Michael Brandon ("Lovers and Other Strangers") plays Roberto, drummer in a rock band. He's seen a mysterious man follow him around, and angrily decides to confront the guy. In the process, he accidentally kills him! Then he realizes that someone else has witnessed this killing - a person who then proceeds to terrorize him. Rather than involve the police, he tries to deal with the problem himself.
The final film in master stylist Dario Argentos' "Animal Trilogy" (after "The Bird with the Crystal Plumage" and "The Cat O'Nine Tails"), this was considered to be a "lost" film for a long time, since it had not been available on home video. While the film shows Argento to be in good form - as usual, he knows how to create great visuals - the story is only so-so; even this viewer saw the ending coming a mile away.
Brandon is a dull actor here, playing an uninteresting protagonist, with Mimsy Farmer ("Autopsy") coming off a bit better as Robertos' wife Nina. There *are* some colorful supporting characters to compensate: French actor Jean-Pierre Marielle ("The Da Vinci Code") is a standout as the gay private detective whom Roberto hires; Oreste Lionello ("The Case of the Bloody Iris") is a hoot as a hammock-dwelling kook called "The Professor". Bud Spencer (the "Trinity" films) makes a very welcome handful of appearances as a friend of Robertos' who is addressed as "God".
Overall, "Four Flies on Grey Velvet" is good entertainment, and worth a look for Argento completists. The Ennio Morricone score is a heavy asset, although a disagreement between composer & filmmaker would prevent them from working together again for many years. In the meantime, Italian rock band Goblin would become regular composers for Argentos' pictures.
Seven out of 10.
The final film in master stylist Dario Argentos' "Animal Trilogy" (after "The Bird with the Crystal Plumage" and "The Cat O'Nine Tails"), this was considered to be a "lost" film for a long time, since it had not been available on home video. While the film shows Argento to be in good form - as usual, he knows how to create great visuals - the story is only so-so; even this viewer saw the ending coming a mile away.
Brandon is a dull actor here, playing an uninteresting protagonist, with Mimsy Farmer ("Autopsy") coming off a bit better as Robertos' wife Nina. There *are* some colorful supporting characters to compensate: French actor Jean-Pierre Marielle ("The Da Vinci Code") is a standout as the gay private detective whom Roberto hires; Oreste Lionello ("The Case of the Bloody Iris") is a hoot as a hammock-dwelling kook called "The Professor". Bud Spencer (the "Trinity" films) makes a very welcome handful of appearances as a friend of Robertos' who is addressed as "God".
Overall, "Four Flies on Grey Velvet" is good entertainment, and worth a look for Argento completists. The Ennio Morricone score is a heavy asset, although a disagreement between composer & filmmaker would prevent them from working together again for many years. In the meantime, Italian rock band Goblin would become regular composers for Argentos' pictures.
Seven out of 10.