Similar to American “pulp” novels, named for their cheap, pulp filled paper,
the Italian novel series Il Giallo Mondadori, was named after the books coloured covers,
"giallo" being Italian for "yellow."
First published in 1929, the series predominantly consisted of translated mystery stories
by British or American authors such as
Agatha Christie
Erle Stanley Gardner
and Edgar Wallace.
As it gained popularity the term giallo became synonymous with the mystery genre.
As a film genre giallo has it’s roots in the West German krimi films of the sixties.
The majority of these films were based on Wallace’s mysteries,
and featured villainous masked criminals.
Krimi films bridge the gap between the Hollywood noir films of the forties and fifties
and Italian giallo films.
It was in 1963 that cinematographer turned director Mario Bava
created what would be known as the first giallo film.
The Girl Who Knew Too Much, its title a reference to a film Hitchcock made
not once,
but twice,
set the structural formula for many future gialli.
In it a murder witness,
disregarded by authority,
must attempt to solve the murder,
or risk being killed herself.
Although a financial failure later looked upon negatively by Bava himself,
the film set a trend he would soon follow.
The financial success of his anthology horror film Black Sabbath
allowed Bava complete creative control over 1964s Blood And Black Lace.
Known in Italy as Six Women For The Murderer, the picture further defined the giallo genre.
Stylishly shot, the film follows a group of fashion models who,
one by one,
are murdered by a mysterious masked killer.
Despite being a commercial failure the film remains one of the most influential films of the genre.
It wasn’t until 1970 that the giallo genre saw box office success as well as cultural acclaim.
Screenwriter Dario Argento’s directorial debut,
The Bird With The Crystal Plumage,
proclaimed him as the new meistro of the genre.
Argento brought a new Hollywood-like sensibility to giallo,
utilizing on location shooting,
and handheld camerawork.
Adding to the flourishes of Bava, Argento emphasized architecture and art to add even more style to his films
Over the next two decades Argento made more giallo films than any other director in the genre.
So what exactly defines a giallo picture?
One of the most frequent traits in giallo is the presence of violent,
at times over-the-top murder scenes,
often involving copious amounts of blood.
These murders are usually performed by a shadowy, leather gloved killer,
sometimes hidden beneath a mask,
whose victims are normally scantily clad or nude women.
The giallo hero is typically an outsider, such as a tourist,
who finds themselves witness to the killer’s acts.
Many films express an emphasis on psychology,
through the protagonist’s paranoia and fear,
or the madness of the antagonist.
Visually many gialli, most notably those of Bava and Argento,
place an importance on colourful lighting.
Featuring surreal camera work,
gialli films often utilize closeups to show action while hiding the identity of their killers.
These closeups frequently focus on
murder weapons,
clues,
or psychologically significant objects.
In some moments, the camera functions as a point of view,
building suspense by putting the audience behind the eyes of the assailing villain.
Sonically gialli were dubbed into english,
as it was common in Italian filmmaking to have all actors speak their native language,
dubbing over in a common language later.
In the late '70s and into the '80s a trend started towards progressive rock and synthesizer based soundtracks
by musicians such as Bill Wyman
and Brian Eno,
and bands like Goblin.
Many film titles themselves share motifs,
often including animals, colours or numbers in a descriptively allusive fashion.
Although these traits are common, they’re not all necessary for a film to be considered a giallo.
In some cases, such as in Argento’s Suspiria and Inferno,
supernatural elements supersede the typical threat of man.
Some directors, such as Lucio Fulci, worked with a more realistic, muted palette.
And many films by Argento feature one word titles,
such as Tenebre,
and Opera.
The influence of giallo is most notable in the American made slasher films of the late '70s and '80s.
The use of POV camera angles,
the emphasis on violence,
the masked killers,
the gradually increasing body count,
the predominantly female victims,
the frequent nudity
- all are found in both genres.
In fact, two death scenes from Friday The 13th Part 2
were stolen straight out of Bava's 1971 film A Bay Of Blood.
The popularity and production value of giallo films declined by the nineties,
possibly due to the competition caused by the oversaturated horror movie market
by the advent of VHS in the mid-'80s.
However, giallo’s influence continues with the likes of Peter Strickland’s homage
Berberian Sound Studio,
Astron-6’s genre parody
The Editor,
and in operatic thrillers such as Darren Aronofsky's Black Swan,
and Nicolas Winding Refn’s The Neon Demon.
Unlike it’s victims, giallo lives on.