La ragazza che sapeva troppo
Encyclopedia
The Girl Who Knew Too Much is a 1963
Italian
giallo film. Directed by Italian
filmmaker Mario Bava
, the film stars John Saxon
as Dr. Marcello Bassi and Letícia Román
as Nora Davis. The plot revolves around a young woman named Nora, who travels to Rome and witnesses a murder. The police and Dr. Bassi don't believe her since a corpse can't be found. Several more murders tied to a decade-long string of killings of victims chosen in alphabetical order by surname follow.
The Girl Who Knew Too Much is considered to be the first giallo
film, a film genre with a mixture of thriller, sexploitation
and horror
conventions. This was Bava's last film shot in Black-and-white
.
) arrives by plane in Rome to visit her elderly ailing aunt. Nora's aunt is being treated by Dr. Marcello Bassi (John Saxon
). Nora's aunt passes away on the first night of Nora's visit and she walks to the nearby hospital to notify Dr. Bassi. On the way she is mugged and knocked out in Piazza di Spagna, and when she comes to, she dizzily witnesses the body of dead woman lying on the ground near her with a bearded man pulling a knife out of the woman's back. Nora reports this to the police in the hospital, who don't believe her when they find no evidence at all and think she's hallucinating for various reasons. Later at a cemetery, Nora meets a close friend of her aunt's, Laura Torrani (Valentina Cortese), who lives in the Piazza di Spagna. Laura plans to vacation soon and allows Nora to stay in her house for the remaining time of the vacation. Nora later explores through Laura's closet and drawers and comes across newspaper clippings of articles on a serial killer dubbed the "Alphabet Killer" due him killing people with surnames alphabetically with "A," "B," and "C." gone. Nora also finds that the last victim was Laura's sister who she has seen in her vision. According to the reports in the paper, that murder took place ten years ago. Nora then receives a phone call saying "D" is for Death, and she's next in line.
Nora receives help from Dr. Marcello, who takes Nora on a trip to the various tourist sites in Rome to calm her down as they become more romantically interested in each other. When they return to the Craven house she receives a call that tells her to go to a particular address. Nora goes there and is guided to a vacant room. With Dr. Marcello they discover the guiding voice to be emanating from a tape recorder which warns Nora to leave Rome before it is too late. Nora and Marcello investigate and discover that the room is leased to Landini. After several unsuccessful attempts to locate Landini, Marcello and Nora go to the beach for relaxation. Upon their arrival back at the Craven house, they find Landini, who had been informed that they were inquiring about him. Investigative reporter Landini (Dante DiPaolo) has secretly been following them since he spotted her in the square. The reporter wrote about the murder story when it first broke, but believes the police with his help would actually catch the wrong person if reported. Landini's lack of report has made him financially in need. Nora decides to help Landini but as they tour Rome, they find no clues.
Nora visits Landini's apartment the next day finding clues that lead her to think that he is the murderer and she is the next victim, but this is stopped as she then finds Landini who appears to have committed suicide
. The same day, Laura returns to Rome from her vacation while Nora and Marcello plan to go to America the following morning. Nora reads the daily newspaper where the body of a young woman was found, and she recognizes it as the murdered woman she saw that night. After identifying it at the morgue, Nora believes that she has witnessed the murder. Alone in the house that night, Nora notices that the study door is open. On entering, Nora sees a man rising uncomfortably from his chair. Nora recognizes him as the same man standing over the dead body of the woman from that night. He then walks towards Nora, and collapses to the floor with a knife in his back. Nora is then confronted by an enraged Laura who confesses to the killings and explains that she just stabbed her husband because of his attempts to turn her over to the police. Laura reveals that her desire to steal her sister's money compelled her to murder. Laura attempts to attack Nora but is suddenly shot dead by her husband through the study door. Nora finds that the bearded man in her daze actually was disposing of the body of his murdering wife. Nora then leaves Italy, happily reunited with Marcello.
for the American market. They re-titled the film as The Evil Eye cutting large amounts of the film and rescoring the entire film. Changes include removing all references to marijuana, adding some more comedic scenes, and replacing the jazz score with one described as a "more noisy" one performed by Les Baxter
.
