The film Body Puzzle has a title that pretty much sums up the plotline of the film, an Italian thriller from 1992 directed by Lamberto Bava, being newly released as a remastered DVD by RaroVideo. Bodies are the name of the game, whether they’re being chopped up and mutilated or ravished and romanced, creating a mysterious atmosphere that will draw the viewer in instantly.
Beautiful publishing professional Tracy’s pianist husband, Abe, dies in a horrible car accident. As if that trauma wasn’t enough, afterwards, someone keeps breaking into her house and leaving severed body parts everywhere. Various people seemingly unconnected to Tracy meet horrible ends just so the killer can leave her his trophies. When the reasoning for the killer’s choices becomes known, it becomes a race against the clock to save those who might be next.
The twist at the end becomes less of a twist and more obvious to the viewer as the film progresses, yet the methods of the killer and the twists and turns that the story takes are compelling enough to keep one in one’s seat until the end credits roll. Joanna Pacula as Tracy and Tomas Arana as Michael, the investigating police officer who winds up in Tracy’s bed, are a good match with natural chemistry that renders their inevitable affair quite believable. The soundtrack is scored by several ominous pieces for piano, especially whenever the killer is preparing to strike, which increases the already sizeable tension and is a great contrast to the sunny Italian landscape that is the backdrop for the heinous crimes being committed. If you like your thrillers studded with sunshine, sexiness, and gore, then Body Puzzle is a giallo worth checking out.
"Body Puzzle" is on sale December 6, 2011 and is not rated. Foreign, Thriller. Written by Lamberto Bava, Todoro Corra. Starring Francois Montagut, Joanna Pacula, Tomas Arana.
