Italian Giallo in Film and Television: A Critical History

by Roberto Curti

Since the release in 1929 of a popular book series with bright yellow covers, the Italian word giallo (yellow) has come to define a whole spectrum of mystery and detective fiction and films. Although most English speakers associate the term giallo with the violent and erotic thrillers popular in the 1960s and 1970s from directors like Mario Bava, Dario Argento, Lucio Fulci and others, the term encompasses a wide range of Italian media such as mysteries, thrillers and detective stories--even comedies and political pamphlets. As films like Blood and Black Lace (1964) and Deep Red (1975) have received international acclaim, giallo is a fluid and dynamic genre that has evolved throughout the decades. This book examines the many facets of the giallo genre --narrative, style, themes, and influences. It explores Italian films, made-for-TV films and miniseries from the dawn of sound cinema to the present, discussing their impact on society, culture and mores.

Genres: Film, Nonfiction

509 pages, Paperback

Published June 14, 2022

About the author

Roberto Curti is a free lance writer for several Italian and foreign magazines. He’s a regular contributor to Italian music, film and literary magazine Blow Up (http://www.blowupmagazine.com). He has collaborated, among others, to the Italian cult film magazine Nocturno Cinema and to the Canadian web mag Offscreen (www.offscreen.com). His most recent work is Italian Crime Filmography 1968-1980 (McFarland), an in-depth history of Italian crime and noir films.

Reviews

[Michael Ritchie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I did not finish this book, but I read a good chunk of it and scanned much of the rest. It's a quasi-academic narrative history and reference book with information on hundreds of giallo films. I was looking for something that was more like a Leonard Maltin guide to giallo and this is lots more than that. The author takes the Italian view that "giallo" films are basically any crime films produced in Italy, so his coverage starts back in the 1930s and he doesn't hit the film buff giallos (beginning in the mid-1960s with Mario Bava and Dario Argento) until about a third of the way into its 500 pages. He does give brief summaries and critiques, and much lengthier ones of the more important films. I got this from the library so I can't keep it on my film reference shelf, and as it's from McFarland, it's too expensive for me to justify buying it--the print book is $70.00 and even the Kindle version is $50.00. But I would recommend this to any serious giallo fans. I'm still in the market for a shorter film guide type of book.