La Tarantola dal Ventre Nero (A.K.A. Black Belly of the Tarantula) (1971)

I'm getting more and more into the Giallo genre. I still have to see the early Argento films (Like Bird with the Crystal Plumage) but I've seen enough so far to note that I like the genre. The black gloves etc. got their charme and there are already a few Giallo's that I really liked (Tenebre being the best). Unfortunately Black Belly of the Tarantula falls under the category ''BAD''. 

Inspector Tellini investigates serial crimes where victims are paralyzed while having their bellies ripped open with a sharp knife, much in the same way tarantulas are killed by the black wasp. As suspects keep dying, Inspector directs his attention to a spa all the victims had a connection with.

I suspected way more of this French/Italian giallo. Black Belly of the Tarantula has a terrible tempo and many uninteresting dialogs that pull all the pace out of the film. There are only a few scene's that really stood out (The chase on the rooftop and the first killscene). Thereby comes that the soundtrack by maestro Ennio Morricone is terribly boring. 

I have to admit that the whole idea of a killer who paralyzes his victims and then stabs them in the belly is pretty solid. Unfortunately though the kills do get boring after a while as they are all pretty much the same and because of that the impact that the kills make is also very limited. There is also almost no gore which is a shame but that's something that can be replaced by atmosphere etc. which unfortunately doesn't happen in Black Belly of the Tarantula either. 

One of the better things about this movie is the lead played by Giancarlo Giannini who plays the detective. The rest of the cast is pretty much filled with beautiful women. That's cool and the girls did in fact really look good (Look for a small cameo of Italian hottie Eleonora Giorgi aswell) but it's a bit of a shame that they all look like each other (I think there were about 3/4 redheads who could have all been sisters) which confused me sometimes and that's not something you'll like as the plot itself is pretty confusing as well. 

The Black Belly of the Tarantula is far from a good Giallo. No tension, no gore not even a cool killer and just a few scene's that are really worth it. Hell, at least it's a good replacement for if you're just out of sleeping pills.