Giallo Essentials - Red Edition

Released: 21st August 2023. Alongside the spaghetti western, the giallo is one of the most famous Italian export genres: films steeped in mystery and intrigue, delivered with stylized violence and unforgettable musical themes.  The Possessed (1965) masterfully combines noir, mystery and giallo tropes in a proto-giallo based on one of Italy’s most notorious crimes. It tells the story of a depressed novelist (Peter Baldwin) in search of his old flame (Virna Lisi) who has disappeared under suspicious circumstances, prompting an investigation that finds him plunged into a disturbing drama of familial secrets, perversion, madness and murder. The Fifth Cord (1971) boasts a complex, Agatha Christie-esque plot of investigation into a series of brutal assaults. As the body count rises, whisky swilling journalist Andrea Bild (Franco Nero) finds himself under suspicion, making it all the more imperative he crack the case. The Pyjama Girl Case (1978), inspired by a real-life case that baffles to this day, takes us to Australia, where former inspector Timpson comes out of retirement to crack the case of a young woman, found on the beach, shot in the head, burned to hide her identity and dressed in distinctive yellow pyjamas... These essential gialli films feature a raft of talent in front and behind the camera, with each film restored from the original camera negative and presented with a range of contextualizing interviews and featurettes. SPECIAL EDITION CONTENTS 2K restorations from the original camera negatives for The Possessed, The Fifth Cord and The Pyajama Girl Case  High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentations of each film  Original lossless mono Italian and English soundtracks  English subtitles for the Italian soundtracks  Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing for the English soundtracks  Slipcase packaging with newly designed artwork by Adam Rabalais DISC ONE: THE POSSESSED Audio commentary by writer and critic Tim Lucas  Richard Dyer on The Possessed, a video appreciation by the cultural critic and academic  Cat’s Eyes, an interview with the film’s makeup artist Giannetto De Rossi  Two Days a Week, an interview with the film’s award-winning assistant art director Dante Ferretti The Legacy of the Bazzoni Brothers, an interview with actor/director Francesco Barilli, a close friend of Luigi and Camillo Bazzoni  Original trailers  Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Sean Phillips DISC TWO: THE FIFTH CORD Audio commentary by critic Travis Crawford  Lines and Shadows, a video essay on the film’s use of architecture and space by critic Rachael Nisbet  Whisky Giallore, a video interview with author and critic Michael Mackenzie Black Day for Nero, a video interview with actor Franco Nero  The Rhythm Section, a video interview with film editor Eugenio Alabiso  Rare deleted sequence, restored from the original negative  Original Italian and English theatrical trailers  Image gallery  Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Haunt Love DISC THREE: THE PYJAMA GIRL CASE Audio commentary by Troy Howarth, author of So Deadly, So Perverse: 50 Years of Italian Giallo Films Video interview with author and critic Michael Mackenzie on the internationalism of the giallo  Video interview with actor Howard Ross  Video interview with editor Alberto Tagliavia  Archival interview with composer Riz Ortolani  Image gallery  Italian theatrical trailer  Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Chris Malbon