Your Vice Is A Locked Room And Only I Have The Key (Special Edition) [Blu-ray]

Director Sergio Martino certainly made his fair share of gialli (five in total, if I'm not mistaken) with the most memorable being Torso (which featured Bird With the Crystal Plumage's Suzy Kendall in a leading role). However, thanks to bluray, Martino's other gialli have finally become available to American audiences—and the long-forgotten Your Vice is a Locked Room and Only I Have the Key makes a serious run at the title of "best of all Martino's films". For those not familiar with the term "gialli", let's stop for a brief history lesson. "Giallo" (the singular form) is Italian for yellow. The giallo films were generally a series of luridly titled thrillers made in Italy in the '60s and '70s. They took the giallo name from their inspiration, a series of thriller novels like The Screaming Mimi, which were popular in Italy and were always marked by a yellow cover. The giallo was essentially the forefather of the American slasher film, only instead of featuring a series of unkillable mass murderers, the giallo antagonist was always a person—usually one traumatized by an event involving sex, and that often occurred during childhood. The films are remembered for their outlandish titles, convoluted plots (thanks to the numbers of red herrings in the typical script, guessing the identity of the killer in a standard giallo film is more a case of luck than solid detective work on the part of the audience), and exotic murder set-pieces. Mario Bava and Dario Argento are the two most widely recognized practitioners of the form, but essentially every Italian filmmaker working during the '60s and '70s took a shot at the genre. Sergio Martino (who worked in every genre) may not be a household name to most film viewers, but he certainly was one of the better gialli filmmakers working during the form's heyday. Teaming up with prolific screenwriter Ernesto Gastaldi, Martino sets out to subvert the typical giallo form with Your Vice. Rather than draw inspiration from the thrillers that so often provided the basis for these movies, Martino and Gastaldi instead turned to the work of Edgar Allan Poe—specifically The Black Cat. Gastaldi, who'd written approximately 20 gialli by this point, was instructed to "push the envelope"—and he did, while still staying within the confines of the genre. The gialli have always been marked by a certain amount of "sleaze", but Gastaldi really takes the ball and runs with it this time out. The film focuses on Oliviero Rouvigny (Luigi Pistilli), a down-on-his luck writer living in an isolated villa with his wife Irina (Anita Strindberg). Oliviero is a brute—a sexist, an adulterer, a misogynist, and a drunk—complete with an unhealthy obsession with his dead mother. He makes Irina's life miserable at every turn. Things soon become interesting when the young woman that Oliviero is having an affair with turns up dead at the hands of a maniac with an oddly-curved knife. Irina immediately suspects her husband is the killer—something she becomes surer of when the maid turns up dead in the house (Oliviero wasn't above sleeping with the hired help, either). Things become even more interesting when Oliviero's niece Floriana (Edwige Fenech) shows up unexpectedly. Floriana is an agent provocateur, bedding everyone in the cast and amplifying the tension of an already tenuous situation. When the killer's true identity is revealed, things only get worse as a climax of double-crosses not unlike Mario Bava's Bay of Blood ensues—leading up to a Poe-inspired ending that's far more satisfying than it probably should be. As with any good piece of cinema, there are a number of different factors working in unison that make Your Vice such a compelling experience. First off, the cast is uniformly excellent. Luigi Pistilli was generally a character actor, but acquits himself fantastically in the lead role. Oliviero is a slimeball throughout the film, but Pistilli brings him to life without crossing over into caricature of melodrama. Meanwhile, Anita Strindberg does a fine job as the long-suffering wife Irina. Strindberg's performance isn't as restrained as Pistilli's, but the character calls for a more over-the-top approach anyway. The real show-stealer though is the delectable Edwige Fenech. Fenech bobbed her hair for this role and took on a character different than her usual victim. Your Vice marks the first time she actively plays a "bad girl" onscreen and the results are excellent. That she has no qualms about doing fully nude softcore sex scenes is just icing on the proverbial cake. It's amazing that Fenech hasn't found a wider fanbase in the US. (Eli Roth had the good taste to cast her in Hostel 2.) Ernesto Gastaldi certainly took the advice to "push the envelope" to heart, and Your Vice is a better film because of it. While it eventually winds up in your standard giallo territory, the film does an excellent job of focusing on the characters as opposed to the grand guignol set-pieces. Oliviero is an inspired creation on the part of Gastaldi, particularly when one realizes that Gastaldi has made him the character the audience is most supposed to identify with. No one in the film is likeable—which makes being subtly forced into identifying with Oliviero all the more interesting. Finally, much of the film's success springs from the direction of Sergio Martino. Martino worked with a lot of the same crew on his various gialli and it shows in this one. While there's nothing overtly flashy about the direction of Your Vice (unlike the more recognizable films of Bava and Argento), it's readily apparent that Martino is a competent craftsman who knows how to get the most out of his cast, crew, and location. In the entire film there's only one sequence (a motorcycle race) that seems out of place. Ultimately, Your Vice is a Locked Room and Only I Have the Key is a fine giallo by any standard. Martino and Gastaldi have created not only a film with what might be the coolest name in giallo cinema history but one with an intriguing story to back it up. If you're new to the giallo scene or the cinema of Sergio Martino, this is a great starting point. If you're an old veteran who's been around a few crime scenes in your day, this is still an investigation worth undertaking. Great Arrow release: techs, specs and extras galore.

