What I enjoy most about Sergio Martino's giallo movies is that they are all different. Some are more psychological, and the settings are always different. While The Case of the Scorpion's Tale is the most regular of all his giallo movies that doesn't make it any less good. The kills in this are bloody and gory, especially for gialli of the time. It makes full use of some great Greek locations. There are multiple narratives and perspectives to always keep you on edge. There is a Psycho moment about 30 minutes in that gives a sense that no one is safe, heightening the stakes and tension. There is also some great camera work, especially in some of the kill scenes that makes certain moments more claustrophobic. It also has a big alumni of many of his other movies making it his most versatile cast. Because of the many different narratives it makes this one great upon rewatch as you notice more and more details linking the different characters together like a spiderweb.
The film starts with a cheating wife, Lisa Baumer (Ida Galli) making a call to her secret hook up guy. The plane her husband on explodes. This explosion by the way features the best and most obvious miniature ever. Lisa finds out she is the beneficiary of $1,000,000. Her husband's banker hires an insurance investigator, Peter Lynch (George Hilton) to investigate. At the same time another man who had been blackmailing Lisa is also killed. Lisa meets with Lara Florakis (Janine Reynaud) and her muscle Sharif (Luis Barboo). Lara says that Lisa's husband and her were supposed to run off together and she thinks Lisa had something to do with her death. Lisa is eventually killed about 30 minutes in and her money that she got in Greece is stolen. A journalist named Cleo (Anita Strindberg) enters the picture as she thinks Peter is innocent of the crime and two start a relationship. At the same time Greek inspector Stavros (Luigi Pistilli) and Interpol agent John Stanley (Alberto De Martino) attempt to solve the crime.
First off I love how well paced this is. As I said Lisa is killed about 30 minutes in. Deaths or confrontations of some sort happen almost every minutes. During a couple kill scenes specifically Martino makes great use of close ups to keep the viewer on edge and claustrophobic in the kill scenes. There are some incredible kills in this as well. There is one amazing one where a person's throat is slit and you see the blood shoot all over a window. The sound of the razor going through the throat in that same scene is great as well. There is another great kill with a broken bottle going into someone's eye. There is one great chase sequence where a character is pursued in slow motion throughout their place, then killed. The killer moves to someone else where they have a roof chase resulting in the victim hanging from the roof. The killer uses their knife to cut the victim's hands forcing them to fall. Cleo is pursued by the killer at one point in this green lighting that looks great.
Martino had a way of shooting both in close ups but just in general, where people's facial features look great. I'm sure the Arrow HD blu-ray helps but I love how clear people's faces look and how colorful their eyes are. This only helps enhance the beauty of Galli and Strindberg, the latter specifically has one of the best jawlines ever and looks like a stone carved goddess at times. There is one weird side angle Martino uses randomly, almost like a picture you take on your phone that you accidentally put the wide way. I enjoy the dynamic between the two authority figures in this movie. There is one exchange between them where they talk about the killer and his motives. "In my opinion the murderer is a sex maniac." "A sex maniac who kills men and women and makes off with one million dollars?!" "Even a sex maniac has to pay his laundry bill." At the same time George Hilton's charisma and charm and Strindberg's striking beauty is a great fit and their relationship feels real. There is a cute scene where she cooks for him and he takes a bite of the food and doesn't like it. A whole can of paprika is then revealed in the food. These are scenes and moments that give giallo movies levity that I love.
Spoiler Section
There are little hints throughout that I love that Peter could be the killer. I enjoy picking these up more on rewatch. For example his boss says he won't get fired if he doesn't find the missing money. Another interesting thing about this movie is the two killer scenario. Or at least two people who try to kill others. I still don't even understand who is the killer at what times completely. It makes this movie a Scream type of affair where you think about who the killer is at what times upon rewatch. While the final reveal makes sense there are threads to it that I'm still not even 100% sure about. I still don't really even know if the airline hostess involved in Peter's plan had something to do with the husband's death. I do like how the Scorpion cufflink becomes a false alibi or a plant for Peter. The final chase is great as well. The boat part of it gives me a Dead Calm vibe. Anita looks incredible in that transparent purple suit and that other bikini she wears. All of those narratives that I find out more about upon rewatch, Bruno Nicolai's great score, and the great locations make this one different and great.
Rating: 10/10
Trivia: A lot of the core cast members appeared together in Martino's other gialli. Strindberg and Pistilli in Your Vice is a Locked Room and Only I have the Key, De Mendoza and Hilton in Strange Vice of Mrs. Wardh.
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