Ep. 13: Arabella Black Angel

"Is this giallo, or is this porn?" That's the critical question we seek to answer by the end of this new episode about a late-80's scissor-killing sleazefest!

Arabella is a nymphomaniac. Which is going just fine for her until every single guy she sleeps with starts to wind up dead, mutilated by a pair of scissors. All of this is captured in cinematography typical of the giallo genre, which is to say nearly every gorgeous shot could be framed a hung in a gallery. But in this one's case, a real kinky gallery for someone who might want to really analyze the lighting in locations like "the sex dungeon" and "The Freaky Boy's Town".

Which, of course, is precisely what we do! Ryan aims his analytical sights on the literary context of the film, likening its paradoxical plot to the Slothropian logic presented in Gravity's Rainbow, Cassie raises the question of whether or not the scissors themselves might be symbolic (they are!), and special guest, cinematographer Ryan Kroboth, takes us through the dazzling camerawork on display, in a film that thrives on dolly moves, zoom lenses, and enormous lights. And we'll even break down what giallo is for the uninitiated!

This is a film that's actually difficult to pick out more than a handful of scenes that don't contain either 1. Murder or 2. Full frontal nudity, so trust us, you're in for a wild and wacky time with this one. About 50 minutes in we make the stunning realization that, "We didn't even talk about the flaming penis yet!" So, yeah.

Stream it on Shudder or Tubi first if you want to avoid spoilers!

Arabella Black Angel
Directed by Stelvio Massi
Italy, 1989

Incredibly Strange Video is produced and edited by Ryan Quinn and Cassie Kay. Follow us on Bluesky @isvpodcast.bsky.social for updates on the newest episodes!

Theme music:
The End by EVA
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All excerpts from the films discussed are used for educational and critical purposes only.