Perversion Story

Umbrella Entertainment

R4 DVD

Perversion Story aka One on Top of the Other is an unusual Giallo from Lucio Fulci. Focusing on sex and eroticism rather than slaughter and mayhem, it is nevertheless a superbly nuanced detective tale. Considering the films Fulci would go on to make, such as The Beyond this is a rare title with minimum gore and maximum story.

Dr George Dumurrier, is a physician with an eye for the ladies and a taste for the high life. Played by Jean Sorel, he is attractive, suave and manipulative. He runs the Dumurrier Institute, a trendy medical establishment in San Francisco. But there is a problem; his business is haemorrhaging cash on a daily basis. While George is out having a good time he leaves his hardworking brother Henry to try and keep the business afloat. We come to intimately appreciate the extent of George’s sex life through a range of artistic and very Sixties sex scenes. His primary affair is with a young model named Jane.

Susan, his wife, is extremely ill with asthma and it not especially likable. She is certainly aggrieved, but her bitterness and venomous nature make her a character you would not immediately identify with. One night when George is away with Jane he finally decides to answer messages which have been left for him by his brother, Susan is dead.

A few weeks after her death it transpires that she took out a two million dollar insurance policy on her life of which he is the sole beneficiary; certainly strange considered the strained nature of their relationship. The money saves the medical clinic and gives George some cash to spend but things soon start going a little awry.

First he receives a phone call telling him to go to a local strip bar. This is not some sleazy backstreet establishment, but an upmarket affair with a beautiful model doing an outrageous act on a motorcycle. Soon she realizes that the dancer, Monica Weston, looks exactly like his wife, except for her eye colour and blond hair. He becomes more concerned when he finds the nurse who was looking after his wife the night she died cannot be found and a few days later sees her photo as a model at Jane’s modelling agency. As the tale unfolds it ends up very satisfying with lots of unexpected twists and turns and a dark finale edition.

This is an unusual Fulci tale in that it does not “let the blood” do the talking, but has an excellent plot and is filled to the brim with beautiful women, sex scenes and a detective tale all set to an amazing jazz score by Riz Ortolani. The cinematography is excellent and of course being set in San Francisco, everything from the scenery to the bars and cars looks just perfect.

The DVD from Umbrella is as clear as a bell and is a delight. The pictures and colours are solid; the score is marvellous and the dialogue clear. I do prefer the Italian with English subtitles but a dubbed track is also available on the disc.

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This review will appear in Volume 3 No.3 of the digital and print edition of Synergy Magazine.

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