently deserves to be out there on DVD along with the big boys! Once you witness how amazingly compelling and suspenseful this film is, you too will probably wonder why the hell it is still so unknown and incredibly difficult to purchase. "House of the Yellow Carpet" implements a unique and highly creative structure, the convoluted plot-twists are actually plausible for a change and – most of all – director Carlo Lizzani upholds a genuinely unsettling atmosphere throughout the entire film. The script is adapted from a stage play and this really shows, as there's just one main setting and only four characters that gather there. Exactly like in the terrific Audrey Hepburn thriller "Wait Until Dark" (also based on a play), the lack of filming locations increases the tension and, moreover, provides the film with an awkward feel of claustrophobia. Also, the titular yellow carpet might be a hideous piece of interior decoration, but it's definitely a cool gimmick for a movie that falls into the category of "gialli"! The opening sequence immediately sets a sober tone, as a husband overhears his wife talking in her sleep about sex with another man. The next morning, we learn that the couple placed an ad to sell an old inherited yellow carpet that hardly fits in their apartment. When she's alone later that morning, the woman receives a visitor who pretends to be interested in the carpet but the strange & uncanny man promptly ensues to psychologically terrorize Franca about her deepest desires and hidden childhood secrets. I know it's not much of a summary, but it's really all that I can tell about the story without revealing essential elements. And, trust me, this is the type of film for which you don't want to know already how it ends. "House of the Yellow Carpet" is not as violent or sick-spirited as most contemporary giallo-efforts (partly due to the budget?), but the lack of gore is widely compensated by a stylish photography and great dialogues. The acting performances are highly satisfying too, with a splendid role for the Swedish veteran actor Erland Josephson ("The Unbearable Lightness of Being"). Excellent film, truly recommended.