Witchfinder General 666 As far as I am concerned, the Italian Giallo is (along with old-fashioned Gothic tales) the most elegant and intriguing sub-genre the great genre of Horror has ever brought forth. Especially the early 70s have brought forth several Gialli that range among the most compelling Horror/Suspense films ever made, such as "What Have They Done To Solange", "Don't Torture A Duckling", "The Red Queen Kills Seven Times" or "Your Vice Is A Locked Room And Only I Have The Key" (all made in 1972), just to name a few. Luigi Bazzoni's "Giornata Nera Per L'Ariete" aka. "The Fifth Cord" (1971) is a beautiful and stylish example for the elegance of the early 70s Giallo, but it isn't quite an example for the intriguing and suspenseful character of the genre. While "The Fifth Cord" is amazingly photographed, brilliantly scored and greatly acted, it is very slow, and simply doesn't compare to the suspense of many contemporary Gialli. This is not to say that it is a bad film; as my rating suggests, it is actually more than decent. There are many downright brilliant early 70s Gialli, however, and this one simply isn't one of them.Franco Nero stars as Andrea Bild, an alcoholic and womanizing journalist who decides to investigate a murder series on his own... The film starts promising with a tape recording of a warped voice, vowing to murder several people with no apparent reason. What begins as a typical Giallo-plot is executed with a very slow pace, and often drifts into melodrama instead of building up thrills. Franco Nero is one of my all-time favorite actors, and he once again delivers a great performance here. However, Nero's character in this film isn't very likable, which makes it difficult to sympathize with him. It often seems as if Bazzoni wasn't sure whether to make his protagonist a drunken macho or a sensitive romantic - which results in Franco Nero threatening colleagues and slapping around his girlfriend at one point, and sobbing at the door of his former girlfriend one minute later. The supporting cast includes several well-known regulars of Italian Genre cinema, such as Guido Alberti, Silvia Monti and Ira von Fürstenberg. The murders are quite unspectacular for Giallo-standards. The score is mesmerizing, however, and the cinematography is beautiful. This is the second film by Luigi Bazzoni that I saw, the other being "L'Uomo, L'Orgoglio, La Vendetta" ("Man, Pride And Vengeance", 1968), a Spaghetti Western version of the novel "Carmen", that is set in Spain and, therefore, strictly speaking not a Western. Both films are stylish and more than decent, but neither of them is a particularly recommendable specimen of their genre. "The Fifth Cord" is definitely worth watching for my fellow Giallo-fans, but, in my opinion, it is by no means a must-see and there's a vast amount of Gialli that should be seen before this one.

ferbs54 "The Fifth Cord" (1971) is a rock-solid if meaninglessly titled giallo ("The Fifth Finger" might have made more sense) that, despite the low-cc count bloodwise, should manage to satisfy most viewers. In it, Franco Nero plays a very handsome but hard-drinking reporter (so hard-drinking that he swills J&B from the bottle while driving!) who investigates after a serial killer begins to slay his quickly diminishing circle of friends. Though fans of these gialli should recognize any number of Euro stars in this film, the real stars of the show, in this case, are surely behind the camera. Luigi Bazzoni's direction is stylish and fluid as can be, maestro Ennio Morricone's score is by turns atmospheric and unsettling, and, most importantly, cinematographer Vittorio Storaro's lensing here is truly a work of art. Indeed, this is one of the best-looking gialli that I have ever seen. As far as the plot goes, yes, it does hold together, the murderer does not appear out of far left field at the end, and there are several quite suspenseful sequences. I especially appreciated two near the end, with the killer stalking a young boy, and with Nero chasing and duking it out with the crazed wacko in a deserted building. Despite the presence of seemingly unavoidable red herrings, I was able to look back at this film's story afterward and realize that it did indeed cohere logically. And how nice to see American actress Pamela Tiffin, after her '60s ingenue roles, playing such a sultry sexpot here. Meow! Actually, the only thing that bothered me about "The Fifth Cord" was its time frame. The picture seems to transpire over the course of a mere week or two, and yet by the stated dates of the homicides at the film's end, one realizes that over 4 1/2 months have elapsed! I guess time truly does fly when the viewer is having fun....

fred-83 A stylish, atmospheric giallo. Great score, great locations, superb cinematography by the great Storaro. The story, however, is quite muddled, but here, the mood makes up for that to a large extent. The cheesiest moments are the killings, where the cinematography jarringly becomes quite sloppy and day/night continuity goes out the window. This film makes me more curious about Luigi Bazzonis Footprints On The Moon/Le Orme, which I came across on VHS in a second-hand store many years ago. I was intrigued by the cover and the summary on the box, but I stupidly did not buy it. Regretting that the day after, I went there again and it was gone. Now my hope lies with Blue Underground, may they soon release it on DVD. Back to The Fifth Cord, its interesting to watch the blocking of some dialog scenes. What could easily have become, in a lesser director and cinematographers hands, simple crosscutting between two talking heads, here often becomes beautifully composed wide shots, sometimes with a dolly, sometimes static, using the rooms, spaces and architecture in a very cinematic way, and with great variety of the framing. A great lesson for aspiring filmmakers.

bensonmum2 Much of The Fifth Cord is what I would call average for a Giallo. The death scenes aren't that original, the murder investigation is often muddled and confusing, and, other than Franco Nero, I've seen far better acting in other Gialli. As for the mystery elements, The Fifth Cord doesn't really play fair. It seems all but impossible for the average viewer to figure out "who done it" based on the clues presented. Finally, the score is one of the more non-memorable pieces from Ennio Morricone I've heard recently.But it's not all bad. In fact, when The Fifth Cord is good, it's very good. First, there's the look of the film. Director Luigi Bazzoni and Cinematographer Vittorio Storaro have successful made one of the best looking Gialli I've seen. Through a combination of brilliant framing, lighting, and location choices, almost every frame is like a work of art. There are some remarkable uses of light and shadows that are simply stunning. Second, the final scenes are as tense as any of the better known Gialli I've seen. It's real "on the edge of your seat" kind of stuff. Third, Franco Nero is a real professional and does a lot to bring life and realism to his role. I always enjoy his performances.Overall, The Fifth Cord may not be the best Giallo in the world, but for fans of the genre, there's enough here to enjoy to make the film worthwhile. Also, today's filmmakers could learn a thing or two about making a film really standout visually from watching what Bazzoni and Storaro did in The Fifth Cord.