Hovering somewhere between haunting past and menacing present, or perhaps even better described as a fever dream leaning more towards a feverish nightmare, the Sergio Martino (The Case of the Scorpion’s Tail; Your Vice Is a Locked Room and Only I Have the Key) 1972 giallo All the Colors of the Dark – sometimes known as Day of the Maniac and They’re Coming to Get You! (both titles also work quite well), transports its audience into a paranoid mystery.
This Italian film moves abroad to London, England, following tortured Jane Harrison (Edwige Fenech – Strip Nude for Your Killer; Your Vice Is a Locked Room and Only I Have the Key), a woman with a rather rough not wholly revealed past. Unmarried but living with Richard Steele (George Hilton – My Dear Killer; The Case of the Scorpion’s Tail), a pharmaceutical rep who is almost always on the road, she is severely traumatized after a recent car crash and miscarriage. . . though that is not all that haunts her from her past.
Having serious issues sleeping, her life starts to blur between vivid dreams and unorthodox reality. It probably doesn’t help that her beau recommends vitamins, while her sister, Barbara (Nieves Navarro, a.k.a. Susan Scott – Death Walks on High Heels; Death Carries a Cane), has her own suggestions, while her new psychiatrist, Dr. Burton (Jorge Rigaud) disagrees with the others. Throw in the fact that new neighbour Mary Weil (Marina Malfatti – Seven Blood-Stained Orchids) recommends her own unorthodox method – a drug using, murderous satanic sex cult led by the menacing J.P. McBrian (Julián Ugarte), and it is not hard to wonder why poor Jane is so confounded.
Adding to the danger, the murderous man with piercing blue eyes constantly seen in her nightmares, Mark Cogan (Ivan Rassimov – A White Dress for Marialé), suddenly starts appearing everywhere she goes. . . plus she gets a sudden call from an unknown lawyer named Francis Clay (Luciano Pigozzi – Blood and Black Lace; Seven Dead in the Cat’s Eye) – talk about perplexing.
With things escalating to a most dangerous level, Jane finds herself in a near catatonic state. Could these dreams and nightmares be more than simply that? Might she actually be going mad, or could someone she knows be toying with her? Can a sacrificial goth cult that uses white makeup, wears six inch long nails and has a fascination with blue eyes be all bad?
Set in striking foggy London, Martino develops a mesmeric atmosphere where nothing is quite clear. Lingering in past, present, and perhaps even future, are we seeing dream, reality or a mix of both? Tinkering with its tortured unreliable narrator, the director keeps the audience guessing, wondering if any of the not wholly reliable peripheral characters could be involved in something, or if it is simply a case of a lack of sleep and growing paranoia.
Loosely inspired by Roman Polanski’s psychological horror thrillers Repulsion (1965) and Rosemary’s Baby (1968), the edgy All the Colors of the Dark concocts a unique, if a bit confounding atmosphere that is sure to bewitch. Featuring a stellar performance from Edwige Fenech, it is matched with stunning visuals and a haunting score by Bruno Nicolai – fusing orchestral dissonance, romantic melodies, and stirring wordless vocal-work for a most unique haunting ensemble. Some of the British locales must also be highlighted, including the stunning Edwardian apartment complex Jane and Richard live in (Kenilworth Court in Putney), as well as the eerie gothic castle used by the cult (Wykehurst Place in Botney, West Sussex). So, explore past, present, and future with this colourful feature, there’s a reason it is a cult classic.
This film can be watched in Italian with English subtitles, or in dubbed English