Director Mario Bava didn't look back positively on the film, claiming that he "thought [the film] was too preposterous. Perhaps it could have worked with James Stewart
and Kim Novak
, whereas I had...oh, well, I can't even remember their names." The film is often remarked upon by modern critics. Of the five critics who have reviewed the film at Rotten Tomatoes
the film has received slightly above average reviews noting the stylish look to the film, but negatively pointing out its story.
1963 in film
The year 1963 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* June 12 - Cleopatra starring Elizabeth Taylor, Rex Harrison and Richard Burton premieres at the Rivoli Theatre in New York City....
Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
giallo film. Directed by Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
filmmaker Mario Bava
Mario Bava
Mario Bava was an Italian director, screenwriter, and cinematographer remembered as one of the greatest names from the "golden age" of Italian horror films.-Biography:Mario Bava was born in San Remo, Liguria, Italy...
, the film stars John Saxon
John Saxon (actor)
John Saxon is an American actor who has worked on over 200 projects during the span of sixty years. Saxon is most known for his work in horror films such as A Nightmare on Elm Street and Black Christmas, both of which feature Saxon as a policeman in search of the killer...
as Dr. Marcello Bassi and Letícia Román
Letícia Román
Letícia Román is an Italian film actress. She is the daughter of actress Giuliana Gianni and art director Nino Novarese.-Selected filmography:* Pirates of Tortuga * Charge of the Black Lancers * Pontius Pilate...
as Nora Davis. The plot revolves around a young woman named Nora, who travels to Rome and witnesses a murder. The police and Dr. Bassi don't believe her since a corpse can't be found. Several more murders tied to a decade-long string of killings of victims chosen in alphabetical order by surname follow.
The Girl Who Knew Too Much is considered to be the first giallo
Giallo
Giallo is an Italian 20th century genre of literature and film, which in Italian indicates crime fiction and mystery. In the English language it refers to a genre similar to the French fantastique genre and includes elements of horror fiction and eroticism...
film, a film genre with a mixture of thriller, sexploitation
Sexploitation
Sexploitation, or "sex-exploitation", describes a class of independently produced, low-budget feature films generally associated with the 1960s and serving largely as a vehicle for the exhibition of non-explicit sexual situations and gratuitous nudity. The genre is a subgenre of exploitation films...
and horror
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
conventions. This was Bava's last film shot in Black-and-white
Black-and-white
Black-and-white, often abbreviated B/W or B&W, is a term referring to a number of monochrome forms in visual arts.Black-and-white as a description is also something of a misnomer, for in addition to black and white, most of these media included varying shades of gray...
.
Plot
On vacation, Nora Davis (Letícia RománLetícia Román
Letícia Román is an Italian film actress. She is the daughter of actress Giuliana Gianni and art director Nino Novarese.-Selected filmography:* Pirates of Tortuga * Charge of the Black Lancers * Pontius Pilate...
) arrives by plane in Rome to visit her elderly ailing aunt. Nora's aunt is being treated by Dr. Marcello Bassi (John Saxon
John Saxon (actor)
John Saxon is an American actor who has worked on over 200 projects during the span of sixty years. Saxon is most known for his work in horror films such as A Nightmare on Elm Street and Black Christmas, both of which feature Saxon as a policeman in search of the killer...
). Nora's aunt passes away on the first night of Nora's visit and she walks to the nearby hospital to notify Dr. Bassi. On the way she is mugged and knocked out in Piazza di Spagna, and when she comes to, she dizzily witnesses the body of dead woman lying on the ground near her with a bearded man pulling a knife out of the woman's back. Nora reports this to the police in the hospital, who don't believe her when they find no evidence at all and think she's hallucinating for various reasons. Later at a cemetery, Nora meets a close friend of her aunt's, Laura Torrani (Valentina Cortese), who lives in the Piazza di Spagna. Laura plans to vacation soon and allows Nora to stay in her house for the remaining time of the vacation. Nora later explores through Laura's closet and drawers and comes across newspaper clippings of articles on a serial killer dubbed the "Alphabet Killer" due him killing people with surnames alphabetically with "A," "B," and "C." gone. Nora also finds that the last victim was Laura's sister who she has seen in her vision. According to the reports in the paper, that murder took place ten years ago. Nora then receives a phone call saying "D" is for Death, and she's next in line.
