time for a massacre (1966)

aka Massacre Time.
"Who sent you?"
Returning home prospector Tom Corbett (Franco Nero) finds his brother (George Hilton) a drunk, his land repossessed, and worse, the town taken over by a sadistic man (Giuseppe Addobbati) and his son (Nino Castelnuovo). Can he persuade his brother (George Hilton) and others to stand up to them?
Fulci's signature gore, and a solid performance from Nero, makes for an entertaining western.

massacre time (1966)

aka Le colt cantarono la morte e fu... tempo di massacro. The Brute and the Beast. Colt Concert. Django the Runner. Time for a Massacre.
"There's a limit to anything."
Tom Corbett (Franco Nero), a prospector, returns home and has to fight Jason Scott (Giuseppe Addobbati) and his sadistic son (Nino Castelnuovo) who have taken over his ranch and the town. But before he does so, can he pursuade his drunken brother (George Hilton) to help him?
Horror legend Fulci tries his hand at a western, and produces a stylish and violent piece of work.

don't torture a duckling (1972)

aka Non Si Sevizia Un Paperino.
"The killer is here with us, I know it!"
A child is murdered in a remote part of Italy, and the village idiot is soon caught, but he professes that he only buried the child, who was already dead. Then other children are found. So who is the serial killer? Could it be the reporter (Tomas Milian), who tampers with evidence, the young flirtacious newcomer (Barbara Bouchet), who is known to be an ex-drug addict, the local witch (Florinda Bolkan), or any number of other characters.
Something of a departure for Fulci, better known for his more gruesome fare. A well made thriller, featuring giallo's usual twists and misdirection, and an underlying examination of superstition.

a lizard in a woman's skin (1971)

aka Una lucertola con la pelle di donna.
"That woman represents to you, degradation...vice."
London in the swinging sixties and Carol Hammond (Florinda Bolkan), is suffering from recurring nightmares involving a neighbour. When the neighbour subsequently turns up dead, with Carol's paper knife in her chest, she becomes an obvious suspect. Could Carol have enacted her dreams in real life, or could it be an intricate plot by her unfaithful husband? It's up to Inspector Corvin (Stanley Baker) to find out.
A fine thriller from Fulci, that creates a foreboding atmosphere, helped in part by the Ennio Morricone score.

a cat in the brain (1990)

aka Un Gatto nel cervello. Nightmare Concert. I volti del terror.
"..you're breaking down the barrier, the boundary between what you film and what's real."
A psychopath (David L. Thompson) is killing people in similar fashion to the deaths in the various films of director Dr. Lucio Fulci (Lucio Fulci). Meanwhile Lucio is having problems getting the terrible murders in his films out of his head, and they are making him nervy and neurotic.
A mix of horror and black comedy makes for an interesting self referencing film about the cinematic process.

the beyond (1981)

aka E tu vivrai nel terrore - L'aldilà. Seven Doors of Death.
"Woe be unto him that opens one of the seven gateways to hell, because through that gateway evil will invade the world."
Liza Merril (Catriona MacColl), a young woman inherits an broken down old hotel in the Louisiana swamps. She decides to spruce it up and reopen the place, but a series of accidents soon make her realise this is less of a gift than she thought, and may in fact be built over one of the seven gates of hell!
A goblin-esque score by Fabio Frizzi lifts this stylised, atmospheric and gory horror.

city of the living dead (1980)

aka Paura nella città dei morti viventi. The Gates Of Hell. Fear In The City Of The Living Dead.
"The city of the dead. The living dead. A cursed city where the gates of hell have been opened."
A priest commits suicide in the cemetery of a small New England town. This prompts the opening of the gates of hell, allowing the dead to rise. A young psychic, Mary (Catriona MacColl), experiences visions of this and teams up with a hardened New York journalist Peter (Christopher George), to save the earth. Meanwhile in the town psychiatrist Gerry (Carlo De Mejo) and one of his patients Sandra (Janet Agren) realise that something weird is happening. Can they close the gates before the dead rise to kill the living?
Fulci's follow up to Zombie Flesh Eaters has a few memorable set pieces, using atmosphere as well as gore, tied together with the thinest of plots. Interesting and entertaining genre piece.

new york ripper (1982)

AKA Lo squartatore di New York.
"But you won't understand me, you'll never understand me! You're too stupid! Quack! Quack! Quack!"
A serial killer is preying on promiscuous women, ending their lives in a variety of sadistic ways. Its up to burnt out detective Fred Williams (Jack Headly) to catch him, whilst the killer keeps calling to taunt him. Then Williams catches his first break when Fay Majors (Antonella Interlenghi) survives an attack. Can she lead him to the killer?
Viewed today this is nothing special, the gore being surpassed by many mainstream films. But back in the day this was banned in many countries and refused a certificate in the UK, with the BBFC director supposidly ordering the print be sent out of the country, under police escort. Really its a standard whodunnit with added gore and misogyny.

the black cat (1981)

AKA Gatto Nero.
"Cats take orders from no one."
A small English village and a Scotland Yard detective Inspector Gormley (Dave Warbeck) is sent to investigate the disappearance of a young couple. He soon finds that there has been a number of bizzare accidents in the village, accidents that continue to happen. Along with a crime scene photographer, Jill Travers (Mimsy Farmer), the detective begins to suspect the involvement of Robert Miles (Patrick Magee), a local psychic. Then Jill notices a number of the victims have scratches on them, much as if they had been attacked by a cat!
An atmospheric horror film where Fulci tries to funnel the spirit of Edgar Allan Poe, rather than his usual gorefests.

house by the cemetery (1981)

aka Quella villa accanto al cimitero. The House Outside the Cemetery. The House by the Cemetery. Zombie Hell House.
A young woman and her boyfriend are murdered in an old house. Several months later Norman and Lucy Boyle (Paolo Malco and Catriona MacColl) and their son Bob (Giovanni Frezzi) move into the old Freudstein house, in order to finish his research project. A house previous occupied by one of Normans ex-colleagues, who committed suicide after murdering his mistress. There follows the usual mysterious events, as people warn them about the house and talk of Dr Freudstein who conducted experiments in the house. Warnings and premonitions which they obviously ignore. But what are those noises and why is the cellar door locked and barred?
A standard gore-fest horror, that is somewhat disrupted by unexplained events and dialogue, in this semi-incoherent film. Not to mention the supposedly intelligent characters who show all the common sense of a brick! Bob keeps seeing a girl who warns him not to go in the house. There's an insolent babysitter, premonitions, warnings, a tomb in the living room floor, (even though they are next door to a cemetery), a boarded up cellar, and bloody deaths. Any one else would have run to the hills, but not this lot! But then the plot is really only there to get you to the gore.

zombie flesh eaters (1979)

aka Zombi 2. Island of the Flesh-Eaters. Island of the Living Dead. Gli Ultimi zombi. Zombie. Zombie 2: Gli ultimi zombi. Zombie 2: The Dead are Among Us.
An abandoned yacht drifts into New York harbour, and the subsequent death of a policeman prompts a journalist to investigate. Following the trail to a Caribbean island, he tries to trace the whereabouts of the scientist who owns the boat and stumbles on more than he bargained for.
This is an influential 'video nasty', featuring a number of memorable scenes, including a zombie attacking a shark. Chock full of gore, it also manages to be an effective horror that makes fine use of it's locations. Making the Caribbean look like a tropical paradise, that quickly becomes a hell hole!