Thursday, November 28, 2013

The Psychic (Lucio Fulci, 1977)

Just a second, I want to listen to the theme music from this film one more time before I officially begin. And...done.  Because I just did that, I have to change my plans. You see, I was all set to fire my opening salvo of hyperbolic praise in the general direction of costume designer  Massimo Lentini–and I still plan on doing so... lavishing praise on them, that is–but to ignore the music of Franco Bixio, Fabio Frizzi and Vince Tempera in Lucio Fulci's The Psychic (a.k.a. Seven Notes in Black) right out of the gate would be foolhardy, as it dominates the proceedings with an atmospheric elan. Okay, now that I got that out of the way, let's talk about that fall, shall we? Didn't you think the tone of the cliff suicide scene that opens the film was a little misleading? Holy crap, I was thinking the exact same thing. Yeah, yeah, most directors, when filming a scene like this, would show a close-up shot of the face of the distraught individual about to jump to their death and then pull back just when they're about to leap. But not Lucio Fulci. He knows the person doing the jumping will probably hit their head, or, in this case, their face, on the jaggedy cliff as they plummet towards the rocky beach below at a high rate of speed. And in order to capture these hits, he makes sure we see every thud in lurid detail. Of course, your initial reaction to such a scene might be disgust. However, you've got to remember, the jumper's daughter can see everything; she is, after all, psychic. And in order to highlight the impact (no pun intended) this event will have on the jumper's daughter in coming years, we're shown the grisly results of every face-ruining smash. Oh, and the reason I said the scene was "misleading" was because there's nothing else in the film that comes close topping it in terms of over-the-top, Fulci-friendly gore.

Don't fret, horror fans, Lucio Fulci has decided instead to deliver a highly effective psychological thriller that boasts a fashion-forward female protagonist at its core. I'm no expert on such matters, but I think horror fans prefer gory mayhem to films that boast fashion-forward female protagonists. They do?!? If that's the case, they should start fretting then. Hell, they might even have to sit this one out. I, on the other hand, will happily gnaw on this film's asparagus-flavoured burlap crotch in their place; they can use the free time they have from not watching this film to iron their horror shirts.

I'll admit, given Lucio Fulci's reputation, I was hoping for a bit of a gore-fest as well. On the other hand, when I realized this wasn't going to be your typical Lucio Fulci film (even though he's made film's in almost every genre imaginable, he was best known for gory horror flicks during this particular period), I quickly adjusted my attitude to one that fit the overall tone this film was putting out there.

Since I've already spent a fair amount discussing it, I'll simply say, the film opens with a little girl in Florence, Italy back in 1959 having a vision of her mother jumping off a cliff in England. "Mommy!" she screams out, as her mother steps over the edge. Fast-forward to mid-1970s and that little girl now looks like the über-stylish Jennifer O'Neill. How a freckle-faced redhead grew up to be an elegant brunette who drives a Rolls-Royce is anyone's guess. Either way, Jennifer O'Neill is Virginia Ducci, the clairvoyant wife of Francesco Ducci (Gianni Garko), a man who has his own private jet; I know, ooh-la-la.

As Virginia and Francesco are driving, in their aforementioned Rolls-Royce, to the air field, "With You" by Franco Bixio, Fabio Frizzo and Vince Tempera is playing on the soundtrack. Why am I mentioning this? Well, it's a great song, that's why. One of the ways I like to stand out from the crowd when it comes to movie reviews is to occasionally point out the things I liked and disliked about the film I'm reviewing, and the song "With You" is definitely something I liked.

After watching Francesco's plane take off, Virginia attempts to drive herself back to the house. "Attempts"? Yeah, it would seem that Virginia and long, dark tunnels don't get along so well. It's during the tunnel sequence, by the way, that we get our first close-up shot of Jennifer O'Neill's eyes; a Fulci trademark.

While driving through the tunnels, Virginia has a vision, one that includes a man with a limp, bricks being laid, a cigarette resting on the edge of a blue ashtray, the bloody face of an old woman, a magazine with a dark-haired woman on the cover, and a distinctive-sounding watch tone.

Clearly frazzled by the ordeal, Virginia goes to see her psychologist friend, Luca Fattori (Marc Porel), a handsome fella who likes red sweaters and seems proud of his reel-to-reel tape player. I wonder if Francesco minds that his smoking hot... Hey! Don't be crude. What? You don't call a woman like Jennifer O'Neill "smoking hot," it's beyond vulgar. What should I call her then? I've already described her as "über-stylish" and "elegant." What about "fashionable"? Okay, so, does Francesco mind that his fashionable, Bulgari jewelry-adorned wife is spending so much time with her hunky shrink? It doesn't seem so.

More psychic weirdness takes place when Virginia is checking out an old property they apparently own. As she's tidying up, she notices that the room she's in is eerily similar to the one from her vision. Fixated on a part of the wall located behind a table of some kind, Virginia grabs a pick-axe from the basement and starts whacking at the brick and plaster with all of her might. Just as she was about to give up (she may be fashionable, but she ain't no contractor), she spots a human finger amidst the rubble.

Doing what any normal person would do when they come across walled up skeletal remains, Virginia calls the police. Little does she realize, but she's made her husband the prime suspect; after all, it's his house; Italian law dictates that if you find skeletal remains, or regular remains for that matter, on your property, it's your problem.

I liked it when the policeman questioning Virginia at the scene asks her why she didn't have a contractor or a decorator with her when she was inspecting the house, and she forcefully declares, "I am a decorator!" Yeah! You tell him, girlfriend.

