Tenebre, Razors, Axes, and Other Tools of Impalement

What is Giallo? Two sultry Italian women...lesbian lovers...Tilde (Mirella D'Angelo) and Marion (Mirella Banti). After a lover spat which concluded with Marion bringing a stud home for wild pre-marital sex, Tilde is angry. After the stud departs, Tilde and the wet and naked Marion argue. Then slash!!! Tilde is sliced up by a maniac's razor, most notably in the throat. The wet and naked Marion is then chased down like an animal and also shredded. The dying Marion's limp body falls and is impaled by a pane of glass. Giallo! Hence 1982's "Tenebre," directed by Dario Argento.

Leaving a psycho fiance, Jane (Veronica Lario), in New York, best-selling author Peter (Anthony Franciosa) heads to Rome to promote his new work, Tenebre. Just prior to his arrival, the very sultry Elsa (Ania Pieroni) shoplifts Tenebre from a book store. She will then be slashed (after she starts undressing...this is Giallo, after all) with a razor as the killer stuffs the torn out pages of said book in her mouth. The film is a few minutes old and already there are about 30 suspects. Then our sultry lesbians get it, as mentioned above. Peter arrives and is matched up with a beautiful secretary, Anne (Daria Nicolodi). The cops come to visit Peter and inform him of the murder. Oh yes, Jane has shredded the contents of Peter's suitcase before his plane departed New York. More suspects!

The razor killings continue...all Italian babes. But when Italy runs out of nubile babes...the guys will have to fill the bill. Now our maniac kills anyone related to Peter and his new book, and has introduced an axe to the plot. As the police, including sultry Detective Inspector Altieri (Carola Stagnaro), are stumped, Peter attempts to solve the crimes. This won't go well. Another uh-oh...psycho Jane has also flown to Rome and...well...you'll see. More killings and more suspects. The pretty fall rapidly in pools of their own blood and the killer seems to be some moral crusader fighting sexual perversion and evil.

Will Anne or the beautiful Inspector Altieri survive this massacre? Who is this moral crusader and why has he picked Peter to victimize? Could Peter also be on the killer's extensive 'who to kill' list? Vicious and unrelenting, "Tenebre" may be considered the epitome of misogyny and Euro-trash. However gratuitous and violent, this gore-fest is considered classic Giallo, and perhaps Dario Argento's magnum opus. Oh yes...the ending? LOUD!!!