ruggero deodato . i hope i be not bumbing against people cart when i say that with have just watch phantom of death his directorial skill somewhat become a bit more questionable again to me . i mean and the man undeniably be a master in depict jungle mayhem and with cannibal holocaust arguably the best cannibal movie ever make ( except no substitute it be actually a very good movie with the most effective set up i have ever witness in such film ) and cut and run and again and one of the best effort in the genre i have ever see ( and one of my personal favorite ) . deodato be at his best anytime he free to go over the top in any genre ( the barbarian and anyone . ) . but put him in the director seat of a movie that a bit more serious and demand on the ( international ) cast behalf and and he bind to slip . a be and in my opinion and the case with phantom of death . the italian title and by the way and doesn not exactly encourage viewer to go see it and so i do not know what the producer be think . literally translate and it mean a crime a little bit common ( ordinary ) . sound a little bit dull and doesn not it . regardless and the basic synopsis do sound interesting enough represent a successful pianist why exactly a pianist be totally irrelevant while i suspect it be to lend the movie a bit more class start suffer from a disease that rapidly age him . aside from not be able to cope with this affliction and it also start affect his mind and he can not resist the urge to kill woman any long . all this wrap up in a giallo style film . this idea be put to good use in the plot and a his rapid age make it quite difficult for the police to determine what the killer look like . far more and deodato ( or the screenplay . ) do have a good sense of pace regard the unfolding of event and present u a necessary killing on regular occasion . the murder be also pretty bloody and squirty and so that a plus . one kill even have a girl burst through a glass door in slow motion . but face it and as far a originality go and dario argento have be throw girl through window in slow motion since 1977 already . so and nothing too special there either . but now for the two main thing deodato completely mess up . he have absolutely no clue on how to make an effective transition from one scene to another . and on a few occasion he sometimes even make the cut from one shot to another look bad . now and when youre wildly shoot a movie in a jungle and you can get away with that and the audience just doesn not notice it . but when youre shoot a stylish crime thriller and try to tell a decent story and then you good fine tune your direct skill in that department too . deodato just jump and cut from one scene to another and include often too short and seemingly pointless scene . it often result in a character line barely have come out of his mouth and and wham bam cut to a different scenery . do it like that and might get you on with the story and but it also cause more than one problem for other aspect of the movie . some might think i be nitpick and and i might be and a in some other movie ( pulpy exploitation flick and for example ) i wouldn not point out these thing . but you can feel phantom of death try to be a bit more ambition on several level and so i be hold these flaw against it . however and the mise en scène be more polished than i would have think . so at least the movie look good enough . the other problem i have and be that with a movie of this type and deodato just can not move his cast to give a decent performance . a give be and of course and that the support cast be downright abominable ( act or performance wise ) . but it bad than that . donald pleasance look exhaust and uninspired and i suspect the main cause of this be that he have be give bad material to work with ( so not necessarily his age at the time ) . the dialogue be poor and one scene have him go shamelessly over the top and run into a crowd on a square and shout stuff like where be you . show yourself and bastard . i kill you . you bastard . i kill you . very funny and yes . very sad too . same go for edwige fenech . she get her on screen charisma and look great . but she have not much to do or say . in the second half of the movie and she basically sit at home all the time be pregnant and wait for her lover ( the killer ) to return . michael york somehow do pull it off on some level and but his character be load with so much pathos man and those scene when he talk to the blind dog that it sometimes becomes painful to watch . and his slow motion death scene at the end be plain laughable and to put it mildly . attentive viewer can spot a cameo by giovanni lombardi radice . and no and do not get your hope up represent he doesn not die a painfully bloody death . but this movie be memorable for at least one scene alone . freaky and creepy sh . t and i tell ya . two word a a teaser represent old kid . and yes and there female nudity come from more than one cast member . let me end it here by say that phantom of death ( or off balance and a be the title i prefer ) be certainly of interest to giallo fan . it can be enjoy . but it not a great movie .