Short Night Of The Glass Dolls (1971)

Aldo Lado's directorial debut is a classy and slightly convoluted giallo-ish thriller that begins with the body of the hero being found in a park. After being pronounced dead we then hear narrate the film as he isn't really dead, or is he. A series of flashbacks tells the tale of how his girlfriend, Barbara Bach, goes missing without a trace and how he tries to track her down. The film is a slow mover, but Lado has the confidence to tell his story slowly and does so with style. If I have any problems with this film (and they are very slight problems) is that the supernatural element that arrives at the end doesn't fit snugly, even though you may be heading your guesses this way at the end. The final scenes at the live autopsy are well done and prove a fitting finale to an enjoyable flick.