by Marcey Papandrea, MoreHorror.com

What is a ‘giallo’? – Giallo is Italian for yellow; a term which came from crime/mystery paperbacks with the yellow toned covers. In turn, highly stylized films of the same genre with elements of eroticism became known as ‘giallo’ films themselves.

Why did you pick this film? – I have been interested in the giallo genre for a long time, ever since I saw my first Dario Argento film. As part of this series I wanted to expose myself to many different gialli as possible, so I sought out a lesser-known one. The title of L’Uomo Senza Memoria really caught my attention, and with a giallo film that is all you need.

Who is behind this one? – It was directed by Duccio Tessari, his previous giallo was The Bloodstained Butterfly. It stars Luc Merenda, Anita Strindberg, Senta Berger, Umberto Orsini, Bruno Corazzari, Manfred Freyberger and Rosario Borelli.

The Film – Puzzle was an absolute delight, it had a really interesting central premise, and it revealed clues in just the right way to still keep you guessing until the final act. The film introduces us to a man who has amnesia, he doesn’t remember anything and is trying to piece together who he is. But there are those out there who don’t believe his story, and pretty soon there is someone out to kill him. This leads him to discover a few things about himself and that he has a wife waiting for him. The mystery continues as he makes his way to his wife and more mysterious characters and events follow him.

Best to keep this plotline to a minimum, because knowing too much can almost ruin the experience. I didn’t really know anything as I went into this and it was a real pleasure to watch, the mystery is what this is all about. There is something so engaging about a man with no memory and trying to solve who he is and why there are people after him.

As a giallo this is rather minimal, it has the elements but certain ones aren’t as exaggerated as others are. It is a mystery and a thriller, however the sexual elements are toned down in favour of keeping it more focused on the mystery. The locations in this film are stunning, and visually it is a very appealing film and this certainly makes me it feel like a giallo. I really liked that this went for something a little different, the violence isn’t over-stylized and it certainly kept me guessing till the very end.

The film has some solid performances; the only real issue was the little kid who was dubbed terribly. Then again film production has come a long way since this movie was made, and online audio recording classes are now available. But I was really impressed with everyone, they worked well and the roles seemed like a good fit. The direction is pretty good, and I really liked what Duccio Tessari brought to the table with this film and the genre.

This is certainly a film worth tracking down, especially if you are a fan of the giallo. It is different than what you might expect, and a unique giallo experience.

Rating – As an overall film I’d give it a 4/5 and as for a giallo a 3/5