The Bird with the Crystal Plumage

Giallo thrillers are all about image composition, careful selection of specific locations and adding artistic touch to them, and especially about the atmosphere built on the previous two aspects. From today’s perspective, the point of such films is usually not very exciting and is sometimes naive. Though this Dario Argento film doesn’t shock with its ending, its set designs and camerawork are absolutely top notch – for Argento, the colors of interiors may as well be additional characters in the film. Beautiful “screaming queens”, a bizarre little role for Mario Adorf as a crazy outsider artist living off feline meat, and another unforgettable character of an abhorrent hit man in a yellow jacket that will haunt your dreams. The latter’s scene in the bus parking lot, edited in a hypnotic and unsettling manner, is the most suspenseful part of the entire film. For me, this is decidedly a better giallo than Argento’s famous Deep Red. (26/07/2010)

Visually it’s very beautiful, but the story and the twist are so stupid. Argento had a flair for composition, but his scripts – with rare exceptions – are rubbish. (23/08/2018)

It’s interesting to see how some people can have an intense horror experience with so little: a couple of murdered women, about four drops of blood, a killer in a black cape and a famous name behind the camera. In his horror début, Argento makes the same mistakes he would continue making later on. This means that the technical qualities are fist-rate, there are some nice scenes here and there and the atmosphere is also good at times, but the actors feel as natural as I in a Hip-Hop concert. And I’m not even talking about the “shocking” (ha, ha) ending, which is awfully acted and directed, lacking any tension and with a script that it’s worth shit. (22/04/2009)

If it weren't for Argento's garish visual style, his debut would have been a completely average (maybe even slightly below average) murder mystery. I can't help but feel that the acting is simply flat, and the overall impression is saved mostly by the masterful performances of Ennio Morricone and Vittorio Storaro. Still, if I turn a blind eye, it's quite decent as a directorial debut. [60%] (10/04/2021)