Bava wanted to include a contemporary story which led to the development of "The Telephone". "The Telephone" has been described as one of Bava's first attempts at a giallo film. The "giallo" film is a style of Italian film that involves a murder mystery that emphasized stylish visuals, flamboyant music and violence. "The Telephone" was Bava's first color film that attempted to emulate the visual style of the covers that appeared on "giallo" digests. Some of the set pieces for "The Telephone" were taken from the black-and-white "giallo" film "The Girl Who Knew Too Much" (1962).