AFTER the triumph of Katalin Varga, Peter Strickland was marked out as a British director to watch. His second feature, set in the world of a studio providing soundtracks for Italian horror films, is as ambitious as Katalin, if not as much of an end-to-end success. Toby Jones (Tinker Tailor, Infamous) plays a British sound engineer, Gilderoy, who travels to Italy to immerse himself in the world of Giallo, blood-curdling screams, stomach-churning action, and all. The 70s era and the world of Giallo are brought to life in a wonderfully grotesque fashion, but all the sound and fury in the world, and a terrific turn from Cosimo Fusco as the studio's ill-tempered chief, can't make up for a story that doesn't know where to go. As soon as Gilderoy begins to lose the plot the film follows suit, resulting in a grand muddle.
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