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Film: Murder-Rock: Dancing Death
Year: 1984
Director: Lucio Fulci
Writers: Gianfranco Clerici, Vincenzo Mannino, Lucio Fulci and Roberto Gianviti
Starring: Olga Karlatos, Ray Lovelock and Claudio Cassinelli
Review:
This was a film that I originally heard about through podcasts. It went on a list of ones to see, especially since I’m a fan of co-writer/director Lucio Fulci. This was one that took me time to find as it isn’t readily available through streaming services that I have. I did end up checking this out as a Foray through the Fours and for Italian Horror Month.
Synopsis: the owner of a prestigious New York ballet school teams up with a male model to solve a series of bizarre murders of the students.
We start this off seeing a dance sequence at the academy from the synopsis. The owner is Candice Norman (Olga Karlatos). She expects great things from them and wants them to continue practicing. This seems to step on the toes of Margie (Geretta Geretta) who is their teacher. The reason though that Candice is hard on them is that Dick Gibson (Claudio Cassinelli) and a couple other guys are needing girls for a production. The date for it is moved up and there isn’t much time. The frontrunner is Janice (Carla Buzzanca). Susan (Angela Lemerman) is right there. A couple other ones to include as well are Gloria (Belinda Busato) and Jill (Maria Vittoria Tolazzi).
After practice, we see that Susan stays back with her boyfriend, Willy (Christian Borromeo). They break away as the building is locking up soon and they need to shower. Susan is attacked by a gloved killer though. They use chloroform to knock her out, then stab her in the heart with a needle, killing her.
This tragedy rocks the group to the core. Lt. Borges (Cosimo Cinieri) is in charge of the investigation. He believes it is someone associated with the school, due to the lockdown and how the killer was able to get away. This makes Dick sweat, especially since he may have had a relationship with this student that was inappropriate. She might also not be the only one making him a suspect. Candice tried to hide from the students that not all would be selected, making sense that they would kill each other for this opportunity. Things are even more interesting in that Candice has nightmares about a model, George Webb (Ray Lovelock), trying to kill her. He almost might know one of the students as well.
That is where I’ll leave my recap and introduction to the characters. What I didn’t know was that this was a gialli. I thought it was supernatural if I’m honest so I was pleasantly surprised. Fulci has made interesting films in this subgenre so then realizing that was what this was going to be, I was there for it.
Now that I’ve set that up, this feels like it is a combination of Suspiria and Flashdance. I’ve never seen the latter, but I know that movie had success so I wouldn’t be surprised to see it inspire things over in Italy. It did come out the year prior. There were other similar films in the era as well. I used that one for a specific scene with one of the students who works as a dancer and it felt directly inspired. Now I will say that I use Suspiria, partially because it is set in the academy. There aren’t supernatural elements, unless you consider the nightmares that Candice has. This is a giallo where I don’t consider that Dario Argento classic to be one, outside of the fact that this is a mystery that needs to be solved in both. There is another element here where those in charge know more than what they’re telling the inspector.
I’ll shift over to delving more into the gialli elements. We have Candice and then George trying to solve the case. I do enjoy that. Lt. Borges isn’t bumbling so I’m glad there. He falls into having the issue that there is information being withheld from him so he can’t solve the case without it. He is shrewd though and uses logic. There is also sleaze here since we see the women in this film nude at one point or another. If they’re killed, we more than likely see them topless. There is an element of sexual deviance as to the killer. I did also like how this film plays with expectations as to who the killer was. That kept me guessing until the end.
Let’s then go over to the acting performances. Karlatos is solid as our lead. What is interesting there is that she’s stressed about getting the students ready. Then when they start to be killed, she is concerned about saving them. This causes her to descend into a madness of sorts and I like how that plays out. Lovelock plays an odd role, but it works well. This is a quirky movie and this fits that. Cinieri works as the inspector. Cassinelli is good in his role. He is a bit of a scoundrel, which fits. He also doesn’t do any favors at clearing his name as a suspect. All of the women here are solid as the students. I liked seeing Geretta, Al Cliver and even Fulci himself in a cameo. The acting works and fits what was needed.
All that is left then is filmmaking. I’d say that this is well-made. The cinematography and framing are good. Pulling the effects of the attack as well, there is a sense of realism there. We don’t get as much blood as other Fulci films, but that’s not an issue. This all worked in my opinion, no issues. I do think they use too much of the dance sequences as filler so that hurts the pacing slightly. I’ll say that the soundtrack here is great. They got their money’s worth as well.
In conclusion, this is a fun film. It isn’t near the top of my Fulci films or even gialli, but this was better than I expected. We have an interesting enough murder mystery that seems to borrow elements from other things that were popular. I thought that the acting performances were solid across the board. How this was shot and the framing were good, helping make the effects we got look good. The soundtrack is also great in a cheesy way. Now I do think the story is a bit muddled and there does seem to be filler as well. I still thought this was a solid film if I’m honest. Glad I saw it and I’d recommend it to those wanting to do a deeper dive into Fulci’s filmography or giallo films.
My Rating: 7 out of 10