Even though it's blocked by a couch for most of the scene, my favourite Jennifer O'Neill article of clothing has to be the long, and I mean, long, white pleated skirt she wears during that brief period between the discovery of the walled up skeletal remains and Francesco's arrest. Now, most people would bemoan the fact that Jennifer O'Neill's body is always draped/sheathed in clothing. Well, there won't be any bemoaning on my part. I was actually quite taken with Virginia's tendency to remain covered; it also helped that her clothes, thanks to costume designer Massimo Lentini, were too chic for words.

This also applies to Francesco's sister Gloria Ducci (the fabulous Ida Galli - dig the fur hat) and Luca's secretary Bruna (the adorable Jenny Tamburi), as they remain covered up as well. Oh, and when I say, "covered up," I mean everything except their face is covered in clothing. If you're wondering about their necks, they cover them, too; thanks to a seemingly endless supply of turtleneck sweaters and scarfs.

Immediately after her husband is arrested, Virginia goes into sleuth mode. Determined to uncover the truth, Virginia attempts to piece together, with the help of Luca, Gloria and, of course, Bruna (on top of being cute as fuck, her sleuthing skills are second to none), the events of her vision. She soon discovers that what happens in her vision didn't occur in the past, but is something that is about to the future. And not only that, the events are going to happen to her.

How does one avoid being murdered, or, more specifically, walled up in a wall, when you know exactly how it's going to happen? The answer will surprise you. I don't want to even imply what I'm getting at. But let's just say the theme music I alluded to at the beginning of this review plays a significant role in relation to whether or not Virginia will live or die. I get chills just thinking about how the theme music is used in this movie; it's so freaking effective. Which is a weird thing to say, given the fact that I usually associate Lucio Fulci films with eyeballs being stabbed, not semi-intelligent plot twists. Anyway, I came away from The Psychic with a new-found respect for Lucio Fulci, as this film proved to me that there's more to Italian cinema than just gore, legs sheathed in stockings, and half empty bottles of J+B Scotch Whisky. Oh, and the theme from this movie was used in Kill Bill Vol. 1; hence the reason it might sound familiar to some of you.


  1. "Oh, and the theme from this movie was used in Kill Bill Vol. 1..."

    That greasy little shit is unable to come up with his own ideas. And now he got an Oscar for it. Yuck.

    Ok, anyway.

    I adore fashion-forward female protagonists or even ones that sometimes aren't the best at color-coordinating effectively. So I was more than happy to affectionately nuzzle the warm, moist under-regions of this film. From behind, no less.

    Although Fulci gets pigeon-holed for his zombie gore fests, I've always felt that his giallos/thrillers were his best films. And I personally love "The Beyond" (lack of plot works in the portrait of hell's favor) and "House by the Cemetery" (the uncut version actually fleshes out a TON of subtext that makes the film much more enjoyable). If you haven't already, definitely check out "A Lizard in a Woman's Skin." I think its one of the best giallos there is and maybe Fulci's best film. I still need to see "Don't Torture a Duckling," which seems to be very highly praised.

  2. I was a big fan of the 80s television show Cover Up, probably best known for the tragic death of its star Jon-Erik Hexum. The theme song was E.G. Daily doing a version of "Holding Out for a Hero."

    Anyway, Jennifer O'Neill was the star of that show.

    Oh, I'm following you on Tumblr. :)

  3. @ido: I have "A Lizard..." and "Don't Torture..." on my Fulci to watch list.

    I'm posting a review soon of what I consider to be the best Fulci flick.

    @Karim: When you said tragic death, I assumed it was drug related. But then I read Jon-Erik Hexum's bio... damn.

    What's your tumblr name? You know, so I can follow you back. :)

  4. @yum-yum: Looking forward to your upcoming Fulci review. I've always enjoyed Argento and Bava's giallos. So Fulci's have been a bit of a revelation for me. I personally don't understand the cult around Zombi (Zombi 2). Yes, it is ultra-gory. But its really dumb. I'm not that into gore (two much research into WWII in the Pacific and Asian maindland will do that to you), especially if its just kind of pointless.

    I've also been listening to The Cure's "Pornography" and SPK's "Information Overload Unit" and "Leichenschrei" almost non-stop lately. Maybe a little bit too repressed for my own good.

  5. I watched Zombi. Nothing about it grabbed me, so I didn't bother to review it. :(

    SPK... non-stop? Yikes. If I need to get to worked up I'll listen to the first minute or so of "Slogun." And the only Cure songs I'll listen to on purpose are "A Forest" and "The Walk."

  6. If I hear any of The Cure's big hits (like "Just Like Heaven") one more time on the satellite radio new wave station, I'm going to stab myself in the ear.

    My tumblr handle: theajw

  7. I can just imagine you glaring at the radio every time that song comes on. :D

    Yay, I found your tumblr... mmm, Buffalo area light rail map porn. :D

    Paul Walker, R.I.P.

  8. @Karim Amir: I only like the stuff The Cure did when they were a trio. Between 1978-1982. After that? Meh. The albums "Faith" and "Pornography" are completely different from the kind of big hit stuff that probably saturates your new wave radio. I don't like that stuff either. I actually avoided the band for YEARS because I thought they were whiny. Until I was recommended to give "Pornography" a listen.

    @Yum-yum: "Information Overload Unit" and "Leichenschrei" are gorgeous industrial art. You need "Leichenschrei" in your life. It is that good. It isn't the non-stop noise of "Slogan" or "Mekano." And by non-stop, I meant when I'm not listening to "Too Dark Park" and my bootleg collection from that tour.

    Anywho, as for this film, I looked up Jennifer 0'Neill on the wikipedia to see what else she did besides this and "Scanners" (all I know), and it said "Married nine times to eight men." For some reason I didn't expect that. Maybe I just thought she would scan them to be how she wanted.

  9. No, I agree, SPK were amazing during that period. It's just that I don't have the ears for that kind of stuff anymore.

    Note to self: Watch Scanners one of these days.