If you’re a regular reader of Nerdist and recognize my byline at all, you’ve likely seen me write quite frequently about giallo films, the Italian mystery-thriller-horror movement that ran from roughly 1963 to 1990-ish, but had its absolute heyday in the early ’70s. I love these movies, with their penchant for beautiful people, jet-setting locales, cool as hell music, and often gnarly gore sequences. And I’m not alone. The giallo has maintained a healthy cult fandom in the intervening years, but it has exploded in the last decade. This is thanks in no small part to new restorations and repertory screenings by groups such as Cinematic Void’s January Giallo series.
Now, the Los Angeles-based Cinematic Void has paired with other such organizations across the United States to bring January Giallo to more cities than ever before.
For 2022, screenings will take place weekly at the American Cinematheque’s Los Feliz 3 location in Los Angeles, and, in a true twist for rep cinema fans, January Giallo will also take place weekly at The Coolidge Corner Theatre with Coolidge After Midnite in Boston, MA, and at the Music Box Theatre with Music Box of Horrors in Chicago, IL.
While the full list of films has not yet been released, we do have a few exciting reveals for you. The Cinematheque and the Coolidge will screen the Creepers cut of Dario Argento’s wild film Phenomena, which sees a young Jennifer Connelly talking to bugs and trying to avoid a black gloved knife murderer. Not to be left out of the Argento game, the Music Box will screen Vinegar Syndrome’s new restoration of Argento’s 1993 film Trauma, about a murderer who decapitates his victims with a garotte machine. (Gross.)
Additionally, they’ll screen a Technicolor 35mm Italian language print of Francesco Barilli’s The Perfume of the Lady in Black starring giallo staple Mimsy Farmer, who made a career out of playing perpetually mentally fragile women. The programmers also promise “signature films from Mario Bava, Sergio Martino, and Umberto Lenzi.” My three favorites, don’t ya know! (I wrote about Bava here, Martino here, and Lenzi here!)
And, for those who won’t be able to make any of the screenings in person, there will also be a virtual January Giallo edition of Cinematic Void Up All Night and the Cinemadness Movie, which will be presented by Severin Films, on January 14.
“It’s an honor to expand January Giallo with two of the most beloved and respected rep cinemas in the country,” says James Branscome, founder of Cinematic Void. “It was an absolute pleasure to work with Mark E. Anastasio from the Coolidge and re-team with former Cinematheque programmer William Morris at The Music Box to make this happen.”
“ The Coolidge After Midnite is thrilled to be a partner in crime with Cinematic Void! A notorious film series that we welcome to the East Coast with bloody, black-gloved, and trenchcoated arms,” adds Mark E. Anastasio, Director of Special Programming at The Coolidge.
William Morris, co-programmer of The Music Box of Horrors adds, “There’s no better way to ring in the New Year than with a bottle of J&B, a ruthless black-gloved, razor-wielding maniac, a sexy soundtrack, and enough style to stop your heart. Cinematic Void and its progenitor, Jim Branscome, have been terrorizing the West Coast with January Giallo since 2017. This year the madness is spreading and we here at the Music Box of Horrors couldn’t be more excited to join in on the debauchery.”
Giallo movies are fun for everybody, so this is the perfect time to get into this wild and enjoyable sub-genre. For more information on the January Giallo series, head to Cinematic Void’s website.
Kyle Anderson is the Senior Editor for Nerdist. You can find his film and TV reviews here. Follow him on Twitter!