Blu-ray Review: The Strange Vice of Mrs. Wardh (1971)

June 13, 2020

Written by DanXIII

Daniel XIII; the result of an arcane ritual involving a King Diamond album, a box of Count Chocula, and a copy of Swank magazine, is a screenwriter, director, producer, actor, artist, and reviewer of fright flicks…Who hates ya baby?

Down Vienna way, folks are turnin’ up all murdered-like left and right, ya dig?

Into that fracas floats richie-rich American gal Julie Wardh (the absolutely jaw-dropping Edwige Fenech), who soon becomes a target of that malicious maniac mentioned previous via a series of ye olde blackmail letters.

Now Jules ain’t a detective by any means, but she does have her suspicions as to just who that slasher could be… namely her ex-lover Jean (Ivan Rassimov), with whom she enjoyed a rough sexin’ good ol’ time… of course it could be her new lover George (George Hilton)… hell, it could even be her hubby Neil (Alberto de Mendoza)… “strange vice” my ass, her vice is fuckin’ like crazy… but I guess The Endless Fucking of Mrs. Wardh would have left viewers a bit confused as to the fact this is a horror picture…

Anyway, will Julie and her extremely exhausted vagina survive the ordeal and ascertain just who the killer is and what he desires?

Director Sergio Martino is famous for his giallo output, and watching The Strange Vice of Mrs. Wardh, it’s easy to see why!

The screen is filled with gorgeous, frequently naked ladies, the suspense and mystery are taut and uncomplicated respectively (and that last one is where some giallo films falter with storylines that can leave the neophyte scratching their heads), and the blood flows often… all of which make for an extremely satisfying viewing experience for first-timers and seasoned horror hounds alike!

Adding to the whole tawdry affair is a haunting, ethereal score courtesy of composer Nora Orlandi (which is included in this release on a separate CD), as well as some lush cinematography (provided by Emilio Foriscot and Florian Trenker) that makes the action on screen visually appealing no matter if we are watching some hot n’ heavy erotica or brutal murders goin’ down.

Along with all of that ghoulish goodness, our putrid pals at Severin have included some fantastic bonus features including interviews with Martino, screenwriter Ernesto Gastaldi, Hilton (joined by Italian genre historian Antonio Bruschini, and archival chats with Fenech her own damn self. as well as the film’s trailer.

This release also features a fantastic commentary by author Kat Ellinger that is packed with info (and is an entertaining listen through and through)… keep those ears pricked horror hounds, because there’s plenty to learn here!

Bottom line: The Strange Vice of Mrs. Wardh is an erotic giallo that is never less than infinitely watchable, and belongs in the creepy collection of lovers of Italian fright flicks post-fucking-haste!

 

 

 

 

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