Who Saw Her Die? Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		4.0

Who Saw Her Die? Blu-ray Movie Review

Don't Look Then.

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman September 25, 2019

George Lazenby.

The name just sits there, instantly recognizable even to many who don’t consider themselves very knowledgeable about film. Lazenby of course attained this renown for a rather unusual reason, as the only actor to portray James Bond only once in the “authorized” Bond films, in this case On Her Majesty's Secret Service (the trivia police will probably want to bring up entries like 1967’s Casino Royale, but that wasn’t an “official” Bond film in the traditional sense). Lazenby famously declined to follow up his work in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service with another Bond offering, and both crew and cast on the one Bond film he did complete went on record stating how difficult he had been on the shoot, something that ended up putting a decided kibosh on his career. While he ultimately ended up appearing in a barely released film called Universal Soldier in the interim, it wasn’t until 1972’s Who Saw Her Die? that Lazenby had another shot at wide release big screen stardom, even if that "wide" release seems to have largely bypassed the United States at the time. While the appearance of Lazenby in a starring role may give this film instant interest for a certain type of fan, it's the film's rather weird presaging of elements seen about a year later in Don't Look Now that may provide some intrigue for others. Both films have an evocative Venice setting, and additionally feature shared elements like the drowning of a young girl, a distraught artist father, and a dysfunctional relationship between the parents of a murdered child.

As the commentary on another film by Aldo Ladi, Short Night of Glass Dolls, gets into, accepting that film as a “real” giallo presents certain stumbling blocks, and those same hurdles probably attend to this film by Ladi as well. This film does feature a gloved killer, though that glove comes at the end of a rather frilly sleeve (though female killers in gialli are certainly not unheard of). A black veil perhaps fills in for a topcoat or other kind of masking, and so provides at least some kind of tether to some of the visual tropes fans of this genre may be expecting, but in several other ways, this film really shies away from some of the giallo’s more graphic tendencies.

The film begins with a patently ridiculous murder of a child in the middle of a snowbound forest, and it kind of weirdly uses the killer’s veil as a kind of scrim over the camera itself, which may lead to some understandable confusion when the discoverer of the little girl’s body stares straight at the camera (and hence through the veil), as if looking right at the killer herself. That said, the film then segues to divorced dad Franco Serpieri (George Lazenby), who is hosting his little girl Roberta (Nicoletta Elmi) in Venice. Quite a bit of the early part of the film sets up Franco’s living situation as well as his relationship with his daughter, which gives the film a kind of unusual emotional presence before the more sordid aspects of the plot kick in.

Suffice it to say that the little girl seen murdered in the opening vignette of the film bears a rather striking similarity in appearance to little Roberta, which of course creates immediate, if perhaps subliminal, tension with regard to her fate. It probably goes without saying that things don't end well for the little girl, which is when Franco and his estranged ex-wife Elizabeth (Anita Strindberg) get mixed up in their own investigative efforts. There's a rather lurid underpinning to much of the film, but rather interestingly aside from frankly largely irrelevant sex scenes between some of the adults, this is a surprisingly unexploitative effort, at least when measured by the metric of many other more over the top gialli.

There’s the same kind of melancholic foreboding in this film that is such a defining characteristic of Don’t Look Now, but Ladi doesn’t really offer the same kind of stylistic flourishes that Nicolas Roeg did in his Venice set film. An imposed ending also perhaps tips the film over into some slightly silly territory, but for the most part Who Saw Her Die? is an interesting study in parental angst within the context of a marginally kinky and perverse world.

Who Saw Her Die? Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Who Saw Her Die? 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 restoration:

Who Saw Her Die? / Chi l'ha vista morire? is presented in its original aspect ratio of 2.35:1 with Italian and English mono audio. Scanning and restoration work was completed at L'Immagine Ritrovata, Bologna. The original 2-perf Techniscope 35mm camera negative was scanned in 2K resolution on a pin-registered Arriscan. Thousands of instances of dirt, debris, scratches, picture instability and other instances of film wear were reapired or removed through a combination of digital restoration tools and techniques. The mono Italian and English language tracks were remastered from the optical sound negatives. The audio synch will appear slightly loose against the picture, due to the fact that the dialogue was recorded entirely in post-production, as per the production standards of the period.

The film was graded on Digital Vision's Nucoda Film Master at R3store Studios, London.

All original materials used in this restoration were accessed from Surf Film.

This is another largely fantastic looking transfer from Arrow, and it will be especially appreciated by fans who have only seen the film in some previously released, arguably substandard, home video incarnations. The first thing that struck my eyes was the vividness of the palette, and even "minor" elements like the reds of the credits text pop with considerable energy. Detail and fine detail levels are generally excellent across the board — for just a couple of examples, look at the plush blue fabric on the blanket underneath the heads of Lazenby and Strindberg in screenshot 2, or the little threads and/or pill hanging off the left side of the scarf in screenshot 9. While clarity and grain resolution are largely commendable throughout the presentation, there are just a few scattered moments where things can look relatively rough and less detailed (see screenshot 17 for one example).

Who Saw Her Die? Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Who Saw Her Die? features Italian and English language tracks delivered via LPCM Mono, and this is the rare instance where there is considerable difference between the two, and not just in the expected aspect of voice work. Amplitude and even general mix levels are at least somewhat different between the two, and so at least toggling between them is recommended for the more adventurous listener. Fidelity is excellent on both tracks, and Ennio Morricone's rather unusual score sounds great on both as well.

Who Saw Her Die? Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary by Troy Howarth is by Howarth's own admission less of a scene specific analysis and more of an overview of Italian cinema trends during this era and how this film fits into them.


• I Saw Her Die (1080p; 56:55) is a newly done interview with director Aldo Lada, who is both loquacious and affable in a career spanning discussion. In Italian with English subtitles.


• Nicoletta, Child of Darkness (1080p; 27:26) is a newly done interview with Nicoletta Elmi, who talks about how she got into the business and what it was like to be a kid on the shoot. In Italian with English subtitles.


• Once Upon a Time, In Venice (1080p; 31:29) is a newly done interview with co-writer Francesco Barilli. In Italian with English subtitles.


• Giallo in Venice (1080p; 26:17) is an interesting interview with author and critic Michael Mackenzie.


• Image Gallery (1080p; 1:40) features images courtesy of Peter Jilmstad.


• Italian Trailer (1080p; 3:13)


• English Trailer (1080p; 3:13)

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

Who Saw Her Die? Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Who Saw Her Die? may make for a somewhat rough fit in the generally accepted norms of the traditional giallo, somewhat like Aldo's Short Night of Glass Dolls, but when taken on its own rather distinctive merits, it's a rather interesting and at times fairly sad examination of parents driven to extremes. Some of the more lurid aspects may strike some as hyperbolic, and the ending leaves a bit to be desired, but the film is moody and evocative and should be enjoyed (if that's the right word, given the subject matter) by those with a fondness for murder mysteries. Arrow's technical presentation is solid, and as usual the label has assembled some very appealing supplements. Recommended.