Delirium: Photo of Gioia (1987)

Why so much hype?

Strong and Moving!

The plot isn't so bad, but the pace of storytelling is too slow which makes people bored. Certain moments are so obvious and unnecessary for the main plot. I would've fast-forwarded those moments if it was an online streaming. The ending looks like implying a sequel, not sure if this movie will get one

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

Daria Nicoladi (Shock, Tenebrae), David Brandon (Stagefright), George Eastman (The Unholy Four, Endgame), Lino Salemme (Graveyard Disturbance, Demonia) and some guy from Demons whose name I'll never remember all star in Lamberto Bava's very late entry into the Giallo genre, with some trippiness thrown in and an absolute avalanche of female nudity, all done late eighties style. Oh yeah.After an eye popping collage of jazz mag photographs involving a model, we cut to said model now overseeing a similar photo shoot outside of her house. Her name is Gloria, and she's got huge…tracts of land, if you know what I mean. Her assistant is Daria Nicoladi, and also in attendance are photographer Robert (Brandon), brother Tom, and a new model, Kelly. Also present, via a telescope, is crippled youngster Mark, who constantly spies on Gloria and calls her over to touch his tooter, which I've got to say she declines with a patience that would be unheard of these days.You see, Gloria used to be a model and worked for a magazine owned by ex-friend Sasha, but these days she's branched out on her own, with a magazine called Pussycat. The thing is, someone has it in for her, as we see the screen start to flash red and blue, and a killer appears, hallucinating that Kelly has a face composed entirely of an eyeball. Kelly shortly gets a pitchfork through her midriff and Gloria receives some pictures in the post of a dead Kelly, with a Gloria photo backdrop.So, it's Giallo time, rather than slasher time. Loads of suspects, loads of red herrings, and let's be honest, loads and loads and loads of boobs. Another model, Sabrina, gets stung to death by bees (and the killer sees her with the head of a bee) and Gloria receives more pictures in the post. At this time there's a great scene at the Cinecitta where Gloria bumps into ex-boyfriend George Eastman (she walks past some extras from a zombie film on the way there!) and the two of them hit it off, leading Eastman to have sex with her in a Jacuzzi, the jammy get. In slow motion. The thing is, George isn't exactly telling the truth of what he's doing, seemingly called her from Greece even though we can see the Coliseum in the background.There's a lot of this going on in Delerium. Just about every character has something ambiguous going on from Sasha to George to Roberto etc, and although Bava keeps the body count light, it leaves still a lot of suspects as the film draws to a close, while Gloria and cop Lino Salemme try and figure out what's going on. The Roman locations are great (including a scene in the Cimitri Verano) and Bava's made everything extremely stylish. It's kind of lacking the cheese department, but more than makes up for it with the crazy visuals. I thought I had the killer pegged at one point, but then changed my mind, then changed my mind again even though it turned out I was right. That's the sign of a good giallo there.I think Bava does a lot better with the giallo here than he did in Blade in the Dark (although that's worth a watch too), and although this is probably not a film you'd watch with your missus, it's definitely one to seek out.

And I do mean EVERYTHING else.A great looking film in all aspects. Brilliant camera work. Excellent use of color. The cinematography and art direction were Oscar worthy and everybody in it looked great. The majority of them proving it by getting naked.Beautiful models get bumped off by a killer whose face becomes a giant eye before the kill. The sudden rush of colors signifies that a murder is coming. Said models work for a magazine that our heroine (A former model herself) runs.Of course now she thinks she's the final target. Is she? If you can find this gem, see it.I found this in a used video box in Tokyo and was sucked in but the cover art. Seeing Bava's name helped too.It's a bit dated now, it reminds one of an 80's music video at times. But the mystery element is great and never lets up.

This is a better than average Giallo and is packed with solid actors. There are scenes that you will remember from this one. George Eastman has a small part in this so don't go in expecting a large amount of him in this one. If you are a fan of this style of film or even just a fan of Serena Grandi you must see this film. George Eastman and Serena Grandi get along way better in this film than in Grim Reaper. ;-)The killer is plagued with delusions and these are worth seeing. There is a nightmarish feel too the film. The pacing is very well done. Look for one of the lead actors of Demons to have a prominent part in this film. Lamberto Bava did a great job with this one. See the Shriek Show DVD version of this one.

Lamberto Bava may not be as great as his father; master director Mario Bava, but you can always count on a good time when it comes to his movies - and while Delirium is certainly no masterpiece; Giallo fans will be satisfied with this sleazy story of murder and naked women! Italy's answer to Dolly Parton, Serena Grandi, stars as Gioia (the Italian answer to 'Gloria'), the owner of a porn magazine known as 'Pussycat'. The porn industry attracts a lot of attention for it's stars, and Pussycat magazine is no exception. One of Gloria's admirers is a wheelchair bound young man who spies on here from the sanctity of bedroom, and another 'admirer' is someone a little more psycho - someone that likes to kill Gloria's models, and then send her pictures of their mutilated corpses in front of a six foot picture of herself! Obviously, this leads our leading lady to assume that she's the next victim; as more and more of her models are killed, who could be the killer? And what could possibly be their reason for slicing up such fine looking ladies? Lamberto Bava seems to know what audiences like - and this is shown by the way that Grandi's breasts are shown often. I have no problem with this; and I doubt anyone else with a will to see this film will either. The Giallo is a sub-genre soaked in sleaze, and Bava does a good job of implementing that style into this film by way of lots of nudity, and some graphic murders. The murders are a big part of any Giallo - and this one features the likes of murder by pitchfork, and the (apparently) famous bee murder scene! Really, the murders aren't the best ever seen in a Giallo; but they do the job. The acting is typically trashy, and it's always obvious how Serena Grandi won her role (clue: it wasn't acting talent). The cast is made up of unknowns (Giallo standard), with the exception of Daria Nicoladi. Dario Argento's frequent collaborator lights up the support cast, and gives the film an extra little bit of cult class. Lamberto Bava's films are often rated poorly by critics (both professional and amateur), but as usual; Delirium isn't all that bad. No masterpiece; but well worth seeing for the Giallo fan.