Verdict
Summary
Filled with vivid kill scenes with convincing gore effects, stylish sexuality (with plenty of nudity and homoerotic material), and an effective mystery, the film fits right in with the giallos of its era
Plot: Oliviero is a burned-out writer, living at his estate near Venice, his dead mother dominating his imagination. When a young woman is murdered, police suspect Oliviero. Things get complicated when his young, beautiful, and self-confident niece, Floriana, pays an unexpected visit.
Review: Bored and complacent, part time author and full-time libertine Oliviero (Luigi Pistilli) hosts drunken orgies at his mansion, and consistently degrades his wife (Anita Strindberg), whose sanity starts to crack with all the embarrassment. The day after one of his debauched parties, one of his young lovers is found brutally murdered. The police come and ask questions. Oliviero doesn’t have a great alibi. The following night, Oliviero’s housemaid is murdered by the same weapon – a scythe. And then Oliviero’s beautiful niece (who’s very sexually promiscuous) comes to stay with him, prompting tension in an already rocky marriage. When other women are found murdered, it seems apparent that Oliviero is to blame …
From director Sergio Martino, Your Vice is a Locked Room and Only I Have the Key (it’s a mouthful) is loosely based on the Edgar Allan Poe story “The Black Cat,” and the climax is right out of the original story. Filled with vivid kill scenes with convincing gore effects, stylish sexuality (with plenty of nudity and homoerotic material), and an effective mystery, the film fits right in with the giallos of its era. It doesn’t change the face of the genre, but it should make fans of these Italian slashers pretty happy.
Previously released onto DVD by No Shame, Your Vice is a Locked Room and Only I Have the Key was recently released onto high definition Blu-ray by Arrow Video in a nicely packaged edition. The 2K transfer looks and sounds excellent, and the special features include brand new interviews with Martino, the screenwriter, and one of the co-stars, as well as a visual essay, and more, including an appreciation of the film by Eli Roth. Reversible artwork, with newly commissioned art, as well as the original artwork is also included.
