What Have They Done to Your Daughters? Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		4.0

What Have They Done to Your Daughters? Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov July 18, 2025

Massimo Dallamano's "What Have They Done to Your Daughters?" a.k.a. "La polizia chiede aiuto" (1974) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy Shameless Entertainment. The supplemental features on the release include recent program with editor Antonio Siciliano; recent program with composer Stelvio Cipriani; new audio commentary by critic Rachael Nisbet. In English or Italian, with optional English SDH and English subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

While I was revisiting Massimo Dallamano’s What Have They Done to Your Daughters? the other night, I was reminded of the great Italian TV series La Piovra (The Octopus) in which Michele Placido’s Inspector Corrado Cattani begins a long silent war against the mafia. There are exactly ten years of events between them -- What Have They Done to Your Daughters? was completed in 1974 while the first season of La Piovra premiered in 1984 -- but the parallel world they expose is essentially the same. The only difference is that in La Piovra Placido’s character goes much, much deeper.

In What Have They Done to Your Daughters?, the entry point to the parallel world is the murder of a beautiful girl in a fancy apartment. The preliminary investigation reconstructs a fairly straightforward suicide case, but some surprising information emerges, and when Inspector Silvestri (Claudio Cassinelli) and Assistant District Attorney Vittoria Stori (Giovanna Ralli) begin studying the victim’s past, they discover that she was part of a large child prostitution ring. Soon after, Inspector Valentini (Mario Adorf), who is assisting them, learns that his daughter has also been abused by the criminals running the underground operation. While the police continue to gather additional information, a leather-clad maniac goes on a killing spree.

What Have They Done to Your Daughters? is penned and shot to appeal to two very different groups of viewers. For example, the bulk of the material is used to replicate the classic giallo atmosphere that defines Dallamano’s earlier film What Have You Done to Solange?. I do not want to spoil it by discussing in detail how it is done, but I will mention that the footage with the maniac delivers the right dose of intensity that a good giallo demands. However, there are numerous unmissable socio-political overtones in the story, which are carefully arranged to construct a political message for a very different group of viewers. This message is what makes it very easy to link What Have They Done to Your Daughters? to La Piovra.

In La Piovra, Inspector Cattani launches a far bigger, more authentic criminal investigation that exposes a criminal system within the Italian society that is destroying it from within. For this reason, when La Piovra was released, it was a real eye-opener. What Have They Done to Your Daughters? does not have the same punching power, but it still must have made some viewers feel uncomfortable. Why? Because when the final credits roll, its message does not just fade away. It stays with you, and eventually, you begin to wonder if the real world that you are part of is a safer, better place.

Franco Delli Colli’s camerawork frequently adds a degree of intensity that is probably a lot more appropriate for a straightforward poliziotteschi film from the same era, but this is not a weakness. It just makes What Have They Done to Your Daughters? a different film.

The excellent score was created by Stelvio Cipriani (The Lickerish Quartet, The Night Child).

What Have They Done to Your Daughters? Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.35:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, What Have They Done to Your Daughters? arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Shameless Entertainment.

I have only one other release of What Have They Done to Your Daughters? in my library. It is this German release, produced by Camera Obscura in 2016. Earlier tonight, after revisiting What Have They Done to Your Daughters?, I did several comparisons between these releases and could not notice any meaningful discrepancies.

This is great news because What Have They Done to Your Daughters?, as presented on these releases, looks wonderful. Its visuals boast very good to excellent delineation, strong depth, and consistent natural sharpness. They have good density levels, so on a large screen, these visuals hold up nicely, too. (In several sections, there are small yet noticeable fluctuations, but they are introduced by a stylistic preference, not unnatural, troubling anomalies). Color reproduction and balance are convincing. It is possible that several brighter areas with slightly more prominent highlights could have been managed a bit better, but everything still looks very nice. There are no traces of any problematic digital corrections. Image stability is great. (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).

What Have They Done to Your Daughters? 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 SDH (for the former) and English (for the latter) subtitles are provided. When turned on, they appear inside the image frame.

I have used both tracks. However, the English track is the one that non-Italian viewers should use. It is a good track without any major issues. However, like most such tracks that were done for these types of genre films, it features overdubbing, and some parts of it also reveal unevenness. Dynamic intensity is fine, but even the footage where the killer attacks, which has the best dynamic contrasts, will not impress viewers who appreciate the potency of contemporary soundtracks. I tested the English subtitles and think that they need to be larger.

What Have They Done to Your Daughters? Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• The Unused Hardcore Footage Enigma: Stories From the Editing Room - in this recent program, editor Antonio Siciliano discusses his professional relationship with Massimo Dallamano and comments on the director's notorious dynamic hand-held camera footage and framing preferences. Siciliano also comments on his involvement with What Have They Done to Your Daughters? and states that he never saw the hardcore footage that exists for it. However, Siciliano acknowledges that at the time there was a tendency to shoot multiple versions of genre films, like What Have They Done to Your Daughters?, and, for a while, the Spanish versions were typically the ones that featured the hardest bonus footage. The program was produced by Federico Caddeo for Freak-O-Rama in 2022. In Italian, with English subtitles. (23 min).

• Maestro Stelvio - in this recent program, composer Stelvio Cipriani discusses his career in the film business, the type of soundtracks he created during the years for various Italian genre films, and his involvement with Massimo Dallamano's What Have They Done to Your Daughters?. The program was produced by Federico Caddeo for Freak-O-Rama in 2022. In Italian, with English subtitles. (49 min).

• Commentary - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by critic Rachael Nisbet.

• Cover - a reversible cover with vintage Italian poster art for What Have They Done to Your Daughters?.

What Have They Done to Your Daughters? Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The best way to describe Massimo Dallamano's What Have They Done to Your Daughters? is probably to say that it is a giallo with a social conscience. There is a similar blending of genre material in Elio Petri's Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion, though this better-known film hits some very specific targets and promotes a different type of atmosphere. I find these films quite interesting to deconstruct because they can be unusually subversive and serious at the same time. Shameless Entertainment's release offers a wonderful presentation of What Have They Done to Your Daughters? with a couple of excellent recent programs featuring editor Antonio Siciliano and composer Stelvio Cipriani. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.