The Strange Vice of Mrs. Wardh
The Strange Vice of Mrs. Wardh (Italian: Lo strano vizio della Signora Wardh, originally released as Blade of the Ripper in the United States) is a 1971 giallo murder mystery film directed by Sergio Martino. It is his first entry in the giallo subgenre. The letter "h" was added to the name "Ward" when an Italian woman named Mrs. Ward threatened legal action over the original title's potentially damaging her good name, just before the film was released. The film was also known as Next! or The Next Victim.
| The Strange Vice of Mrs. Wardh | |
|---|---|
 Italian film poster | |
| Directed by | Sergio Martino |
| Produced by | Luciano Martino Antonio Crescenzi |
| Screenplay by | Eduardo Manzanos Brochero Ernesto Gastaldi Vittorio Caronia |
| Story by | Eduardo Manzanos Brochero |
| Starring | George Hilton Edwige Fenech Conchita Airoldi Manuel Gil Carlo Alighiero Ivan Rassimov Alberto de Mendoza |
| Music by | Nora Orlandi |
| Cinematography | Emilio Foriscot |
| Edited by | Eugenio Alabiso |
Production company | Devon Film Copercines Cooperativa Cinematográfica |
| Distributed by | Interfilm |
Release date | 15 January 1971 |
Running time | 100 minutes |
| Country | Italy Spain |
| Language | Italian English |
| Box office | ESP 15,193,058 (Spain) |
Synopsis
In Vienna there is a series of murders, committed by an unknown killer. Julie Wardh, a mentally fragile American socialite and heiress to the Wardh's retailing fortune, is targeted by this unknown assassin through blackmail letters. Julie suspects her ex-lover Jean to be the man behind the letters but does not wish to confide in her husband Neil. Instead Julie falls for, and confides in, a cavalier by the name of George whom she takes as her new lover. As events unfold Julie is reminded of her past sadomasochistic love affair with Jean. All the while suspicions are raised against both George and Neil as the possible culprits. Who is the killer and what does he want from Julie?
Cast
- Edwige Fenech... Julie Wardh
- George Hilton ... George Corro
- Conchita Airoldi ... Carol Brandt (as Cristina Airoldi)
- Ivan Rassimov ... Jean
- Manuel Gil ... Dr. Harbe (as Maurice Gillas Pou)
- Carlo Alighiero ... Commissioner
- Alberto de Mendoza ... Neil Wardh
- Marella Corbi ... Victim who escaped from the killer
- Miguel del Castillo ... Medico Spagnolo
- Luis de Tejada ... The inspector
- Pouchi ... Victim in the shower (as Pouchie)
Critical reception
AllMovie wrote, "Sergio Martino's first entry into Italy's giallo genre delivers everything this style of thriller requires and then some", calling it "a skillful example of how the giallo can be a head-spinning experience in style over substance."[1]
See also
References
- Guarisco, Donald. "Blade of the Ripper - Review - AllMovie". AllMovie. Retrieved 1 August 2012.
External links
- The Strange Vice of Mrs. Wardh on IMDb
- The Strange Vice of Mrs. Wardh at Allmovie.com