The Facts of Murder

Summary

“What a revolting handshake.”

Radiance Films has released the Italian crime mystery The Facts of Murder on Blu-ray as a standalone region free release, or as part of their UK-only World Noir Volume 1 box set. Like most of Radiance Films’ releases, I had not heard of The Facts of Murder. With Radiance, this exposure to lesser known films and directors is one of the aspects of the label I really appreciate, so I was happy to check the film out. The Facts of Murder was released in 1959 and was directed by Pietro Germi, who also stars as the cigarchomping Inspector Ingravallo, This was a couple years before his award winning comedy Divorce Italian Style, and five years before Seduced and Abandoned. This was my first film I had viewed by the director, so I was excited by the prospect of being introduced to another cinematic voice. The Facts of Murder has numerous stylings borrowed from film noir, while the mystery element of the film will be more suited to fans of Italian giallo films. I think it is even okay to define the film as a proto-giallo. Fans of the giallo genre will pick up on certain aspects of the script that will feel familiar, while the film will also appeal to fans of mystery novelists like Agatha Christie. That said, the film lacks the onscreen violence that defines so many giallo pictures. The film also benefits from noir styling thanks to the black and white cinematography by Leonida Barboni.

As the film begins, a man runs from an apartment building as men call out behind him, “Thief! Thief!” Commander Anzaloni (Ildebrando Santafe) was robbed of some pieces of jewelry from a specific drawer in his apartment. Neighbors Donita and Armando saw the thief run away, but could not get a good view of him. Armando had fired a shot as the thief ran past. Commander Anzaloni did not hear the shot as the theif ran away, Liliana Banducci (Aleonora Rossi Drago) lives next door to Anzaloni. Liliana’s husband Mr. Banducci (Claudio Gora) is away on business. Downstairs, the apartment maid Assuntina Jaccovucci (Claudia Cardinale) was listening to the radio and missed the commotion completely. Diomede Lancanni (Nino Castelnuovo,) a handsome handyman for the building and Assuntina’s lover, falls under suspicion. He fits the description of the thief and had access to Anzaloni’s apartment. Inspector Ingravello (Pietro Germi,) also known as “il dottore,” (the doctor) puts a tail on Assuntina. She goes to meet with Diomede. When Diomede sees the approaching authorities he runs. He is taken back to the station along with Assuntina. Ingravallo’s associate, Maresciallo (Saro Urzi) insists that Diomede is the thief against their protests. Ingravallo agrees with Maresciallo’s assessment, but he investigates further. Diomede asks to see Ingravallo alone. Diomede shows him a watch that he claims he received from an American woman. He claims to have been with her from the night before until eleven that morning. The inspectors bring the American woman into the station and prove Diomede was with her against her protestations by showing the watch fits perfectly over her suntanned hand. The inspectors tell Anzaloni to return to the station the next morning at eleven. When Anzaloni does not show up the next day at eleven, Ingravallo meets Anzaloni at his apartment. Anzaloni does not want the press to get ahold of the story, because it may paint him in a flamboyant light. Ingravallo interviews Lilliana. She tells him a story about a doll she owns and some other small details about her life. The next day, Lilliana is found dead in her apartment with the door left unlocked by a “doctor” named Valdarena (Franco Fabrizi) who had been treating her. The investigation begins, and Ingravallo is convinced that the robbery and the murder must be connected. Arriving at the scene of the murder, Assuntina faints. Liliana’s husband Mr. Banducci returns from his trip and is given the news. Asked to identify her body, he faints. It turns out that, unbeknownst to anybody, Liliana had changed her will a week before she was killed.

The Facts of Murder is a solid Italian crime picture. The film has noir trappings in terms of its use of shadows, but the mystery at the core of the picture is as confusing at times as many of the giallo films that it predates. Because the film has two crimes that are being solved in tandem, it has a lot of elements that it needs to tie together. The finale of the film is satisfying, and made me feel like rewatching the film would help clear any confusion that I had on my first viewing.

