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Thursday, December 29, 2022

PUZZLE

PUZZLE (aka L'uomo sensa memoria/1974.) Director: Duccio Tessari. 

A man who calls himself Peter White (Luc Merenda) has had amnesia ever since he was in a bad car accident. He is told that his real name is Ted and that he has a wife named Sarah (Senta Berger), whom he believes has sent for him. As he struggles to remember his past, which clearly includes criminal activity, he, Sarah, a little neighbor boy named Luca (Duilio Cruciani) and a doctor-friend named Daniel Reinhardt (Umberto Orsini) become the targets of a nasty character named George (Bruno Carazzari). George is convinced that Ted knows the location of something that is worth a million dollars, and he wants it -- or else!

Puzzle is considered by many to be a giallo film but it lacks the mad, mysterious killer, the fiendish murders, and so on that distinguish the genre. This is simply an Italian mystery that despite some good scenes is rather mediocre and even a bit dull. The dubbed cast go through their paces competently, however. The most lovable cast member is the cute little dog Whiskey, who, unfortunately, comes to a bad end. There are a couple of decent fight scenes, and at the climax, which has some suspense, a chainsaw figures in the action. 

Verdict: Basically bloodless so-called giallo really isn't worth your time. **. 

2 comments:

  1. I'll take your advice! If it's not a genuine Argento, I usually don't bother.
    -Chris

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