One of the many things I enjoy about the giallo genre is that whilst the structure is similar with each film, the overall style can be infused with various other flavours. Here, the horror/thriller style is given a kind of 'Rosemary's Baby' treatment, with the incredible Edwige Fenech playing Jane, who appears to becoming immersed into the world of the occult (this is a far more successful melding of genres than 'A Black Ribbon for Deborah' two years later).

Traumatised by the loss of her unborn child, Jane begins seeing the image of an impossibly blue-eyed man. As time goes on, this figure tries to kill her, and desperately lonely with her husband away for his work, she befriends nearby mysterious and condescending Mary (Marina Malfatti),who promises that if Jane attends a Black Mass ceremony, all her problems will vanish. As solutions go, it was never going to work. The blue eyed figure, now wielding a knife, warns her not to renounce the group.

Looking fabulous, poor Jane is catapulted from one nightmare to another, with partner Richard (George Hilton) turning up to save her. However, could he become ensnared in the cult too? You would hope not. Incidentally, in a sadly brief role as Jane's sister Barbara is Nieves Navarro (here billed as Susan Scott),a million miles away from the carefree characters she played in 'Death Walks... ' giallos from the early 1970s.

Beautifully directed in an occasionally hallucinogenic fashion by Sergio Martino, and mesmerizingly scored by Bruno Nicolai, 'All the Colours of the Dark' features a typically exciting climax. If you like giallo films, you'll like this. If you're uninitiated in the genre, I'd recommend it without question.

In London, Jane Harrison (Edwige Fenech) lives with her boyfriend Richard Steele (George Hilton),who is a pharmaceutical salesman that frequently needs to travel. Jane has two serious traumas, the first when her mother was murdered when she was a child and recently when she was pregnant and lost her baby in a car crash. Presently Jane is a frigid woman that has nightmare disorder with a man with blue eyes and a dagger and frequent daydreams. Richard gives vitamins to cure her. Her sister Barbara Harrison (Susan Scott) wants to schedule a medical consultation with her chief, the psychiatrist Dr. Burton (George Rigaud). When Jane meets her neighbor Mary Weil (Marina Malfatti),she convinces Jane to go to a cult where her fears would disappear. But now she believes the blue-eyed man and the cult worshippers are hunting her down.

"Tutti i colori del buio", a.k.a. "All the Colors of the Dark", is a dated film of horror and giallo genres. The screenplay is a complete mess and the cult is based on "Rosemary's Baby" (1968) and the use of hallucinogen and free-love movement typical from the 70´s in a psychedelic environment. My vote is five.

Title (Brazil): "Todas as Cores da Escuridão" ("All the Colors of the Darkness")

Sergio Martino is an Italian director who can usually be relied upon to churn out a decent B-movie and DAY OF THE MANIAC is typical of his work: it's an offbeat, slightly bizarre entry into a genre that bears obvious influences from previous, better films but nevertheless provides a fun viewing experience for the undemanding fan. DAY OF THE MANIAC is a giallo film with all the usual trappings of that genre: beautiful women being stalked by weird strangers, menaced by swishing blades, pleading their sanity to their unsympathetic partners, and voicing their concerns to doctors and psychoanalysts. On top of that, the film is a variation of ROSEMARY'S BABY, as the heroine joins a Satanic cult and begins to suspect that those around her are not who they seem.

The cast is headlined by Edwige Fenech, possibly the prettiest and most rewarding of all giallo heroines. Here, she's at the top of her game, projecting a fragile beauty and only overacting on occasion. Fenech is let down a little by a staid George Hilton, who always seems to be wooden whatever the film he appears in; as her husband, he makes little more impact than a lump of wood. Far better is Ivan Rassimov; although his appearance is limited to only a few sequences, Martino makes superb use of his imposing presence and he really seems to be having a ball with his turn here. Julian Ugarte also deserves mention as the suave leader of the black magic cult and on top of that there are some interesting bit parts from the likes of model Susan Scott and Italian film regular Luciano Pigozzi.

DAY OF THE MANIAC becomes quite delirious in places, leaving the viewer just as confused as the heroine to what on earth is going on. There's a noticeable lack of gore by genre standards but Martino makes sure he puts the requisite nudity into the production (why have the heroine clothed when talking to her husband? Why not have her in the bath or getting dressed?). The moments with the Satanic coven are quite well staged with plenty of eerie interludes (the stabbing of the fox springs to mind). Things get even weirder as it transpires that Fenech has psychic abilities, a plot device that leads to a climax fraught with tension and impending danger. A little more intrigue in the first hour would have made this a real classic of the genre; as it stands, it's a decent enough giallo flick, not perfect but certainly above average thanks to the sheer style resulting from Martino's compelling direction.