Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		3.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		4.0

What Have You Done to Solange? Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman August 2, 2018

Note: Certain shared plot points in the so-called "schoolgirls in peril trilogy" are discussed in the following review, and those not already familiar with any of these films may consider some subjects verging on spoiler territory. Those wanting to avoid any such revelations are encouraged to skip down to the technical elements of the review, below.

It’s one of the kind of weird vagaries of international cinema that Hollywood never really exploited the “schoolgirls in peril” angle the way that some Italian gialli did, at least in terms of what will be discussed below as a "schoolgirls in peril" trilogy, however loosely that trilogy may be defined. Oh, sure, there are certainly countless films you could name that were made in the United States (or under the provenance of Hollywood) that of course featured schoolage girls in some kind of danger, sometimes due to their own misbehavior (I Saw What You Did springs instantly to mind, but there are others), but the Italian giallo seemed to provide an almost serendipitous opportunity for filmmakers to explore stories of this ilk. Arrow has been at the forefront of releasing gialli over the past few years, and as it happens two similarly named Arrow releases, What Have You Done to Solange? and What Have They Done to Your Daughters? both showed up in my review queue at around the same time (What Have You Done to Solange? actually came out some time ago, but we hadn’t reviewed it). As anyone who has seen both films will most likely agree, there are certainly other likenesses beyond these films’ titles, and that is in fact by design, since both films are ostensibly part one and part two of a somewhat loosely bound trio of offerings known as, yes, the “schoolgirls in peril trilogy”. (The third film in the trilogy is Enigma Rosso, a film which was evidently released under an almost baffling array of alternate titles, but which recently saw the Blu-ray light of day via Scorpion Releasing and Doppelganger.

There’s an undeniable almost smarmy quality to at least some aspects of all three films in this kinda sorta trilogy, all based around the idea of young girls being sexually active at an early age, and with at least the hint of prostitution (willing or otherwise) figuring into the tales. But as commentators Alan Jones and Kim Newman get into in their analysis of the film included on this Blu-ray as a supplement, What Have You Done to Solange? manages to rise above seemingly tawdry material to deliver a rather satisfying mystery, albeit one that has a tendency toward hyperbolism, as many gialli tend to do.

Part of that unseemly quality actually appears in the first sequence of the film, even if it’s not immediately clear that it is unseemly. An amorous couple is in a little boat in a canal, and the man is predictably trying to get the woman to engage in a little carnal activity, though she’s hesitant. She becomes downright insistent (in a “no means no” kind of way) when she thinks she spies an attack on the nearby land. Of course, it turns out there was an attack, but the subtext of the scene is that the couple is not married, at least not to each other, and in fact the man is a professor named Henry Rosseni (Fabio Testi) who is perhaps problematically romantically involved with at least one of his students.

Without revealing too much about this film’s kind of fun twists and turns, the professor’s dalliance soon becomes public when another murder takes place, which then involves him confessing in a way to his harridan wife Herta (Karin Baal), in the hopes that she’ll partner with him to figure out what’s going on. Perhaps predictably, the murders all center on the school where the professor works, and he soon is able to discover a kind of smarmy secret many of the girls have been sharing.

What Have You Done to Solange? has a number of stylistic flourishes, including some scenes in black and white interspersed with the bulk of the color footage (see the screenshots accompanying this review for some examples). The film has some spooky moments, but rather interestingly some of the most discomfiting material comes not from the typically gruesome “gialli kills”, but rather from the subtext of why they’re happening, which in turns related directly to what in fact someone has done to Solange.

What Have You Done to Solange? Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

What Have You Done to Solange? is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.35:1. Arrow's insert booklet contains the following information on the transfer:

What Have You Done to Solange? (Cosa avete fatto a Solange?) has been exclusively restored in 2K resolution for this release by Arrow Films and is presented in its original aspect ratio of 2.35:1 with mono 1.0 sound.

All work on this new restoration was carried out at L'Immagine Ritrovata, Bologna. The original 35mm 2-perf Techniscope camera negative was scanned in 2K resolution on a pin-registered Arriscan and was graded on Digital Vision's Nucoda Film Master. Some sections not in the negative had to be sourced from a 4-perf internegative element.

Thousands of instances of dirt, debris and light scratches were removed through a combination of digital restoration tools. Overall image stability and instances of density fluctuation were also improved. The sections sourced from the internegative element look noticeably worn in comparison to the negative as per the condition of these elements.

The film's original Italian and English mono soundtracks were transferred from the original 35mm optical sound negatives usuing the Sondor OMA/E with COSP Xi2K technology to minimise optical noise and produce the highest quality results possible.

There are times in which the audio synch will appear slightly loose against the picture, due to the fact that the soundtracks were recorded entirely in post-production. THis is correct and as per the original theatrical release of What Have You Done to Solange?.

This is another generally great looking release from Arrow, with an understanding that things are a bit heterogeneous looking at times due to the need for a secondary element being utilized at times. While there are obvious differences as mentioned above in Arrow's own accounting of the transfer, I personally didn't find much to complain about in terms of changes in clarity or sharpness (though there are noticeable variations in that regard), and instead tended to notice more of a fluctuation in saturation and overall palette reproduction, with what I assume were the secondary element's somewhat brown skewing tones (other sections tend to have a slightly blue quality to them, as can perhaps be gleaned in some of the screenshots accompanying this review). (The color timing overall is a bit variable as well.) These passing anomalies aside, the rest of this transfer has a really appealingly organic appearance, with a nicely resolved grain field and generally very commendable detail levels. The restoration has delivered a viewing experience that is largely free of any age related fare like scratches and dirt.

What Have You Done to Solange? Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

What Have You Done to Solange? features DTS-HD Master Audio Mono tracks in both English and Italian, and toggling back and forth between them as I watched the film revealed very little if any difference in mixes or overall amplitude. The film is graced with another great score by Ennio Morricone, which sounds clear and distortion free here. Dialogue can tend to sound a bit artificial at times, with reverb and ambience that don't necessarily seem to reflect the environments shown on screen, but in terms of clarity and understandability, there's really nothing to warrant any concern.

What Have You Done to Solange? Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• What Have You Done to Decency? (1080p; 13:38) is a 2015 interview with Karin Baal recorded in Berlin.


• First Action Hero (1080p; 21:17) is an interview with Fabio Testi done in Rome in 2006.


• Old School Producer (1080p; 11:02) is an interview with Fulvio Lucisano, also done in Rome in 2006.


• Innocence Lost (1080p; 29:00) is a visual essay by Michael Mackenzie which looks at the "schoolgirls in peril" genre.


• Trailer (1080p; 3:05)


• Audio Commentary is by Alan Jones and Kim Newman.

As usual, Arrow has also provided a nicely appointed insert booklet.

What Have You Done to Solange? Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

In the Enigma Rosso Blu-ray review I mentioned a relatively recent television episode featuring an iconic British Inspector which dallied in many of the same plot points that all three "schoolgirls in peril" films do, at least in some ways, a recurrence which suggests that sexually active teens may forever be grist for the mystery mill. What Have You Done to Solange? is kind of inescapably florid, but it features some nice stylistic flourishes courtesy of Massimo Dallamano, and the film builds to a perhaps unexpectedly shattering denouement. Arrow has provided a release with solid technical merits and some appealing supplements. Giallo fans need no recommendation from yours truly, since they're no doubt already aware of the film, but for the general public (and with the perhaps obvious caveat that the film traffics in some questionable content), What Have You Done to Solange? comes Recommended.