Nora receives help from Dr. Marcello, who takes Nora on a trip to the various tourist sites in Rome to calm her down as they become more romantically interested in each other. When they return to the Craven house she receives a call that tells her to go to a particular address. Nora goes there and is guided to a vacant room. With Dr. Marcello they discover the guiding voice to be emanating from a tape recorder which warns Nora to leave Rome before it is too late. Nora and Marcello investigate and discover that the room is leased to Landini. After several unsuccessful attempts to locate Landini, Marcello and Nora go to the beach for relaxation. Upon their arrival back at the Craven house, they find Landini, who had been informed that they were inquiring about him. Investigative reporter Landini (Dante DiPaolo) has secretly been following them since he spotted her in the square. The reporter wrote about the murder story when it first broke, but believes the police with his help would actually catch the wrong person if reported. Landini's lack of report has made him financially in need. Nora decides to help Landini but as they tour Rome, they find no clues.
Nora visits Landini's apartment the next day finding clues that lead her to think that he is the murderer and she is the next victim, but this is stopped as she then finds Landini who appears to have committed suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
. The same day, Laura returns to Rome from her vacation while Nora and Marcello plan to go to America the following morning. Nora reads the daily newspaper where the body of a young woman was found, and she recognizes it as the murdered woman she saw that night. After identifying it at the morgue, Nora believes that she has witnessed the murder. Alone in the house that night, Nora notices that the study door is open. On entering, Nora sees a man rising uncomfortably from his chair. Nora recognizes him as the same man standing over the dead body of the woman from that night. He then walks towards Nora, and collapses to the floor with a knife in his back. Nora is then confronted by an enraged Laura who confesses to the killings and explains that she just stabbed her husband because of his attempts to turn her over to the police. Laura reveals that her desire to steal her sister's money compelled her to murder. Laura attempts to attack Nora but is suddenly shot dead by her husband through the study door. Nora finds that the bearded man in her daze actually was disposing of the body of his murdering wife. Nora then leaves Italy, happily reunited with Marcello.
Cast
- Letícia RománLetícia RománLetícia Román is an Italian film actress. She is the daughter of actress Giuliana Gianni and art director Nino Novarese.-Selected filmography:* Pirates of Tortuga * Charge of the Black Lancers * Pontius Pilate...
as Nora Davis - John SaxonJohn Saxon (actor)John Saxon is an American actor who has worked on over 200 projects during the span of sixty years. Saxon is most known for his work in horror films such as A Nightmare on Elm Street and Black Christmas, both of which feature Saxon as a policeman in search of the killer...
as Dr. Marcello Bassi - Valentina Cortese as Laura Craven-Torrani
- Dante DiPaolo as Andrea Landini
Release and reception
The Girl Who Knew Too Much was released by American International PicturesAmerican International Pictures
American International Pictures was a film production company formed in April 1956 from American Releasing Corporation by James H. Nicholson, former Sales Manager of Realart Pictures, and Samuel Z. Arkoff, an entertainment lawyer...
for the American market. They re-titled the film as The Evil Eye cutting large amounts of the film and rescoring the entire film. Changes include removing all references to marijuana, adding some more comedic scenes, and replacing the jazz score with one described as a "more noisy" one performed by Les Baxter
Les Baxter
Les Baxter was an American musician and composer.Baxter studied piano at the Detroit Conservatory before moving to Los Angeles for further studies at Pepperdine College. Abandoning a concert career as a pianist, he turned to popular music as a singer...
.
Director Mario Bava didn't look back positively on the film, claiming that he "thought [the film] was too preposterous. Perhaps it could have worked with James Stewart
James Stewart (actor)
James Maitland Stewart was an American film and stage actor, known for his distinctive voice and his everyman persona. Over the course of his career, he starred in many films widely considered classics and was nominated for five Academy Awards, winning one in competition and receiving one Lifetime...
and Kim Novak
Kim Novak
Kim Novak is an American film and television actress. She began her career with her roles in Pushover and Phffft! but achieved greater prominence in the 1955 film Picnic...
, whereas I had...oh, well, I can't even remember their names." The film is often remarked upon by modern critics. Of the five critics who have reviewed the film at Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
the film has received slightly above average reviews noting the stylish look to the film, but negatively pointing out its story.