Paganini Horror
Italy 1988. Director: Luigi Cozzi
Cast: Daria Nicolodi, Jasmine Maimone, Donald Pleasence

Luigi Cozzi's Paganini Horror is generally considered as being a total fiasco and one to avoid. If so, I must apparently go see the doctor more often, because I sort of enjoyed it. At least I found it to be funnier than the director's more recent turds, like the unwatchable Argento homage Black Cat, which Cozzi himself is mostly proud of. Paganini Horror has a less ambitious plot, about some female rock group who is about to shoot a video – source for inspiration: Michael Jackson's Thriller - in an old house. For this purpose they buy an original notesheet by a weird guy played by Donald Pleasence (no really). This sheet of music once belonged to Nicolo Paganini, once famed violinist with a said pact with the Devil. The group records one of the songs from the notesheet and, surprise, they are soon killed one by one in mysterious ways. Some of the special effects are laughably stupid, although creative, like a woman being mashed against a wall by an invisible pane of glass. Well, least we are spared from plastic Sergio Stivaletti puppets. Both the photography (by Franco Leca) and set design look alright to me, at least considering the film apparently took only two weeks to shoot, even though the non-budget is evident throughout. The actors are also fair enough, but Daria Nicolodi is unforgivably wasted. All in all, Paganini Horror is one to sort under "so bad it's almost good", make no mistake about this regardless of how this review may sound

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