Great addition to the Blu-ray collection. Arrow always does it right. This is simply one of the best giallos ever made, courtesy of the genius Sergio Martino.

Life has been difficult lately for Irina (Anita Strindberg). Her husband Oliviero (Luigi Pistilli) abuses and humiliates her at every opportunity; he's been accused of slashing to death a young woman he knew; their housekeeper has just been killed in a similar fashion; and now she thinks he's trying to kill her. Enter Oliviero's niece Floriana (Edwige Fenech) and things begin to get even more interesting. This film is based on Edgar Allan Poe's story "The Black Cat" and so is different from other gialli that I've seen with it's dark, haunted, gothic atmosphere (with the requisite cellar, of course). It also marked a change in roles played by Edwige Fenech. Looking very sly and seductive with a short bob, this was the first time - as she notes in her interview on the disc - that she played something of a bad girl: she arrives with a notorious reputation ("Is it true that you're a two-bit tart?," Oliviero asks her, to which she replies, "Well, it could be two bits well spent"), she goes to bed with her uncle and she definitely has her eyes on the family jewels. Luigi Pistilli does a fine job as the threatening, frequently drunken Oliviero and Anita Strindberg really gives off a sense of nervous terror coming from being trapped in this hell of hers, complete with Oliviero's terrifyingly annoying black cat, Satan. The picture looks very nice with good colors in a 1.85:1 aspect ratio, enhanced for widescreen sets and filling the screen. The original Italian audio track is provided along with an English dub and the subtitles are easy to read. Extras on the disc include interviews with Fenech, director Sergio Martino and writer Ernesto Gastaldi; and trailers for other Martino films. No Shame Films also includes a 12 page booklet with background on the film, placing it within the context of Italy's political situation at the times, plus bios and filmographies of Martino, Fenech and Stringberg. There are also some nice color still photos, though the photo on Fenech's bio page is that of another actress in the film! While I can't say that I enjoyed this Martino film quite as much as his earlier effort with Edwige Fenech, "The Strange Vice of Mrs. Wardh" - it's a little slow at times and Edwige is absent from the first half hour - I'd still give it four stars in the giallo category for the performances, the stylish direction and the Poe-like sense of claustrophobia, terror and madness. (A note for the curious: the title of the film was taken from a threatening letter one character sends to another in "The Strange Vice of Mrs. Wardh.")

I was extremely happy with the way Amazon handled my order all the way around.However I must admit Arrow Video is the bomb in the way they are restoring and packaging these older films.6 stars out of five for Arrow Video.Thanks again Amazon.

Great film. Love 1970s Italian horror!

Dark and sexy. The finest giallo out there. Sergio Martino pulls out all the stops in this exquisite horror movie.

