Cold Eyes of Fear (1971)

Also Known As: Gli occhi freddi della paura

Enzo G. Castellari’s COLD EYES OF FEAR or Gli occhi freddi della paura, seems to be one of the director’s most overlooked and most harshly criticized films and there are many understandable reasons as to why as well. First, the film seems to be touted most places as a giallo—I suppose that is technically true, as the movie does feature a pulpy tale of crime, but there are no gloved killers, and it’s not a who-dunnit kind of mystery…if it could even be considered a real “mystery” (I wouldn’t think so). So people going into the film expecting a Bava or Argento style giallo will be disappointed. Second, Castellari is mostly known for his action and fast-paced films and COLD EYES OF FEAR is very light on the action, it is truly more of a suspenseful crime drama which stays at a slow boil through most of the film’s running time. So anyone expecting a ballz-to-the-wallz-Castellari-action-flick will probably be disappointed—though you wouldn’t know it from the film’s American trailer, where it goes by the more appropriate title, DESPERATE MOMENTS. The trailer includes every single (no joke) moment of action featured in the film. The Resurrection DVD version that I watched features the trailer at the end of the film and seeing all the actions scenes put together in a 2-minute clip made me laugh. So yeah, if I had seen the trailer first—I probably would have been disappointed too. Luckily I went into the film knowing nothing and really enjoyed it.

So those are a few reason’s people may not dig this film—but there are even more reasons why I found it to be pretty good. First and foremost is the excellent cast, then there’s the incredible score by Ennio Morricone, and last but not least the Mr. Castellari doing what he does, but lets get the storyline out of the way first.

The film takes place in “swingin’” London, and stars Gianni Garko as a British club-hopping lawyer, Peter. He hooks up with a gorgeous Italian bird, named Anna (Giovanna Ralli) and sneaks her off to his uncle’s luxurious house for a shag. His uncle, played by Fernando Rey, is a big shot judge in the city and not too fond of his nephew’s stripper dating reputation. Once Peter and Anna start getting hot and heavy, they find the dead body of the butler and then realize they’re not alone in the house. A glam-looking thug named, Quill (Julián Mateos) holds them at gunpoint. He keeps his motives vague until his partner shows up, a much older and more (seemingly) proper fellow named Arthur (Frank Wolff)—nothing like Quill. Arthur lets Peter in on why they’ve invaded his Uncle’s home. Arthur plans on killing Peter’s Uncle and Quill wants the money in a secret safe. All is not cut and dry and tempers flair, as does paranoia between Quill and Arthur—who may or may not be lovers. Then you have Anna—not willing to play the woman in distress, she acts as a thorn in the side of all three men at different times in the film. In fact, she steals the movie. In the opening of the film she seems so proper and timid—then once she’s pushed she becomes a real firecracker (and smokin' hot).

COLD EYES OF FEAR is pretty much a standard home invasion type flick, nothing fancy, but I found it very entertaining, but it is certainly the kind of film you would have to be in the right mood for. I mentioned that it is kind of slow boiler and that’s no lie, though Castellari knows just the right moments to put some action—even if it is in small doses…or for no reason at all, for example; there’s a scene towards the end where some cops have to bust up a riot involving some rough and tough bikers—only in this scene do we get a taste of Castellari’s work to come. Let’s face it, the man does action like nobody’s business and it is truly where he shines. Did COLD EYES OF FEAR leave a lasting impression on me like STREET LAW or THE BIG RACKET? Well, no—but I’ve seen many (so-called) great films that haven’t left an impression on me either.

The cast, consisting of only a few main players, is what truly ‘makes’ the film. Personally, I recognized most of the cast from Spaghetti Westerns--not surprisingly, considering when the film came out. Giovanni Ralli I recognized from Sergio Corbucci’s THE MERCENARY, Gianni Garko played Sartana is a series of great Italian westerns—Frank Wolff was in a whole bunch of ‘em, including Corbucci’s THE GREAT SILENCE. Then there’s Fernando Rey who was in a few as well. Julian Mateos is the true weak link, although his performace isn’t awful (his accent is all over the place)—it just didn’t have enough strength and the character demanded a strong performance, given Quills ambiguously gay demeanor—he could have been a very intriguing character. I couldn’t help thinking the whole time that Tomas Milian would have nailed the role—and probably would have stole the whole show. While I’m recasting the film, I should add that if Michael Caine could have played the role of Peter, not only would the film have been better, but it would have been better remembered as well. Not to knock Garko, but the role screams for Michael Caine--just my humble and pointless opinion.

The glue that keeps the film together is the score by Ennio Morricone. I’ve made it no secret in past reviews that a great score can alter my feelings for a movie that it otherwise no so great. I don’t necessarily think that is the case here, but the music did help a lot. The score finds Morricone in one of his jazz-freak-out moods, with brass squawks and walking bass lines that seem like they’d be better suited for a Jess Franco movie than a Castellari flick—but it indeed works. From the opening credits laces with fuzz toned guitars, I knew right then that I’d probably like the movie…and I was right.

I stand by the fact that while Castellari has made some bad film—he’s never made one that I didn’t like, which is why I consider him one my favorite directors. That said, I really don’t think Castellari had found his style yet here. To me it seemed like a director cutting his teeth and trying different things that he would later perfect in later films. Similar to Lucio Fulci’s work on PERVERSION STORY and BEATRICE CENCI—both films seemed like a departure from his previous comedies, but didn’t quite fit with his later films—but you could see the beginnings of greatness—I could say the same thing about Castellari’s direction for COLD EYES OF FEAR (his 7th film—and first that was not a western or a war movie). Castellari uses some camera angels and quick editing techniques that work very well in more fast paced films, but here they seem out of place and even kind of annoying. I don’t have any real gripes about the film, but COLD EYES OF FEAR does not find Castellari at his best. In the end, I’m not really sure whom I would recommend this film to—it’s such a middle of the road type movie. I suppose if you like some of Umberto Lenzi’s early work like ALMOST HUMAN and SPASMO, or Fulci’s PERVERSION STORY you may like this one or if you’re more into American films, there was something about the film that reminded me of WAIT UNTIL DARK—probably one of the best home invasion movies ever. So if you’re into that style of thriller and that era (late 60’s/early 70’s), you may want to give it a shot. If you’re looking for a gialli or an action packed crime thriller, you may be disappointed.  

COLD EYES OF FEAR trailer