The direction by Pietro Germi is solid with excellent black and white cinematography by Leonida Barboni. The film has some truly beautiful sequences. I particularly enjoyed the way the apartment house was framed up by the camera in the opening sequence which begins by showing the street from the viewpoint of the archway of the building. When rain is falling and this shot is recreated later, it really looks fantastic. I should have drawn the connection early on when viewing the film because the cinematography was so striking, but I realized only after viewing the film that Barboni went on to work as cinematographer on Luigi Bazzoni’s amazing film The Possessed. If you have never seen that film, Arrow Video’s release is beautiful and a must-own release in my opinion. 

Pietro Germi did a commendable job of drawing good performances from the cast in the film, including his starring role. I can’t imagine the difficulty of performing and directing at the same time, but Pietro is extremely charismatic as Inspector Ingravallo. Pietro Germi helped to adapt the novel Quer Pasticciaccio Brutto de Via Merulana by C.E. Ganda with screenwriters Alfredo Giannetti and Ennio De Concini. Working triple duties, he pulled it off. His writing process itself is investigated in an excellent piece included in the special features on the disc. Carlo Rustichelli provided a strong score that fit the film well.

The cast is pretty stacked. I have already mentioned Pietro Germi’s lead performance, but he held his own against some great Italian actors. The beautiful Claudia Cardinale is fun to watch in the film, although her role feels slightly underwritten. Franco Fabrizi exudes a sleazy moneygrubbing air as Valdarena. Claudio Gora is great as the suspicious Mr. Banducci. Saro Urzi portrays Maresciallo with an intimidating presence that feels correct. Nino Castelnuovo would later star in the classic The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, so I was happy to see him in an early role as Diomedes.

Overall – The Facts of Murder is a solid start to Radiance Films’ lineup of world noir titles. I enjoyed watching the film and think it will be even better on a second viewing.

Video

Radiance Films have provided a great-looking new transfer in 1080p with MPEG-4 AVC encoding in the film’s original 1.37:1 aspect ratio. This transfer was sourced from a new 4K scan performed by by L’Immagine Ritrovata at the Cineteca di Bologna. They took exceptional care of the film’s elements and have done an incredible job on this restoration. Fine detail is very good. A fine level of grain is present that lends to the great look of the transfer. I have no complaints here. The black and white cinematography by the legendary Leonida Barboni looks absolutely beautiful on Blu-ray. This is about as good as a Black and White film can look on Blu-ray.

Audio

Radiance Films have provided an LPCM Mono track. It has excellent fidelity to the original elements. The score by Carlo Rustichelli is enjoyable. Dialogue is rendered clearly. The range of the track is limited, but it sounded good overall.

Supplements:

• Interview with Pietro Germi expert Mario Sesti – Mario Sesti speaks at great length about the director’s career and style. It’s an enthusiastic discussion.
• The Man With the Cigar in His Mouth – this excellent archival documentary about Pietro Germi features interviews with Mario Monicelli, Claudia Cardinale, Stefania Sandrelli, Giuseppe Tornatore and many more. I really enjoyed this piece. Watching it, I was struck by how lucky they were to film it when they did, because I can’t imagine that many of the screenwriters that worked with Germi are still alive. The documentary is extremely informative about Germi’s writing process in particular. Definitely check this out.
• What’s Black and Yellow All Over? All Shades of Italian Film Noir – this solid visual essay by Paul A. J. Lewis looks through noir stylings in Italian cinema from Visconti’s Obsessione onward. I particularly enjoyed the inclusion of a Lamberto Bava film before touching on the yellow spined novels that created the Giallo genre.

Overall Scores:

Video – 5/5 

Audio – 4/5

Supplements – 4.5/5

Overall – 4.25/5

The Facts of Murder is an enjoyable crime mystery from Italian filmmaker Pietro Germi. The film benefits from exceptional cinematography from the great Leonida Barboni, and a stacked cast featuring actors Nino Castelnuovo, Claudia Cardinale, Claudio Gora, Saro Urzi, and more.  Like many Italian mysteries, I found the plot a bit overstuffed at times, but the finale did a solid job of resolving the two mysteries. I have a feeling that the picture might actually be better on a second viewing. The performances are all good with a particularly enjoyable turn by director Pietro Germi himself as Inspector Ingravallo. Radiance Films have licensed a gorgeous transfer from a 4K scan and the supplemental features are well worth your time. This is a really solid start to Radiance Films’ World Noir line and can be purchased as a region free Blu-ray, or as part of the Region B only World Noir Volume 1 box set. Recommended.