The brutal murder of a pretty teacher with a double life brings out the worst in the other tenants of her tony apartment building...The DVD back cover blurb for BAD INCLINATION calls the film an "attempt to recreate the films of the genre, like the ones made by Lucio Fulci and Lamberto Bava in the 1960s and '70s, that were adored by the public and hated by the critics". That couldn't be more wrong -and not just because Mario Bava's son Lamberto was an '80s horror director, not a '70s giallo one. Director Pierfrancesco Campanella's not-so-sly satire on an amoral society's tabloid celebrities wasn't an homage to a much beloved Italian horror sub-genre so much as a skewering of a new "Me Decade" with it's hedonistic abandon and self-serving values. A lady prosecutor on the case laments, "there's too many relationships" and the goings-ons in the victim's A-list apartment complex is reminiscent of SCTV's soap parody "The Days Of The Week" with its tongue-in-cheek pregnant pauses and off- the-wall couplings. The still-attractive genre fave Florinda Bolkan almost walks away with the movie as a ruthless artist who gets inspiration from the murder in more ways than one but she gets some stiff competition from the always interesting Eva Robins (the transsexual in Dario Argento's TENEBRAE flashbacks) as a Norma Desmond-ish has-been singer. The temperamental diva turns the murder into a "comeback vehicle" by insisting she's getting obscene phone calls from the killer -a nasty piece of work whose weapon of choice is an architect's metal set-square. The crimes become a goldmine of publicity with everyone making the TV talk show rounds -including the public prosecutor- and guest star Franco "Django" Nero's bit as a street corner prophet acts as a sort of hip Greek chorus. There's ulterior motives and double crosses galore and the murders, the brief glimpses of hetero S&M, and the lesbianism and nudity (courtesy of Robins) are all photographed in classy style on stylish sets. The ambiguous ending isn't, really, since it's in keeping with the film's jaded universe and, like any good giallo, the title's a big hint. This one's lots of fun, I loved it!

Looking round recently on Ebay for any interesting DVD that were on sale,I was delighted to spot a near forgotten Giallo title from 2003.With a poll being held on IMDb's Classic Film board for the best titles of 2003,I felt that it was a good time to find out how 'square' this Giallo really is.The plot:After successfully conning 3000 Euros,small time artist Mirta Valenti notices a stranger attempting to steal from her car.Stopping the thief,Valenti discovers that the stranger is actually a former art student of hers called Donatella,who has fallen on hard times.With having caught Donatella red-handed,Valenti decides that instead of taking her to the cops,she will use Donatella to copy a recent murder,with Valenti target of victim being herself (unbeknownst to Donatella,Valenti has other,secret plans.)As Valenti begins to make plans for her copy-cat killing,Public Prosecutor Rita Facino begins to suspect that a recent spree of killings involving a set-square may not all have been committed by the same person.View on the film:Placing the original murder on the side lines,the screenplay by co- writer/ (along with Enzo Gallo and Gianluca Curti) director Pierfrancesco Campanella takes a swift satirical stab at the characters obsession with fame and attention,with the writers showing the city's residence to be excited,rather then terrified,of the mysterious killer lurking in their mists.Whilst the writers do take a rather original approach,the screenplay is sadly unable to build any real sense of gripping tension,thanks to the murder-mystery element of the Giallo being pushed completely to the sidelines.Shot in a smooth,glossy style by Campanella,and backed by a classy score from Alberto Antinori,each of the cast (some of whom appear completely naked) give very good performances,with Florinda Bolkan showing a real eeriness in her performance as Valenti,whilst 'special guest star' Franco Nero gives a wonderful manic performance,as Rita Facino (played by a pretty Mirca Viola) begins to fear that others may be following the killers brush strokes.

It's a painfully sad but inevitable conclusion to acknowledge that, just like with some great animal species, some of the greatest genres in cinema are threatened with extinction… The Italian Giallo, a sub genre of horror that was immensely popular from the mid-60's until the early 80's, has literally died out and practically every attempt to revive the genre results in sore disappointment. Pierfrancesco Campanella, writer/director of "Bad Inclination" has obviously watched and learned a lot of classic gialli from masters like Sergio Martino, Dario Argento and Lucio Fulci. It almost seems like he noted down all the typical and recurring themes and trademarks from the greatest gialli ever made and processed them into his own screenplay. The film features a black-gloved killer with a rather unusual murder weapon, beautiful scantily dressed women getting stabbed to death and convoluted plot twists. So yes, "Bad Inclination" features the ingredients of a genuine giallo, but sadly it ended up being a tasteless and dissatisfying horror stew. The plot is incoherent and ramshackle, most of the acting performances are atrocious (though admittedly I might be influenced by the downright god-awful dubbing) and – worst of all – Campanella doesn't succeed in generating that typical giallo atmosphere of sleaze and morbidity. "Bad Inclination" takes place in a Roman apartment complex full of flamboyant inhabitants. When one of the female tenants is found brutally stabbed to death with a metal set square (!), most of the residents are petrified but a few other ones immediately see it as a unique opportunity to get rid of their own personal problems. Soon after, two more bodies are found massacred with set squares, but the investigating police officer isn't convinced they're looking for just one killer. Since the apartment building homes a formerly successful singer and an ageing artist, the case also received a lot of media attention and puts extra pressure on the police's shoulders. The gimmick of using a set square as a murder weapon is presumably the most ingenious element about the whole film. The murders are gruesomely illustrated, but not really that shocking and they are too few! The nudity, albeit welcome especially when provided by the beautiful Elisabetta Cavallotti, is gratuitous and totally unnecessary. Nevertheless my respect to the director for being able to cast Florinda Bolkan in the role of vicious painter. Bolkan was the star in two of Lucio Fulci's greatest films, "Don't Torture a Duckling" and "Lizard in a Woman's Skin" and also appeared in other highly memorable Italian films like "Flavia: The Heretic", "Footprints on the Moon" and "Last House on the Beach". There's also a small cameo for an even bigger Italian star, namely Franco Nero, but it's totally insignificant and irrelevant to the plot.

I have to say, for once I am glad I came on IMDb and read some comments before I watched a film. After seeing the incredibly low rating on here, I was not expecting much at all from "Bad Inclination." This film is a total must see for giallo fans. I was impressed by the awesome setting and mood that was established right from the get go. Starring Florinda Bolkin of "Lizard in a Woman's Skin," "Bad Inclination" weaves a nice little web of bizarre love and murder mystery, leaving the viewer enchanted and excited to see how it will turn out.While it is not on par with some of the older giallos, this one should not be tossed aside! But I will warn you: the dubbing is HORRENDOUS in this one. It's like they used translation dot com for some of the lines, they make no sense at all. I bet in Italian with subtitles this movie would be a million times better. Ending could have been a bit better though.For fans of Sergio Martino, old Argento and Lucio Fulci.7 out of 10, kids.