Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.5
Audio		3.5
Extras		2.5
Overall		4.0

The Police Are Blundering in the Dark Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf June 24, 2020

The title, “The Police are Blundering in the Dark,” is remarkably memorable, but doesn’t quite describe the viewing experience of the 1975 picture. In fact, the cops aren’t really involved in the story, which follows a series of murders involving beautiful women, and the ladies’ man who’s on the hunt for the perpetrator. Director Helia Colombo tries to deliver a traditional giallo event, tracking a deadly villain who preys on innocents, using long scissors to dispatch victims. There’s a list of suspects and plenty of sexploitation. However, there’s also a sci-fi element to the material, which has the potential to inspire some needed insanity, but Colombo is hesitant. He keeps the endeavor low to the ground, trusting in violence and nudity to sustain a movie that takes long breaks between moments of mayhem.

Giorgio (Joseph Arkim) travels outside of Rome to help a model companion with her car troubles, but when he arrives at her location, the woman is dead. Endeavoring to understand more about the crime and the locals, Giorgio is invited to stay with wheelchair-bound artist Parisi, who’s secretly working on a machine that allows him to photograph human thoughts. Trying to understand the uneasiness that permeates Parisi’s combative family, which is filled with nervous types, Giorgio soon learns of more murders, inspiring him to dig deeper into the household dynamic.

“The Police are Blundering in the Dark” provides an opening jolt, refusing to delay potential horrors with a sequence that details the efforts of a model struggling to get away from a gloved killer chasing her with sharp scissors. It’s not much, but it’s movement, getting the feature’s juices flowing before it settles into the plot, or what passes for plot here. “The Police are Blundering in the Dark” isn’t the most coherent endeavor imaginable, but the writing enjoys creating odd characters with personal issues, and there’s the whole Parisi experience, with the mad photographer mastering a machine that exposes darkest desires. How this is accomplished isn’t important, and such a bizarre addition to the picture isn’t really emphasized until the final act. Up to this point, there’s periodic violence, nudity, and real-time events such as driving, serving dinner, and packing a suitcase. Colombo isn’t exactly in a hurry to get anywhere.

The Police Are Blundering in the Dark Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Offering a new 2K scan from the "35mm original negative," the AVC encoded image (1.85:1 aspect ratio) presentation for "The Police are Blundering in the Dark" brings the movie to life on Blu-ray, perhaps besting its original theatrical appearance. Mild frame damage is detected, along with speckling and scratches, but the source is in good condition. Detail excels throughout, exploring facial surfaces on young, healthy characters and sickly types are easily identified. Interior decoration is textured, along with costuming, offering a fibrous appreciation for period outfits and sheerness. Exteriors are dimensional. Colors are excellent, emphasizing the production's use of primaries, as displayed on rainbow umbrellas and photo developing pans. Hues are also defined on bold fashion choices, while skintones are natural. Greenery is lush. Delineation is communicative. Grain is fine and film-like.

The Police Are Blundering in the Dark Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 2.0 DTS-HD MA sound mix supplies a basic listening event for "The Police are Blundering in the Dark." Scoring cues are sudden and louder, but remain useful and comfortable as suspense is encouraged and jazzier moods are set. Instrumentation isn't exact, but passable. Dialogue exchanges offer pronounced dubbing efforts, but emotionality isn't lost, and a few sibilance issues are encountered during the run time. Sound effects are blunt.

The Police Are Blundering in the Dark Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Historical Audio Essay features film historian Rachael Nisbet.

• Promotional Image Gallery (:24) collects poster art and a lobby card.

• A Theatrical Trailer has not been included on this release.

The Police Are Blundering in the Dark Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

"The Police are Blundering in the Dark" has sluggish pacing at times. But there's weirdness here that's interesting, even if it's not developed in full, injecting the movie with needed peculiarity to hold viewer attention. And Colombo doesn't wait to stage his murders, making sure fans of giallo have something to snack on while works on filler to beef up the run time to a sellable point.