Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		3.0
Audio		3.5
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.0

The Fourth Victim Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman September 29, 2021

In some ways, Carroll Baker might have seemed like an unlikely candidate to bid adieu (or arriverderci as the case may be) to Hollywood and all it had to offer in pursuit of a career in some fairly lurid at times European fare. After all, Baker was an alum of the well regarded Actors Studio and had a rather notable early start in major film roles with two 1956 efforts, Giant and Baby Doll, the latter of which afforded her her sole Academy Award nomination for Best Actress. But as evidenced perhaps by the fact that her next film, The Big Country, came out two years later may indicate that Baker was not on an overly hard charging career path, and if her filmography is perused, there are some surprising gaps in terms of "really big" films, with several years intervening (admittedly with parts, albeit in films that are not that well remembered) before How the West Was Won and some subsequent films like The Carpetbaggers, Cheyenne Autumn and The Greatest Story Ever Told came out. However, it was probably Baker's attempt at a biographical film of Jean Harlow that may have put the kibosh, at least temporarily, on any plans Baker may have made to remain in the American film industry. The lackluster response to that film, along with a deteriorating relationship with both producer Joseph E. Levine and Baker's soon to be ex-husband Jack Garfein, may have been the veritable straws that broke the camel's back, with the result being Baker's move to Italy, where for the next several years she managed to forge a substantially successful career, typically as a damsel in distress in any number of gialli.

One of the interesting ambiguities about The Fourth Victim is that the viewer is in fact uncertain as to whether Julie Spencer (Carroll Baker) actually is a damsel in distress, or merely pretending to be one for motives which are initially unclear. Julie actually takes a good while to even be introduced to the story, which begins with the drowning death of a gorgeous blonde woman who turns out to be have been the wife of Arthur Anderson (Michael Craig). It is soon disclosed that this poor woman was the third wife of Anderson, and the third to die under mysterious circumstances. The first two deaths resulted in handsome insurance payments to Anderson, and the insurance company isn't about to let that happen again, and rather quickly Anderson finds himself on trial for murder.

When some surprise testimony from his long suffering (and perhaps slightly smitten) elderly housekeeper Felicity Downing (Miranda Campa) results in Anderson's acquital, he returns to his villa in Italy where rather strangely one night he finds neighbor Julie Spencer swimming in his pool, ostensibly because it was hot and Anderson's was the only pool in the neighborhood. That understandably raises Anderson's suspicions, since he's only too aware he's a celebrity accused of murder. When the film then suddenly segues to Julie's point of view as she returns to her house (where hilariously she lives in a tent inside her mansion) and makes a telephone call telling someone she's finally been able to meet Anderson, that seems to confirm Anderson's fears.

Now without posting any outright spoilers, I'll simply say that the plot here is at least in one major way rather reminiscent of a little remembered 1955 thriller called Cast a Dark Shadow, but suffice it to say everything (and/or everyone) may not be as they initially appear. Adding to the perceived cat and mouse game between Anderson and Julie, who ultimately marry (of course), there's a menacing seeming woman played by Marina Malfatti hanging around in the background, and a bumbling police investigator kind of hilariously (at least for fans of Modern Family) named Dunphy (José Luis López Vázquez) who provides some ostensible comedy relief.

The series of reveals in the final act of The Fourth Victim are deliriously head spinning, and ultimately make no sense whatsoever on any number of levels. This is also a rather "bloodless" giallo, if it can even be called that. Despite an accruing body count (at least if taken over a large span of time), there's not a "real" serial killer here, and few of the stylistic excesses that Argento, Bava or even frequent Baker collaborator Lenzi tended to employ.

The Fourth Victim Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Fourth Victim is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Severin Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.39:1. The back cover of this release states that this is "the English language Blu-ray premiere" and has been "scanned in 2K from the original negative". This feature may be a rare enough find that fans will be willing to overlook some deficits here, for judging by appearances the negative may not have been curated especially effectively. While this is perfectly watchable, I'm officially scoring this at 3.0 at least in part to temper expectations since Severin typically does such a nice job with some of the cult items they release. There is a somewhat anemic looking palette at times, and blacks are noticeably milky and at times kind of tinged with blue, something that can lead to deficits in both detail and shadow definition in the many dimly lit scenes. There are also rather wide and noticeable brightness fluctuations. A lot of the more brightly lit material pops at least relatively well by comparison, and select moments can actually look quite good, all things considered (see screenshot 4). There are some minor signs of age related wear and tear, but frankly damage in the form of scratches or other blemishes is probably less of a concern than the flicker situation and some of the palette anomalies. All things told, my score is 3.25.

The Fourth Victim Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Fourth Victim features DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono tracks in either English or Italian. Toggling between the two shows some noticeable amplitude differences, with the English track sounding hotter. That may account for why certain moments, like the female vocalist featured in the film's appealing theme by Piero Umiliani may tiptoe right up to the edge of distortion, even if they don't quite tip all of the way over into it. As is always the case with these international co-productions, you're getting dubbed voices one way or the other, and so sync will be loose (as they say) no matter which version is opted for, though my advice is to stick with the English, which is somewhat more robust and offers Craig and Baker in their natural habitat, so to speak (no pun intended). Optional English subtitles are available.

The Fourth Victim Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Eugenio Martín, Auteur (HD; 15:36) is officially titled Eugenio Martín, An Auteur for all Genres and is an interesting interview with Eugenio Martín biographer Carlos Aguilar. In Spanish with English subtitles.


• Deleted Scene (HD; 2:43) is in Spanish with English subtitles.


• Trailer (HD; 2:56)

The Fourth Victim Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

There are some rather wide tonal variances in this film, which kind of meanders between low comedy and quasi-Hitchcockian duplicity and angst, but Baker is fun in a role that perhaps gives her a bit more of a chance to offer nuance than a traditional damsel in distress situation. Video here has some issues that my hunch is cult fans are going to be willing to cut some slack to if not completely ignore. Audio has its own hurdles, albeit probably less noticeable ones. The supplemental interview in particular is excellent, for those who are considering making a purchase.