5 DEAD ON THE CRIMSON CANVAS

Written, Directed, and Photographed - Joseph Parda
Produced by Joseph Zaso
Edited by Anthony Mark

Richard Streeb - Mony Damevsky
Gloria Streeb - Liz Haverty
Bill Streeb - Joseph Zaso

One of the most popular horror genres to come from Italy is the Giallo, splatter-filled thrillers revolving around faceless killers. Losely translating as "yellow", the "Giallo" takes its name from the color of most of the posters used for advertising. While not looking too yellow, or crimson for that matter, 5 DEAD ON THE CRIMSON CANVAS is a chilling U.S. production, from Joseph Parda and Joseph Zaso, that does its best to emulate its Italian counterparts.

Richard Streeb pulls from the darkest depths of his soul, the images he puts to canvas. The death-obsessed artwork has made the painter a wealthy man. He and his wife, Gloria, live a life of luxury in a grand, old mansion with a pair of servants that are a bit too friendly and looking to get in their master's pants. One evening during dinner, and after the servants have been dismissed, Richard is knifed to death in front of Gloria.

The remainder of the film is an interesting blend of the police procedural and the slasher film as the stalker murders those who have profited over the years off Richard's paintings. The goal of the killer seems to be to collect as many of Richard's art pieces are possible. With the police baffled and the body count rising, Richard's brother Bill tries find his brother's killer while attempting to bed his brother's wife. It's good to see a man with his priorities straight…

I've never seen a true Italian Giallo and aren't sure of the conventions. Apparently Parda must have been dead on as the film played in Italy and won numerous awards. Going down to the birthplace of the genre and beating the local product is no easy task.

Parda's style takes a little while to grow on you. The takes are long, drawn out, and static. With almost no intercutting the scenes seem to go on far too long. By shooting on film, I'm sure Parda's choices was purely budgetary in nature. The film is also shot non-synch, again, probably for budgetary reasons. The end result is a film raw and unpolished, and probably much better for it. There's a gritty feel, which seems out of place in the lush caverns of the mansion, but works well to accentuate the underlying themes of domestic hostility.

5 DEAD ON THE CRIMSON CANVAS isn't a perfect movie, it's not even close. But it's not a bad movie either. Joseph Parda wants to pay tribute to the films that inspired him and there's nothing wrong with that. The guy could have done worse by trying to give homage to John Waters.

5 DEAD ON THE CRIMSON CANVAS
Alternative Cinema

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