La_Casa_del_Buon_Ritorno

<i>La Casa del Buon Ritorno</i>

La Casa del Buon Ritorno

1986 film by Beppe Cino

La Casa del Buon Ritorno (transl. The House of Good Returns) is a 1986 Italian giallo written and directed by Beppe Cino. It is also known as The House of the Blue Shadows.[2] The film was theatrically released in Germany as Das Haus der Blauen Schatten (The House With Blue Shutters).[3]

Quick Facts The House of the Blue Shadows, Directed by ...

Plot

A little girl is pushed off a balcony to her death, and her murderer is never found. Fifteen years later, a young man named Luca and his fiancée Margit return to the house for a visit. Memories start returning slowly to Luca, and he begins to unravel the mystery of who killed the little girl. A strange woman named Ayesha turns up and unnerves Luca. Then murders begin to occur.

Cast

  • Amanda Sandrelli as Margit
  • Stefano Gabrini as Luca
  • Lola Ledda as Lola
  • Fiammetta Carena as Ayesha
  • Francesco Costa as Bruno
  • Eleonora Salvadori as Luca's mother
  • Stanis Ledda (as Luca as a boy)
  • Elvira Castellano

Production

La Casa del Buron Ritorno was budgeted at 300 million Italian lire and was shot in 12 days on 16mm film in and around Rome.[1][4] Actress Amanda Sandrelli commented that the film was shot quickly, "like pulling a tooth".[4]

Release

La Casa del Buon Ritorno was first exhibited at the Venice Film Festival on August 31, 1986.[1][5] It was distributed theatrically in Italy by C.R.C./Real Film on 13 February 1987.[1] The film was never dubbed into English and did not receive any theatrical release in the United States or United Kingdom.[5]

Reception

The film received negative reviews on its initial premiere.[5] Lietta Tornabuoni in La Stampa stated that the film was "below an acceptable professional level" and that Stefano Gabrini could not act.[5][6][7] Maurizio Porro of Corriere della Sera stated that the film was not clear whether the film wanted to be a "thriller, a horror, a love story. ... or an analysis session: however, the unpleasant thing is that it seems like something already seen, and it wishes to remain deliberately obscure."[5][6][8]

Robert Firsching of AllMovie later described the film as an "atmospheric giallo" that "plays with the theme a bit more cleverly than most."[9] The review noted it recycled elements from older films such as Deep Red, Formula for a Murder and Onibaba but that the film was a "clever combination of rip-off and synthesis which has always been a hallmark of the national cinema, creates a unique, seemingly original story."[9]

References

Footnotes

  1. [1]
    Curti 2019, p. 136.
  2. [2]
    "The House of the Blue Shadows (1986)".
  3. [3]
    Luther-Smith, Adrian (1999). Blood and Black Lace: The Definitive Guide to Italian Sex and Horror Movies. Stray Cat Publishing Ltd. p. 18.
  4. [4]
    Curti 2019, p. 137.
  5. [5]
    Curti 2019, p. 138.
  6. [6]
    Curti 2019, p. 139.
  7. [7]
    Tornabuoni, Lietta (September 2, 1986). "Una sola vita non basta, meglio due o tre". La Stampa (in Italian).
  8. [8]
    Porro, Maurizio (September 2, 1986). "Una "casa"-trappola per Amanda". Corriere della Sera.
  9. [9]
    Firsching, Robert. "La Casa Del Buon Ritorno (1986)". AllMovie. Retrieved May 14, 2019.

Sources

  • Curti, Roberto (2019). Italian Gothic Horror Films, 1980-1989. McFarland. ISBN 978-1476672434.
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