WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO SOLANGE? is one of the masterworks of the giallo genre, a truly beautiful film that comes across as something of a masterpiece thanks to a strong and literate script, excellent cinematography and music, and a good cast being put through their paces. The only thing I'm surprised about is that I haven't got around to seeing it before now, because this viewing was long overdue.

The film is set in London and features Italian crime film regular Fabio Testi as an Italian teacher at a girl's school. He's married but having an affair with one of his students, but one day the pair are interrupted by a brutal murder taking place just feet away. Testi finds himself suspected by the police while at the same time trying to investigate the crime himself so that he can bring the killer to justice.

Sometimes a film seems so perfect that it's impossible to criticise it and that's the case here. This is a classy affair that deals with some explicit subject matter, but it's never sleazy or trashy, despite interludes in the showers and the like. Joe D'Amato's cinematography and the evocative piano music really keep it looking and acting like an art-house film rather than your usual gory giallo outing. The emphasis is on the suspense and the murder mystery aspects more than gruesome deaths and stalk and slash sequences.

The script is tightly written and keeps you guessing throughout with many red herrings and the like. The twists and turns that arise are genuinely involving and there are some real shocks here; it's also a movie that gets better and better as it goes on and the ending is really stellar. Testi is fine as the lead and THE LIVING DEAD AT THE MANCHESTER MORGUE's Cristina Galbo effective as his love interest. I particularly liked Joachim Fuchsberger as the dogged detective determined to get to the bottom of it. There's even a minor but important role for Camille Keaton (I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE). WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO SOLANGE? is truly a masterpiece of film-making and a film that even beats Dario Argento at his own game.

Well maybe some see this differently - with the full .. but you can't deny that it goes Giallo. And while back in the day everyone was talking in the native tongue on set (which makes it tough to say what the original version is when it comes to the audio .. because there is none - many are dubbed, sometimes maybe even all),the story is the strong point here.

Which made this one of the very few movies I did watch dubbed in the last decade. But again, there is literally no other chance. Having said that, there is a lot of nudity, a lot of deaths and a lot of cliches (like women in the shower and all that ... yes this is exploitation at its ... "finest"). If you dig that or at least don't mind the mystery is quite well packed and it is more than a decent movie - with quite a few international (european) stars.

In London, the Italian gym teacher Enrico 'Henry' Rosseni (Fabio Testi) is having a love affair with his eighteen year-old student Elizabeth Seccles (Christine Galbo),who is the daughter of the owner of the Catholic School where he works and she studies. His estranged wife Herta Rosseni (Karin Baal) is the mathematics teacher in the same school. On Sunday afternoon, Rosseni and Elizabeth are in a boat in a grove and the girl glances at a knife and a man hunting down a woman. Rosseni believes she is giving a pretext to avoid him and does not pay attention to her. On the next morning, Rosseni learns that a teenager was murdered in the river bank in the grove and he drives to the location. Inspector Barth (Joachim Fuchsberger) goes to the school since the victim Hilda studied there and soon Rosseni becomes the prime suspect since he protects Elizabeth, who could give an alibi to him. When a second student is murdered, Elizabeth recalls that the killer where a black soutane worn by priests. While the police investigate the suspects, Elizabeth is killed and Rosseni decides also to investigate. He teams up with Herta and the find the name of the mysterious Solange Beauregard. They seek her out but what might have happened to Solange?

"Cosa avete fatto a Solange?", a;k;a "What Have They Done to Solange?" , is an intriguing giallo with a totally unpredictable story full of mystery and tension. The erotic plot is well-written with many twist and suspects. The conclusion surprises the viewer and it is worthwhile watching this film that is not dated. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "O quê Vocês Fizeram com Solange?" ("What Have You Done to Solange?)