Signora Weaver

The Spider Labyrinth (Gianfranco Giagni, 1988)

The tragedy of Italian Horror will always be its finite lifespan. Michele Soavi's existential zombiefest, Dellamorte Dellamore (1994), was arguably the last classic entry before it all died. Revisiting various other Italian Horror films from around this era feels like you're attending a coroner's inquiry at times. With all that out of the way, we come to the first great Italian Horror film I've discovered in Lord knows how long. Gianfranco Giagni's obscure debut and one and only horror film, The Spider Labyrinth (1988), is a rare anomaly. What's equally remarkable about it, is the fact I didn't know of its existence until it was announced as a 4K UHD release by Severin Films late last year.

Professor of Oriental Langauages, Alan Whitmore (Roland Wybenga) is sent on assignment to Budapest by his superiors to meet with fellow researcher, Dr. Leo Roth (Attila Lõte), after going excommunicado during his work on the Intextus Project. While there, Whitmore is warned by various folk, including a mysterious stranger played by spaghettic western veteran William Berger, to leave the Hungarian capital as his life is at stake. During the first half of the film, the Hitchcockian vibe is more than evident, evoking James Stewart's quintessential fish out of water from The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956). Furthermore, the film comes replete with an atmospheric Bernard Hermann style score courtesy of its composer Franco Piersanti. Similarly, there's an obvious gothic aesthetic to the film as it incorporates the beautiful old world vista of Budapest along with stuffy, dimly lit set interiors. These elements lend well to the slowburn mystery aspect before it adopts more familar horror territory.

Events really kicks off when a killer resembling Faye Dunaway in Supergirl (1984) with dodgy chompers, begins dispatching various folk by drooling over them with her web drool and then fatally stabbing them. Pick of the bunch, is Maria (Claudia Muzii), a hotel maid who winds up with a knife in her skull during a stunning set piece which is obviously inspired by Suspiria thanks to the numerous on screen props and its colour palette.

Roland Wybenga's performance might come across a little wooden, especially as he lacks the emotional range of the far talented James Stewart, but the supporting cast are rather good and help compensate this issue. The best performance being played by Stéphane Audran as Mrs. Kuhn, the sinister manageress and owner of Hotel Starvas. There's also Paola Rinaldi, who is effective as Dr. Roth's assistant, Genevieve Weiss. She's great as the seductive femme fatale, having you second guessing where her allegiances really lie.

Nino Celeste's cinematography is absolutely gorgeous and major highlight of the film; the Argento-esque scenes are particularly breathtaking. Considering its low budget, the film is stunning to look at from start to finish; a stark contrast to some of the other Italian Horror films from the late eighties. Its aesthetic beauty is definitely a reason why I'm smitten by this film.

Love the Lovecraftian theme involving an ancient cult of spider worshippers known as the Weavers. This revelation instills paranoia and fear upon Whitmore, who just so happens to be an arachnophobic. For fans of horror, it's an intriguing concept which spoils us rotten with fantastic subterranean locations and a scene which borrows very heavily from Rob Bottin's legendary and unsurpassed effects work from The Thing (1982). Sergio Stivaletti's attempt at replicating Bottin comes across a Lidl equivalent, sadly. On a positive tip, that's a fairly minor issue as the rest of the effects are very good; particularly found the stop motion spider scenes very endearing as they evoked vintage Ray Harryhausen greatness.

Legitimately shocked that I had no prior knowledge of The Spider Labyrinth's existence until recently. Definitely deserves a spot as one of the best late game Italian Horror films, in my honest opinion. An absolute treat of a film. So glad it's been rescued from obscurity. Makes me wonder if there are any other lost Italian Horror gems out there awaiting discovery.