Customer Reviews

La Ragazza dal pigiama giallo (The Pyjama Girl Case) [VHS]

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

On the books this film is a giallo, but it is only in the most basic sense. Yeah it's a murder mystery, it deals with sexual themes and it's Italian. That's where all comparissons end though. No rampaging killer with gloves and a hat/hood and no real body count to speak of other than the Pyjama girl herself. Sure there are a few more deaths, but not until the end of the film. There are basically two plotlines running throughout the film. The first is the investigation into the dead woman that's led by two detectives(one of them Ray Milland). Once the second plot begins, it ends up taking up about 75% of the film. This deals with the yummy Dalila Di Lazzaro(yummy except for the armpit hair) trying to juggle three lovers. She sleeps with just about everyone but poor Milland. The film pretty much becomes a drama in the Lifetime Original Movie vein. No suspense, no killer stalking anyone. In fact, as you get more and more tangled into the story, you nearly forget there was a murder mystery at the heart of all this! Ray Milland seems to just diappear about an hour into the film. Before you know it, you're asking yourself, "Hey, wasn't Ray Milland in this film?" It's like Milland only had a two day shooting schedule and his time ran out before director Mogherini could shoot all his scenes. His character is funny though. Even with my complaints, I was never bored with this movie, just not terribly impressed. But if anyone should find it boring, you can always dance around your living room to the funky Riz Ortolani score. The disc has a half hour documentary about the actual Pyjama girl murder case which is actually more interesting than the film.

"The Pyjama Girl Case" disappointed me for several reasons. First, and foremost, it is not a true Italian giallo. Absent is the typical black-gloved serial killer. Only two people are murdered. Second, this movie doesn't contain any major shocks or plot twists. The plot is very linear. Third, there is only one attractive woman and that is actress Dalila Di Lazzaro who later went on to act in Dario Argento's superb "Phenomena," which is definitely an Italian giallo.

Based on a true, unsolved crime, "The Pyjama Girl Case" centers around the badly burned body of a young woman found on an Australian beach. Ray Milland (of "Man with X-ray Eyes" and "Frogs") does an excellent job of portraying Canadian detective Thompson. While he investigates the murder, the actual events of what led to the discovery of the corpse are told in flashbacks. The victim, we learn, is a waitress named Linda who had several lovers. Eventually she marries a waiter while continuing to have other relations. I didn't feel too sympathetic towards her. The scene where she has sex for money with two older, overweight gentlemen was particularly vulgar and slimy; it should've been omitted.

The interview with the author Richard Evans who wrote the true life account of the Pyjama Girl was more interesting and enjoyable than this movie. It was like watching an episode of "60 Minutes." Actual photographs of the burned corpse of the Pyjama Girl were shown. Details were given concerning who she may have been.

The reproduction of the comic book, "Taboo," containing a story about the Pyjama Girl was hard to read. The print was very small.

The soundtrack is great. Music was scored by Riz Ortolani who also provided wonderful scores for Armando Crispino`s "The Dead Are Alive" and Lucio Fulci's "Perversion Story."

The music score and the author interview compelled me to give this movie three stars in lieu of two. However, I strongly urge that you rent "The Pyjama Girl Case" before purchasing. It left me very unfulfilled.

I'm not sure how much I can explain in detail without writing a spoiler review. Suffice it to say that the way this story is woven is effective and interesting. However, side A of a two-sided story is cut off prematurely when it didn't have to be.

The ending isn't anything that you won't see coming although it was probably pretty clever for its time. Ray Milland obviously rocks.

The setting and plot are interesting but I find my satisfaction with the film drops off halfway through and then picks back up at the end. This is because of the way it is cut together. I'm not sure if it was gutted in post this way because of distributors worrying about audiences "getting it" or what. Though I do find that to be a very plausible cause as the story has enough meat and is clever enough that I don't think this was the intent. If it was, oh well.

Overall, it is an enjoyable film with fun/quirky characters and some interesting plot points.

This giallo about a Australian murder case is almost a true story. It has the same names as the real people but in fact the real murder took place in 1934. And this movie is taking place in the 1970's. In fact the whole movie other than a few facts is fiction. After watching the authors interview one can only hope that the true story is finally told in film someday in a proper manner. That being said this is a good mystery movie. It is a bit confusing though as we watch the investigation run by the great actor Ray Milland and the story of the pajama girl intertwined. It isn't made clear that this is the dead girl until the end. That her story is taking place in the past while Millands hunt is in the present. The acting is good in this movie though and the story is a standard murder mystery. Blue Underground did a great jobn with this giallo but they have yet to get many other greater giallos out for some reason. Truth is often better than fiction and I while this is a good mystery movie they shouldn't have bothered to uee the real peoples names as the story is different, and too often filmakers don't even bother to try to tell a true story. They change too many facts and in this case nothing accept the names and the public showing of the victims body are the same. Still it's a good little mystery movie if you take it as fiction.

This is a slightly unusual and different film within the luridly camp Italian cinematic tradition known as the `giallo'. Although an Italian/Spanish co-production, directed by Italian Flavio Mogherini (perhaps best known as an art director and production designer) the film is set in Australia. The majority of `giallo's' rely significantly on their European locations (normally capital cities) and work into their narrative the anxieties of a modern world made up of morally vacuous jet setters and tourists. By displacing his largely European cast down under Mogherini proves that the `giallo' is a particularly durable form which need not rely on Europe for its contextual base. Even so the familiar story of a displaced foreigner falling foul of corruption and perversity remains intact. Two other innovations of Morgherini's effort is a particularly clever double narrative, two strands that initially appear unrelated come together in a very effective and surprising finale. The film is also based on true events, but as with all cinematic endeavours one must take into account the creative license required to produce a dramatic and entertaining film. With these three innovations intact it's a surprise that the direction is rather insipid and flat. The film hasn't dated too well, and lacks the gorgeous visuals of an Argento or Bava film; this is somewhat surprising considering the directors background as a designer. The film's innovations alone are not enough, and the whole thing is saved by a cool electronic score by Riz Ortolani (although the two songs featured in the film are dire) and a wonderfully grumpy turn by Welsh Hollywood legend Ray Milland as a 'retired' detective. Inspector Thompson provides the films humour, and when he departs from the film it leaves a yawning chasm. This is an intriguing, but not very assured `giallo', which does deserve greater visibility. Thankfully Blue Underground have addressed this latter issue with an excellent DVD. Originally released in 1977, the film is presented very attractively with a number of short supplementary items which help to contextualise the films 'true story' background.

I haven't seen this flick yet but a cousin of mine has. This is his short review: As a die hard giallo fan, i have been greatful to see movies of the genre beginning with Mario Bava to Argento more contemporary giallos. This is why i was excited to find out that Blue Underground recently released four new giallos. In short i have been pleased with three of the movies but one, the Pajama Case. It's starts off good but quickly fades into an unsuspensful drama. Even though there is good, charasmatic actors there is no violent deaths of any kind that i have become accustomed to. This movie is only for the true die-hard giallo collector.....