Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.5
Audio		2.5
Extras		1.5
Overall		3.0

Torso Blu-ray Movie Review

Slice-and-dice, Italian style.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman October 4, 2011

Death is the best keeper of secrets.

What good is a Horror movie if it doesn't open with a gratuitous breast shot, followed by a hazy and smeary sex orgy taking place in front of a still camera? Well, there are plenty of great Horror movies that don't open in quite such a titillating way, but Torso does, and it's both tone-setting and structurally necessary in getting the audience straight into the movie and into the mindset of the characters and how they're going to operate throughout the picture. Torso, or The Bodies Show Signs of Carnal Violence as its title is more aptly translated from the original Italian, is a picture that's sexual in nature, a film that focuses on life's carnal pleasures and the violence that may be born from them. The plot proves to be a bit more involved than "lonely stalker longs for women and cuts them to pieces when he can't have them;" there are deep psychological undertones that run through the movie, and even if they're not always front-and-center -- Torso sometimes allows its more visceral components to dominate -- the movie definitely gives its audience something more thematically evolved and emotionally involved than what there is to see in a typical Splatter film.

Unlawful carnal knowledge.

Perugia, Italy is a beautiful small college town, an idyllic backdrop if there ever was one, a haven for learning and peace and the good life. That's all about to be shattered when students begin turning up dead. The school is quick to shut things down, which is exactly what American student Jane (Suzy Kendall) doesn't want to hear. She's become involved in school and quite fond of one of her professors, the charming Franz (John Richardson). Nevertheless, the dire situation around town dictates that Jane and a few of her friends -- Danni (Tina Aumont), Katia (Angela Covello), and Ursula (Carla Brait) -- head off to a more isolated villa until the killer can be caught and the campus returns to normal. Unfortunately, it appears that these girls -- and not the college-at-large -- are the killer's true targets; he follows them to their new home where, unbeknownst to them, they fall into great danger.

Watching Torso in retrospect yields an appreciation for both how far the genre has come and what an influence it -- and films like this -- has had on more modern Horror pictures. Torso yields a definite Scream-like vibe, not only in terms of its plot surrounding college-aged kids being hunted down by a masked killer, but in the way that the movie seems to paint nearly everyone as a suspect and baffles the audience up until the moment that all is revealed in the last minutes. The film's ability to paint each character as someone capable of committing the crimes -- for whatever reason, each sufficiently explored in character development and, like Scream, also by chance appearance, mere happenstance, simple bad timing, or something more focused like motive -- is perhaps its single best trait. It's certainly not as fast-paced and slick as Scream or other, flashier productions, but Torso succeeds thanks to a tight-knit plot, strong direction, good writing, quality acting, and an immersive feel that often places the viewer in the midst of the plot and seemingly in danger alongside several of the characters.

Torso is a smart and sexy Horror picture, the former thanks to a quality story and great direction, the latter out of necessity to the plot. They both merge for a stylistic, edgy, provocative, and engaging Horror movie that's far more often about the mystery than it is either gratuitous nudity or bloodshed. The sense of spine-tingling uncertainty and strong emotional reactions to the picture's myriad of elements -- blood, sex, nudity, and mystery -- is thanks to both a tightly-woven script and unflappable direction from Sergio Martino, whose fantastic camerawork not only gives the audience some unique perspective shots but also gets them almost physically involved in the movie. He dots the movie with effective perspective reveals and shots that visually invoke emotions of great uncertainty, timidness, and fear. This style perfectly blends into the voyeuristic overtones that are so critical to the plot, but also engages the audience from the other side of the coin and allows them to experience the terror that's realized on the victim's end. The movie's ability to pull the viewer into those dueling sides and scenarios gives it a unique flavor that sees the audience on an emotional and psychological roller coaster of sorts that earns its thrills not from incessant action but a sense of immersion into the total world of Torso.

Torso Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Torso's 1080p picture quality is a mixed bag, but for the most part the image is a solid one. There is evidence of slight noise reduction -- grain occasionally appears to be frozen rather than organic -- but this is about the best-case scenario for a movie that appears to have undergone the process to some degree, and only at times at that. Details are consistently strong and don't have that waxy, plastic, lifeless look to them. Facial textures remain rather complex, and stone building façades and scratched and scuffed wooden floorboards, too, appear intricately detailed upon close inspection. A few shots do go a mite soft, and there's not a lot of natural depth to the image, but it holds up well in all corners nevertheless. Colors are the real bright spot here, pardon the pun. They're vibrant but not excessively so, balanced and generally a pleasure to behold. Blacks are steady, never crushing out details, but are maybe a little uneven and washed out in difficult nighttime and dusk shots. There are a few inconsequential spots of debris, but the print is in borderline miraculous shape. This is a somewhat frustrating transfer; it looks quite good, all things considered -- even with the apparent but inconsistent noise reduction -- but viewers distressed by even a hint of DNR might scoff at this one.

Torso Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Torso features a crunchy and indistinct pair of mono lossless soundtracks -- presented in both Italian and English -- that won't win any audio awards in 2011, but each is sufficiently capable of delivering the bare-minimum required to keep the film moving along. It sounds at times like a scratchy old record playing through an underpowered speaker. Clarity is minimal as the music flows at the beginning, and the accompanying sound of a clicking camera shutter sounds harsh but nevertheless accurate. Dialogue is occasionally unbalanced, but for the most part the spoken word is adequately clear and distinct from surrounding elements. Background sound effects -- the din of a bustling college campus, for instance -- play like a glob of sound and don't create an immersive, real-life environment. There's not much difference to the English dub; the same critiques apply to each track, and both were sampled at random intervals through the screening. Of course, these criticisms need be taken in context of the greater picture. This isn't a modern-day movie, and while this one's not exactly a sonic marvel or joy, it's certainly adequate and no doubt the best Blue Underground could muster.

Torso Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Torso's supplements consist primarily of a collection of promotional materials scattered around a Writer/Director interview piece.

• Muders in Perugia -- Interview with Co-Writer/Director Sergio Martino (1080p, 10:43): The Director discusses the film's many titles, his family history in film, his own filmography, background in Documentary films, transition to mainstream moviemaking, and his work on Torso.
• U.S. Opening Credits (1080p, 1:17).
• Theatrical Trailers: U.S. (480p, 3:30), International (1080p, 3:07), and Italian (1080p, 3:09).
• TV Spot #1 (1080p, 0:32).
• TV Spot #2 (1080p, 0:32).
• Radio Spot (1080p, 2:22).
• Poster & Still Gallery (1080p).

Torso Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Torso isn't the end-all, be-all of Horror and/or Italian giallo, but it's a fine example of its era and genre. The picture is built on a quality story that's more involved than a typical modern Slasher picture, and the direction is top-notch. It's well-paced, too, and leaves viewers with more questions than answers until the final few minutes. It's everything a Psychological Horror picture should be and a must-see for genre fans. Blue Underground's Blu-ray release of Torso features solid video and unspectacular audio to go along with a few extras. Recommended.