The Worst Film Ever

Self-important, over-dramatic, uninspired.

Highly Overrated But Still Good

The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

In Spain it appears that ladies keep their telephones in the shower and, when answering the door, have time only to put on a pair of shoes, but not a pair of grundies. Welcome to Death Haunts Monica, an old school giallo (the kind that involves a rich person and loads of untrustworthy people trying to get their money) that has an mid-seventies giallo mindset (loads and loads and loads of nudity).Monica herself is a rich lady who is married to and stressed out by playboy Jean Sorel, who has used her money to set up a successful company along with friend Arturo (who is also ex-boyfriend of Monica) and Elena, who tells Monica that Jean is having an affair with Eve, who is also Elena's lover. Jean also has a bit of a dodgy past and that comes back to haunt him in the form of Diego, a man who tries to blackmail Jean and discovers it's really Monica who is holding the purse strings. That's about as much plot as I'm willing to give away as this film relies on its many twists and turns for impact, and as it's looking back towards those late-sixties gialli (like Umberto Lenzi's Paranoia) it wouldn't be fair to spoil anything else that happens. The seventies archetypal black-gloved killer does show up eventually, but even then things aren't so straightforward. This is a fine example of the genre with an almost complete lack of gore, although every single actress gets naked (and many others do to, just for the sake of it). Jean Sorel has barely aged a day since the last film I watched him in.

This film essentially begins with a young man by the name of "Federico" (Jean Sorel) who is married to a wealthy woman named "Monica" (Nadiuska) but is having an affair with another woman by the name of "Eva" (Barbara Rey). As it so happens, Federico works with a female colleague named "Elena" (Karin Schubert) who is romantically involved with Eva and is using her affair with Federico to gain control of his company. To make matters even more complicated, a man named "Diego" (Damien Velasco) has just been released from prison and the first thing he does is to blackmail Federico by threatening to reveal his past criminal history before he met Monica and became successful. Eventually, one thing leads to another and Monica soon discovers that she has become an innocent victim in a scheme by certain people so obsessed with money and power that they are willing to do anything to acquire it. Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that this film derives much of its entertainment value by the mystery it manages to contain until the very end. That being said, this film managed to keep my attention for the most part and for that reason I have rated it accordingly. Slightly above average.

Monica is the pill popping rich (her money) wife of a businessman being blackmailed by a former partner in crime. Said husband has also been carrying on an affair with a model. The affair puts the man's marriage in jeopardy. After a (too) long build up, the blackmailer dies and the body is disposed of, but the corpse re-appears. What is going on? You won't care! This film has a low body count and a predictable outcome. As for the sleaze factor, the nudity is not that plentiful nor, in my opinion, are the women overly attractive. Although Spanish in origin, Death Haunts Monica has the plodding quality of the worst in Italian thrillers.

The marriage between Federico and Monica is on the rocks.Federico has a mistress named Eva.There is a conspiracy between Monica's friend Elena and Eva to take over the company Eurozone owned by Federico.Elena and Eva are in a lesbian relationship.The situation becomes complicating when Diego appears,a former associate of Federico and a criminal...Very enjoyable Spanish giallo obviously influenced by legendary French classic "Diabolique".There is plenty of sleaze and full-frontal nudity including lesbian scene between Karin Schubert and Barbara Rey.Nadisuka is exceptionally beautiful and she shows her naked flesh too.A must-see for any self-respecting giallo completist.7 out of 10.