CD REVIEW - L'Iguana dalla Lingua di Fuoco


L'Iguana dalla Lingua di Fuoco
Music by Stelvio Cipriani
Digitmovies CDDM069 (Italy)
16 Tracks 35:50 mins

Riccardo Freda is described in the accompanying booklet at "the father of Italian Gothic-Horror," but he also directed films in the Giallo genre, including this one in 1971, albeit under the pseudonym of Willy Parreto. From the colour stills and artwork illustrating said booklet, it looks as if this was a particularly horrific entry in the genre, with some shocking images on display.
Dublin is perhaps the surprising setting for the film and only one name stands out from the credited cast, that being veteran Anton Diffring.
The music was composed by Stelvio Cipriani and here receives its premiere release in stereo, courtesy of the C.A.M. archives, as supervised by the composer himself.
Obviously, as is typical of the genre, there is much mysterious and suspenseful scoring, and also some more urgent and menacing material. Piano, flute and harpsichord all make telling contributions, as does the voice of Nora Orlandi, who is particularly effective in providing the wordless vocal for the sunny title theme, another element often present in this genre, here first heard moving to a pop beat. The theme appears in variations throughout the score, sometimes in slower mode, with Orlandi and piano, and sometimes quite openly romantic, as in "Tema D'Amore."
The score ends satisfyingly, after the fast-moving menace of "Lotta & Morte Dell'Assassino," with the main theme, laid-back at first, then uptempo, ending in the poppy rendition that opens the album.
The aforementioned accompanying booklet, in addition to all the stills and artwork, features the usual guide to film and score by Claudion Fuiano and Pierluigi Valentini.
Visit www.digitmovies.com to keep up to date with all the label's latest release news, and return to this site for more reviews of Digitmovies releases over the next few days.