Body Puzzle Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.5

Body Puzzle Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov November 3, 2025

Lamberto Bava's "Body Puzzle" (1992) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Raro Video. The supplemental features on the release include exclusive new audio commentary by critics Adrian Smith and Rod Barnett and remastered vintage trailer. In English or Italian, with optional English subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

The collector and his latest acquisition

The Italian copycats became popular for two reasons. First, Italian directors shot too many of them with unprecedented freedom, which is why eventually many of the good and bad ones acquired reputations as cult films. Second, they made good business over a long period of time. A lot of people paid money to see them theatrically and rent them at the video store, and as their fanbase expanded, domestically and internationally, their promoters became enormously creative. It is how the good business they initially generated became very good business. (In the digital era, many of these copycats are again performing exceptionally well on 4K Blu-ray, Blu-ray, and streaming platforms).

The overwhelming majority of the copycats were modeled after big Hollywood studio projects. However, sometime during the late 1980s, as their popularity grew and they started appearing on various international markets, the Italian directors began experimenting with a wide range of new copycats. Most were inspired by smaller American and European films, and some were modeled after popular Italian films. By the mid-1990s, the conventional and experimental copycats were then effectively replaced by the new original Italian genre films, virtually all of which once again did their best to emulate big Hollywood studio projects.

Lamberto Bava was one of those Italian directors who shot conventional and experimental copycats, and then moved on to making new, original Italian genre films, which, unsurprisingly, turned out very unoriginal. Bava’s most interesting films emerged from the 1980s, which is when he delivered the two Demons films and Delirium. In the 1990s, Bava transitioned to working on TV projects and, sadly, the quality of his output dramatically declined.

Body Puzzle is the final enjoyable genre film Bava directed. Like all of Bava’s previous genre films, it has obvious, undeniable flaws, but it is the last that effectively channels some of his notable dark sense of humor and retains the atmosphere his 1980s output is remembered for. Body Puzzle was conceived as an original project, but it too borrows from multiple places, one of which is Eric Red’s thriller Body Parts.

After a couple of brutal murders rock his city, Inspector Michele Livet (Tomas Arana) ends up talking to the wealthy widow Tracy Grant (Joanna Pacula) and begins suspecting that the killer could be a person from her past. While Livet hunts for evidence proving that his theory is right, the killer strikes again and again, and it becomes obvious that he is collecting body parts to be used in a bizarre experiment.

The plot is not going to impress anyone who expects Body Puzzle to be an intelligent and, more importantly, effective whodunit. Bava reveals who the killer is and exactly what he intends to do quite early, so it is only unclear whether Livet will manage to stop him on time. As a result, the catalyst for all the excitement becomes the blender that Bava activates to infuse Body Puzzle with various cinematic flavors, the most prominent of which can easily be traced back to the classic Italian gialli.

However, even though this cinematic concoction of flavors has an undeniable retro quality, it is placed in a modern 1990s container, giving Body Puzzle an identity that many American films shared, and specifically B-films that HBO and Cinemax loved to include in their late-night programming.

Bava's director of photography was Luigi Kuveiller, who lensed several of the all-time greatest gialli, including A Lizard in a Woman's Skin and Deep Red, as well as the masterful political thriller Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion.

Body Puzzle Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Body Puzzle arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Raro Video.

The overall quality of the visuals ranges from good to very good. In a few darker areas, revealing a variety of darker nuances, grain becomes a tad loose and noisy, but even there delineation and clarity remain very pleasing. Everywhere else, the density levels of the visuals remain the same, so on a large screen, there is a lot to like. However, I have to mention that if the film is redone in 2K or 4K now, the dynamic range of all visuals will be improved. Color balance is convincing. In some places, select primaries and supporting nuances can be lusher and slightly better balanced, but the entire film has a fine period appearance. I did not notice any traces of problematic digital corrections. Image stability is good. A few tiny blemishes pop up, but there are no large and distracting cuts, debris, marks, warped or torn frames to report. My score is 3.75/5.00. (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).

Body Puzzle 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 DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English subtitles are provided for the main feature.

All actors utter their lines in English, so the English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track should be the one you choose to view Body Puzzle. I would describe this track as good. However, there is a lot of atmospheric music and sound effects, and in several areas it feels like dynamic intensity could be better. On the other hand, Body Puzzle is not a big-budget production, so it could be that some of the fluctuations are inherited. All exchanges are easy to follow. However, keep in mind that the English track utilizes some English overdubbing.

Body Puzzle Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by critics Adrian Smith and Rod Barnett, hosts of the Wild, Wild Podcast. The commentators share their thoughts on the stylistic identity of Body Puzzle, its characterizations, and Lamberto Bava's style and career. The careers and work of several cast members are addressed as well.

• Trailer - presented here is a remastered trailer for Body Puzzle. In English, not subtitled. (2 min).

Body Puzzle Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

All of Lamberto Bava's genre films borrow something from somewhere, which should not be surprising because during the 1980s and early 1990s, the Italian copycats did a lot of good business, domestically and internationally, and very few Italian directors refused to make them. Body Puzzle is the final enjoyable genre film Bava directed, and while it was conceived as an original project, it is a copycat, too. It has undeniable flaws, but it blends various cinematic flavors that give it a fine late-night quality, which I like. Raro Video's release offers a good technical presentation of it and is Region-Free. RECOMMENDED.