I know you Torso and Scorpion's Tail fans will disagree, but this is Martino's best giallo. GREAT location, music, and acting. The murder scenes are wonderfully executed, and Edwidge Fenech is HOT in her first villainous role. And the cries of the black cat! Creepy! Is it alive or dead? Great giallo. Period.

Great buy

この作品はランポーをベースにしているのですが。やはり女優陣がいいです。 字幕がないので詳しいセリフ回しはわかりませんが、シェイムレスのリリース作品は雰囲気が好きで 楽しめます。

ARROW brings us a new 2K transfer from original vault elements and this isnt just good news. The actual result is a stunning transfer which provides a visual breathtaking and simply beautiful experience while re-discovering YOUR VICE IS A LOCKED ROOM…. No Grain Baby, No Gain or The Sharpening: Its all in the grain. The grain is all. The Transfer offers a wonderful reproduction of the camera-negative grain structure. It is completely intact and it looks so filmic. Close-ups and scenes with brighter lights show a really fine grain structure. Because of this fact the level of details is just strikingly good. Sharpness, grain and details offer a picture quality which could easily be confused by some people with a 4K negative scan. As it is a 2K scan the overall quality is amazing. Luckily the people at ARROW seem to regognize the destructive effects of DNR filters and sharpeners and avoid their usage. Rejoyce! I rarely have seen better results by a 2K scan when it comes to grain wrangling. All The Colours In The Dark: Colours tend to brown/ golden. The pallette seems generally very stable. The Colours indoor are warm and pleasant. No colourboosting seems to be present. Outdoor sequences are nice for their slightly natural appearance. The grading is nearly perfect. Blackploitation: Blacklevels differ throughout the presentation but I think the root is the source material. In general every Detail is visible even in the darkest scenes. Very good. There are no harsh blacklevels and the blackest black tends towards being a bit over 0,0 % IRE (black in a video greyscale – 100,0 % IRE is natural white, in a cinema orientated calibration this should have a colour „temperature“ of 65 D). I think this lighter look fits the visual style of YOUR VICE… well. It some kind of underlines the arthouse style. Contrast is well defined and never too harsh. Well balanced and homogenetic. I recommend taking a look for the BD-captures on: DVDBeaver Master Listing Cleanse Fold and Manipulate: The picture is well cleaned up and properly stabelized. Good job done on this side either. There are no noticable dropouts or damages. The negative seems to be preserved well. The Verdict: Fans, collectors and cineasts with a soft spot for video quality can buy this BD set without a doubt. It contains a fanstatic digital recreation for your home cinema. It is suitable for big screen projection and you will have moments of true cinema-feelings. I cannot recommend it enough. Me: I am a collector of films for about 27 Years, own appr. 3.000 films (Would be far more, but I am extremely picky and often sort bad transfers out) and an optimized home-cinema room for a bigscreen projection via beamer. I learned a bit how to calibrate the system with software and instruments. I am also a hobby fotographer and have some experience with scanning camera negatives for myself. I am fascinated by films from reels since I am a kid and spent hours for hours in cinemas and film festivals. Whenever a Bluray release brings me back this emotion because the transfer looks filmic I am happy  Lights out. Roll the Reels 

You can't go wrong with old giallo classics. This movie is directed by legendary Sergio Martino (Lo strano vizio della signora Wardh (1971), La coda dello scorpione (1971) etc) and is starred by giallo regulars Edwige Fenech, Luigi Pistilli, and Ivan Rassimov. The image quality is nice enough and the "bad" quality just fits the film.

This is one of three separately ordered Blu Rays in a row that arrived with the case smashed. Thank goodness the disc worked.

superb example of the Giallo (Italian thriller ) starring the FANTABULOUS Ms Edwige Fenech in a more "bad girl " role Using Edgar Allen Poe's "The Black Cat" as a framework to hang a story of incest and murder around, this as per usual TOP NOTCH release from Arrow has some good extra's - an overview of Fenech's career - a look at the 5 Gialli that Martino directed (NB -Spoilers !) and an appreciation by Hostel director Eli Roth. Highly recommended