source: Nightmare Symphony

Attempting to get a new movie made, the director of an upcoming film trying to get it completed for his financiers finds that a strange figure is running around killing everyone associated with the project, forcing him to the brink of insanity as the stress of everything soo breaches a boiling point. There was quite a lot to like with this Giallo throwback. One of the finest features here is the stellar atmosphere setup to take influences at the old-school elements in the genre. The idea of the genre director attempting to shoot a new film while on location and not only being accosted by fans of his work and trying to get his job done while everyone else around him tries to talk to him offers a pretty fun setup that introduces us to the world of him as a low-budget filmmaker. Getting accustomed to this type of setup allows for a series of subtle or on-the-nose homages to the genre which manages to feel quite enjoyable for its ability to showcase an old-school feel dropping in film references at the drop of a hat due to being part of the likable atmosphere present. When the film goes for its own stylish genre experiences, there's a lot to like as a true genre effort. The opening murder of the victim in the bathroom is incredibly stylish not just for the strong scene created to start the film but the brutality inflicted which is graphic and gruesome in the best way. The later stalking scenes showing the bird-masked killer striking victims in a darkened apartment or taking out the couple in the high-end bathroom which rank as the sort of fun encounters typically seen in the genre. Other fun encounters are packed into the final half where a lot of featured chases and kills come from as the film he's editing starts to finish up much like the main feature itself, and with the dynamic killer's mask that looks quite impressive, make for the film's positives. There are only a few minor issues to be had with this one. One of the biggest flaws is that, for a film as short as it is, it wastes a lot of time on the build-up of the film shoot before actually getting to the action. While not being out-and-out dull, the scenes of him going around the villa trying to get acclimated to the city or attempting to meet up with the crew of his film creates a far longer span of time than it should without anything happening. That carries over into the finale where it seems to load all the action for the most part and begins to showcase all the action with the chasing, stalking and deaths so it comes off rather rushed following scores of methodically built up scenes. The other factor here, which is a bit more troubling and problematic, is that the film's finale where it turns into a giant mess that doesn't make any sense. All the different characters that are seen coming back to life out of the darkness with their wounds intact seems to imply that he's become unhinged by shooting the picture and the stress has caused him to snap, but that's all undone by the film's inability to showcase him getting there. The only thing that comes close is a meeting with the investor but there's very little else with this setup to give that impression. It seems to come about purely in the final minutes which doesn't have much to prop it up beforehand, which all makes for a few issues to knock this down. Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Violence, Graphic Language and Full Nudity.