Dir - James Kelley/Andrea Bianchi
Overall: WOOF
An international co-production that was shot in Almería, Andalucía, Spain, What the Peeper Saw, (Night Hair Child, La tua presenza nuda!), runs with the standard "creepy annoying kid" premise, yet it does so in a plodding, uninteresting manner. Primarily directed by James Kelley as his second and last feature, Italian filmmaker Andrea Bianchi was brought in to shoot some additional naked stuff with lead actor Britt Ekland, and the whole thing is further exploitative in that she rocks her birthday suite in front of fourteen year old Mark Lester who is the peeper of the title. More ickiness between the two characters is alluded to than shown, but it is a catastrophically talky affair that hardly moves in any direction throughout its running time. The final twelve minutes seem to signify a psychological element, but this is abandoned as soon as it is introduced, leading to a hilariously abrupt ending set to the annoying, inappropriate theme music that has already been played several dozen times by then. Too boring to be infamously tasteless, it is better off just being forgotten about.
(1974)
Dir - Rafael Romero Marchent
Overall: MEH
For some, the novelty may suffice of seeing an aged Ray Milland spend over an hour trying to find out which young child witnessed him murder a hit man so that he can likewise silence said child. Such is the gist of The Student Connection, (Un par de zapatos del '32); the first kind-of-giallo from prolific Spanish Western director Rafael Romero Marchent. A curious opening finds a sunglasses-wearing, mustached, neck-braced man leaving an airport only to get in his car, park, remove his disguise that reveals him to be a bald guy, light a cigarette, and then patiently wait for an airplane to blow up. Hardly suspense-laden, but it does have a ghastly enough pay off which sets the things in motion. An infidelity thriller in part, most of the unsettling elements come from Milland's quest to discover which kid saw his anger-fueled outburst, the reveal of which is immediately predictable once we find out whose particular love interest is also a mother. Disturbing premise aside, the movie itself has a monotonous structure and the only intense set piece is during the conclusion where Milland chases his little culprit onto a race track in full operation. Otherwise, it is adequately shot, has about three pieces of music played relentlessly, and the performances get the job done.
(1975)
Dir - Pedro L. Ramírez
Overall: MEH
The last film to be directed by Pedro L. Ramírez, School of Death, (El colegio de la muerte), is deliberately paced and well shot by cinematographer Antonio L. Ballesteros, but the story is unnecessarily scatter-brained and inconclusive. Set in Victorian era London, it opens with a grisly mad scientist moment where a terrified young woman is strapped to a surgery table so that a horribly disfigured/presumed surgeon can slice at her temple. Things switch to the boarding house of the title where of course odious headmistresses inflict harsh discipline on the orphans held up there, but then the movie changes gears yet again and becomes a Gothic mystery that alludes to prostitution and the living dead. Depending on the viewer, it is either a plus or minus that the details are left persistently vague as to what exactly is going on and the motivation of such dubious characters, but the cliche blending is at least refreshing up until a point. Ramírez' refuses to allow for any camera flashiness, but the movie is bathed in spooky, shadowy atmosphere and the set decoration and scenery are the typical brand of Hammer via-Euro-horror adherence. It is unfortunate that the plot gets hopelessly muddled along the way, plus Ramírez could afford to tighten up the meandering flow, but the film at least looks and occasionally feels better than it is.
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