The intriguingly titled giallo classic "What Have You Done To Solange?" (1972) is a film that certainly does live up to its excellent word of mouth. While the less said about its twisty-turny story, the better, I can mention that the plot here concerns a string of brutal murders that have been plaguing an all-girls' Catholic school in London, and the hunky Italian gym teacher (well played by Fabio Testi) who is having an affair with one of the young women (the gorgeous Spanish actress Christine Galbo). But things get a bit complicated when this student witnesses one of the murders during a Thames pleasure outing... Regarding those murders, perhaps "brutal" isn't a strong enough word to describe them, as this giallo nutjob has a tendency to stick his knife...well, this is a family Web site, so perhaps I shouldn't say. Mercifully, these slayings are not at all graphic--the picture would have been rated XXX if they were, and would have been too terrible to watch. Indeed, this film features hardly any gore at all; the suggested acts are quite bad enough. Still, this is an excellent example of the giallo genre, with a meaty, involving story; numerous shifty-eyed suspects; loads of pretty women; and the requisite murder set pieces. Massimo Dallamano has directed his film impeccably, eliciting fine performances from every player; the legendary Ennio Morricone has supplied an alternately lovely/creepy score; and cameraman Aristide Massacasi has nicely captured the beauty of London and its countryside. The film has been superbly dubbed--indeed, it looks as if the actors were originally speaking in English!--but the image on the Shriek Show DVD that I just saw looks cropped at the edges, as the opening and closing credits reveal. Also, I couldn't get the extras to work, for some reason. Still, the film looks clean and bright, and is not to be missed. It was even better the second time I watched it!

WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO SOLANGE? is one of the masterworks of the giallo genre, a truly beautiful film that comes across as something of a masterpiece thanks to a strong and literate script, excellent cinematography and music, and a good cast being put through their paces. The only thing I'm surprised about is that I haven't got around to seeing it before now, because this viewing was long overdue.

The film is set in London and features Italian crime film regular Fabio Testi as an Italian teacher at a girl's school. He's married but having an affair with one of his students, but one day the pair are interrupted by a brutal murder taking place just feet away. Testi finds himself suspected by the police while at the same time trying to investigate the crime himself so that he can bring the killer to justice.

Sometimes a film seems so perfect that it's impossible to criticise it and that's the case here. This is a classy affair that deals with some explicit subject matter, but it's never sleazy or trashy, despite interludes in the showers and the like. Joe D'Amato's cinematography and the evocative piano music really keep it looking and acting like an art-house film rather than your usual gory giallo outing. The emphasis is on the suspense and the murder mystery aspects more than gruesome deaths and stalk and slash sequences.

The script is tightly written and keeps you guessing throughout with many red herrings and the like. The twists and turns that arise are genuinely involving and there are some real shocks here; it's also a movie that gets better and better as it goes on and the ending is really stellar. Testi is fine as the lead and THE LIVING DEAD AT THE MANCHESTER MORGUE's Cristina Galbo effective as his love interest. I particularly liked Joachim Fuchsberger as the dogged detective determined to get to the bottom of it. There's even a minor but important role for Camille Keaton (I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE). WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO SOLANGE? is truly a masterpiece of film-making and a film that even beats Dario Argento at his own game.