Independent Films, Film Profiles

Twitch of the Death Nerve
by Mario_Bava

Twitch of the Death Nerve (Italian: Ecologia del delitto ) is a 1971 Italian horror thriller film directed by Mario Bava. Bava cowrote the screenplay with Giuseppe Zaccariello, Filippo Ottoni and Sergio Canevari, with story credit given to Dardano Sacchetti and Franco Barberi. The film stars Claudine Auger, Luigi Pistilli, and Laura Betti. Carlo Rambaldi created the gruesome special makeup effects.The story details the simultaneous murderous activities of several different characters as they each attempt to remove any human obstacles that stand in the way of an inheritance. Easily Bava’s most intensely violent film, its emphasis on graphically bloody murder set pieces was hugely influential on the slasher and splatter films that would follow a decade later.[3] In 2005, the magazine Total Film named Twitch of the Death Nerve one of the 50 greatest horror films of all time.[4]The wheelchair bound Countess Federica (Isa Miranda) sits alone in her bayside mansion one night when she is suddenly attacked and strangled to death by her husband, Filippo Donati (Giovanni Nuvoletti). As he pauses to gloat over her body, an assailant hidden in the shadows stabs him repeatedly until he is dead. His corpse is then dragged to the bay. The police find a note written by the Countess, and they assume the cause of death is suicide. Donati's murder goes undiscovered.Frank Ventura (Chris Avram) is a real estate agent who plots with his lover, Laura (Anna Maria Rosati), to take possession of the bay. They believe the bay can be turned into a hugely profitable venture, so they arranged with Donati to murder his wife after she had refused to sell her house and property to them. To finalize their scheme, Ventura needs Donati's signature on a set of legal documents. Unfortunately, they have no idea that Donati has been killed.Paolo Fassati (Leopoldo Trieste), an entomologist who lives on the Donatis' grounds, is attempting to capture an insect when he collides with Simon (Claudio Volonté), the Countess' illegitimate son who also lives on the property. Simon is poor and is able to survive by feeding on the squid he catches from the bay. Fassati tells Simon that he suspects the countess has been murdered. Simon, however, firmly insists her death was a suicide.Four teenagers, two girls and two boys, decide to party at the bay, and they break into Ventura's cottage. Bobby (Robert Bonnani) is too shy to make any advances on his date, Brunhilda (Brigitte Skay). She ends up skinny-dipping in the bay while Bobby stays behind in the house. Donati's rotting corpse rises from the water and collides with the nude girl. She rushes out of the water, slips her dress back on, and runs screaming towards the house. Before she can make it to safety, an unseen assailant hacks into her throat with a machete. She falls to the ground and dies. The killer then goes to the house and surprises Bobby, slamming the machete deep into his face. Bobby and Brunhilda's two companions, Duke (Guido Boccaccini) and Denise (Paola Rubens), find a bed upstairs and are in the throes of sexual passion when the murderer finds them; a long spear is thrust through them, bloodily killing both at the same time.Simon is the killer. He had killed Donati, and is now conspiring with Ventura. Ventura offers him a large amount of cash to leave the country and live comfortably, so Simon agrees to sign all the legal documents, turning the land over to Ventura. However, it turns out that the Countess had a daughter, Renata (Claudine Auger), who is resolute about the property becoming hers. A search for the Countess' will proves unsuccessful, and Ventura, who believes Renata may be the rightful beneficiary, suggests to Simon that he finish her off.Renata and her husband, Albert (Luigi Pistilli), arrive and go directly to Fassati's house. They talk with him and his wife, Anna (Laura Betti), a fortune teller. Anna tells them that the Countess’ death was due to Donati, and says that Simon will probably end up with the property. Renata, who until that moment had no idea she had a half-brother, immediately makes plans with her husband to murder Simon, who at the same time is planning her demise.Renata and Albert find Donati's gruesomely mangled corpse on Simon's boat, then go to Ventura's house. Nobody is present at the moment, so Albert leaves temporarily, leaving Renata alone. Ventura suddenly attacks Renata and tries to kill her, but Renata manages to kill him instead. Fassati has witnessed everything, and when he starts to telephone the police, Albert strangles him to death. In order to ensure that there are no additional witnesses, Renata murders Anna by decapitating her.Laura arrives, hoping to meet up with Ventura. When Simon discovers that it was she and Ventura who had plotted with Donati to kill his mother, who Simon loved dearly, he slowly strangles Laura to death. Seconds later, Simon is murdered by Albert.Albert and Renata know that everybody who could possibly get in their way is now dead. Since there are no other living heirs, the property is guaranteed to be theirs, and they go home to wait for the announcement of their inheritance. Their own children are at the front door waiting for them with a shotgun, and they shoot their parents to death. The young boy and girl gleefully jump over the corpses and rush outside to play.