Alice Sweet Alice

Film: Alice, Sweet Alice

Year: 1976

Director: Alfred Sole

Writer: Rosemary Ritvo and Alfred Sole

Starring: Linda Miller, Mildred Clinton and Paula E. Sheppard

Review:

This was a film that I originally learned about from the Fangoria Top 300 Horror Films issue. I saw it and it didn’t necessarily click with me. I did give it a review with a critical eye and enjoyed it more. This is one that I knew being more versed in giallo films that it might work better for me. I’ve given it that rewatch as part of my Scouring through the Sixes.

Synopsis: in 1961, a divorced Catholic couple have their lives upended when their daughter, Karen (Brooke Shields), is murdered before her first communion. The suspect is her older sister, Alice (Paula E. Sheppard).

This film follows a small family. The mother is Catherine Spages (Linda Miller). She is the divorced mother from the synopsis. She is doing what she can to raise two daughters, Alice and Karen. Their father is married to another woman and lives elsewhere. In order to do this, she gets help from her sister and her family, Annie DeLorenze (Jane Lowry). We also see a scene where Father Tom (Rudolph Willfrich) has the family over. He lives with another priest and Mrs. Tredoni (Mildred Clinton), who takes care of the house.

Something more to flesh out with this family is that Alice is troubled. We learn later that her parent’s divorce is a part of it. It doesn’t help that Karen, the baby of the family, is doted on. Alice also does things for a reaction. Karen is given a golden cross necklace for her upcoming communion.

The Spages live in an apartment building and they have an odd landlord, Mr. Alphonso (Alphonso DeNoble). He is a crazy cat guy who is odd and very over-weight. Alice is asked to bring him their rent check. He says odd things to her that are inappropriate. She is rude to him in retaliation.

It then comes to the day of the communion. It doesn’t go as planned as Karen is murdered. The person is wearing a yellow raincoat and an odd mask. No one knows where Karen was at the time. Adding to it, she has Karen’s veil in her pocket. She also has the same coat and mask. This makes her the prime suspect, going along with her acting out. Dom (Niles McMaster), the father, comes back to help make sense of what happened.

That is where I’ll leave my recap and introduction to the characters. Where I want to start is that this is an interesting film. I’ve seen this elsewhere considered to be an American gialli. This explores interesting ideas with it. I like the elements that it uses for Alice being our prime suspect. The breakdown of the family unit and how that factors is something else that I want to include here.

Now that I have that set up, let’s delve more into what we’re getting. Now I call this an American gialli more than a slasher film. Our killer is using a knife, for the most part. They are masked, which feels more like a slasher. It isn’t as sleazy as you’d get in Italy around this time. This is more about the mystery and less about the murders themselves. We also have Dom who leads the investigation to prove that Alice isn’t doing the killings, where the detectives have her as the prime suspect.

Let’s then look at that dynamic. This film wants you to believe that Alice is the killer. She’s missing from her mother when Karen is killed. She then shows up with her veil in her pocket. It is from there that we learn that Alice has issues at school. It seems to go as far to say that she has sociopathic tendencies. She is callous for sure. It doesn’t help that her aunt gets attacked and she’s convinced that it is Alice. Mr. Alphonso accuses her as well. Sheppard does great here with her mannerisms and looks to help build this feeling.

I do then want to shift gears. Now I was raised Christian. My wife was a Catholic but gave it up. She still carries guilt from that time though. This film does an excellent job just showing the grandeur of the church. We also see its dark side. There are sins that are in violation of the ten commandments, but those doing it are still pious. They still portray that they’re pious and good Christians. How this handles this scathing look at religion and its perversion is something that I appreciate.

Then other themes to include would be how the church, which is considered a holy place, doesn’t provide protection. Karen is murdered there as an example. We see sibling rivalry and parental favoritism. Part of this is in Alice’s head. It is Karen’s time and her moment. Alice does appear to take more criticism for the time period we follow. There is also a commentary on the failure of adult institutions to protect children. Being more worried about their own issues. There’s also a claustrophobic feel with the apartments and their state.

That should be enough for the story so let’s go over to the acting performances. The cast is generally effective. Miller is good as the struggling mother who commendably believes her daughter, Alice, didn't commit fratricide. McMaster and her have nice chemistry, which is works signaling past feelings. Clinton's character works in her role as this caretaker for the priests. Sheppard is great and Shields was effective, and Willrich, Michael Hardstark, DeNoble, and the rest round out the cast.

All that is left then is filmmaking aspects. The film features great cinematography and framing, utilizing effective odd angles. The killer's mask and raincoat, similar to ones that Alice owns, cleverly create doubt about her involvement. The reveal was a surprising success, aided by limited but effective practical effects, including good-looking blood and well-done kills. The soundtrack enhances the film with an eerie, ethereal vibe. It captures that grand feel of the church that we continue to come back to.

In conclusion, this is a compelling piece of American horror that deftly blends the stylistic conventions of the Italian giallo—focusing on mystery, Catholic guilt, and shocking violence—with a uniquely claustrophobic, domestic setting. Its true strength lies not just in the shocking reveal of the killer, but in the nuanced portrait of a fractured family and the corrosive effects of religious hypocrisy and parental neglect. With stellar performances, particularly from Sheppard, and striking technical execution, Alfred Sole’s film earns its reputation as a disturbing, thoughtful, and enduring gem from the 1970s.

My Rating: 8.5 out of 10