The Case of the Scorpion's Tail (1971) ★★★★
When Lisa Baumer's (Evelyn Stewart) husband is killed in an aeroplane tragedy, she discovers that, as the beneficiary of his will, she is now very wealthy. Unfortunately, other people know about her inheritance and are after the money to the point that her life is in danger. Meanwhile, the insurance company wants to check out the legitimacy of the claim and dispatch PI Peter Lynch (George Hilton) to investigate. Joining forces with a reporter, Cléo Dupont (Anita Strindberg), Lynch is determined to discover the truth about Baumer's death before he is killed by the razor-wielding killer who has taken an interest in Lisa Baumer.
This is a really well written giallo by Ernesto Gastaldi and Sergio Martino provides taut and stylish direction, smartly using the locations (London, Athens, and the Greek coast) to make the film seem exotic and exciting. With a cast of European cult film stalwarts (Stewart, Hilton, Strindberg, Alberto de Mendoza, Janine Reynaud, and Luigi Pistilli), this is a cleverly plotted and interesting giallo.
This is the first time I'd seen it since 2011 and, to be honest, I'd completely forgotten how events unfolded and even the killer's identity and motive so it was, to all intents and purposes, like watching it for the first time.
I thoroughly enjoyed and put it on again to listen to the commentary. I have put the disc to one side for now because I want to watch it in a few weeks with the English language track (I watched it with the Italian audio) – it'll be interesting to see how I find a second viewing in the span of a month or so and what difference a change in language makes.
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