Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		4.0

A Quiet Place to Kill Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov July 13, 2020

Umberto Lenzi's "A Quiet Place to Kill" a.k.a. "Paranoia" (1970) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Severin Films. The supplemental features on the disc include an exclusive audio commentary by critic Samm Deighan; deleted scenes; alternate sequence; and archival video interview with the director. In English or Italian, with optional English subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

I wish to mention a few things about the title of Umberto Lenzi’s film and why it has always been, and almost certainly will remain, a bit confusing. So, this particular film has been marketed and sold with two different English titles, Paranoia and A Quiet Place to Kill. However, the former has also been used to market and sell another Lenzi thriller titled Orgazmo, which was released a year earlier. Because Carroll Baker is in both films, Paranoia was frequently but incorrectly used to identify two completely different films. Here’s the correct order of appearance for these films: the first film, Orgazmo a.k.a. Paranoia, was released in 1969, while the second film, Paranoia a.k.a. A Quiet Place to Kill, was released in 1970. Finally, approximately a year before A Quiet Place to Kill, Romolo Guerrieri united Baker and Jean Sorel for another thriller titled The Sweet Body of Deborah, and in this film the two actually play characters that are in a relationship that is as twisted as the one their characters have in Lenzi’s film. Released in 1968, The Sweet Body of Deborah is arguably the best of the bunch.

While testing a brand new car, race driver Helen (Baker) nearly dies in a very serious accident. After she recovers a friend picks her up from the hospital, but on the way to his place she ditches him and instead ends up at the posh beach mansion of her ex-husband, Maurice (Sorel). Over the course of a few days Helen is befriended by Maurice’s very wealthy but frustrated wife, Constance (Anna Proclemer), who then asks her if she would be willing to help her get rid of him. At first the stunned Helen refuses to even consider the offer, but then changes her mind and together with Susan picks the perfect day for Maurice’s death.

But when at the crucial moment Helen hesitates, and instead of Maurice it is Constance that ends up with a large rock around her neck, the perfect day instantly becomes the perfect nightmare. The unplanned situation then forces Maurice and Helen to become partners and the two go to work to sell Constance’s death as an awful accident. All of Maurice and Constance’s mutual friends accept the official story about the accident, and it begins to look like the heartbroken widower and his ex-wife might be able to rekindle their relationship with the money he has inherited, but when Constance’s teenage daughter, Susan (Marina Coffa), unexpectedly appears at the mansion and begins questioning their sincerity, the two reluctant accomplices are forced to begin improvising. In the ensuing chaos, old issues reemerge and further complicate their game.

Lenzi’s Paranoia is as much of a traditional giallo as Radley Metzger’s Camille 2000 is a straightforward erotic film, so anyone expecting a great deal of juicy European genre fun will almost certainly have an underwhelming experience with it. Indeed, much like Metzger’s film, Lenzi’s film takes its glamour very seriously and does a lot to appeal to what back in the early 1970s was considered the ‘general public’. Naturally, the film does not offer the ‘classic’ type of exotic and over-the-top visual material that flourished in similar genre films a bit later in the decade.

On the other hand, Lenzi does give the film a cheeky personality that infuses enough ambiguity to make certain parts of it appear either more exotic or naughtier than they really are, and this is essentially what makes it charming. So, the end product is a lot like a cinematic adaptation of an unknown Agatha Christie novel which trades the conventional splash of humor for looser and darker European thrills.

Baker and Sorel look quite good together, but the sizzling chemistry their characters enjoy in Guerrieri’s The Sweet Body of Deborah isn’t replicated here. Obviously, the script demands different character arcs and the ambience cannot be the same, but because Lenzi and Guerrieri’s films were made at approximately the same time it is impossible not to compare their performances.

The film benefits greatly from a trendy soundtrack composed by Gregorio García Segura and conducted by Pierro Umiliani. Also used is a wonderful recording of Shirley Harmer singing “You”.

A Quiet Place to Kill Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 2.35:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, A Quiet Place to Kill arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Severin Films.

The release is sourced from the same beautiful 2K master that British distributors 88 Films worked with to produce this release back in January. (The European release uses the alternate title Paranoia).

I just viewed the film again and my take on the technical presentation remains the same -- the entire film looks very, very healthy and really quite beautiful in high-definition. I did mention previously that some of the darker footage could have better defined nuances, but delineation is still very good and there is a lot to see in the background. There are no traces of problematic digital work. Fluidity is very pleasing. Density is very good as well, though I do believe that it could be slightly better. I like the color grading job and as you can see from the screencaptures that are included with our review there are some excellent ranges of healthy nuances. There are no distracting large debris, cuts, damage marks, stains, warped or torn frames to report. My score is 4.75/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your player regardless of your geographical location).

A Quiet Place to Kill Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 and Italian: LPCM 2.0. Optional English and English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature. When turned on, they appear inside the image frame.

I viewed the film with the English track, which should be considered the 'original' track as virtually every actor in the film utters his/her lines in English. Obviously, some overdubbing was done, which means that some small unevenness pops up from time to time. But this is completely natural for these types of genre films. The music is clean and nicely balanced with the dialog.

A Quiet Place to Kill Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Sex & Conspiracy: An Interview with Umberto Lenzi - in this archival interview, director Umberto Lenzi discusses the conception of Paranoia and its confusing relationship with Orgasmo, which is also addressed at the very top of this article. (A slightly longer version of this interview is included on the 88 Films release of the film). In Italian, with optional English subtitles. (11 min, 1080p).

• Alternate Scenes - two restored alternate scenes. In English, not subtitled. (1 min, 1080p).

• Credits: VHS sourced - (3 min, 1080p).

• Extended Scene - (1 min, 1080p).

• Audio Commentary - an exclusive new audio commentary recorded by critic Samm Deighan.

• Easter Egg - if you highlight the Severin Films logo and click on it, you will see an archival Italian TV piece (Luce) highlighting Carroll Baker's contribution to Paranoia. In Italian, not subtitled. (1 min, 1080p).

A Quiet Place to Kill Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

This year the boutique labels are bringing many legitimately great releases to the market, but this box set from Severin Films is extra-special. It has four of Umberto Lenzi's most stylish films, and two of them were so elusive that in the past even seasoned collectors would not chase them. Now these films are fully restored and the box set even has two CDs with original soundtracks, one being for So Sweet... So Perverse with Jean-Louis Trintignant, which was an absolute nightmare to track down and see in decent shape. This is incredible. Thank you, Severin Films. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.