There's a new generation of giallo filmmakers who are continuing to expand upon the genre's presence, in Italy and beyond. Giallo is ever growing and evolving but has always been a hybrid of genres, most notably, horror, thriller and detective story. Stylish and seductive, giallo is an elaborate and symbolic exploration into a world of dreams and nightmares and one filmmaker, Davide Melini, hopes to carry on the genre's tradition in his own unique way with his latest film, The Sweet Hand of the White Rose. This project comes not long after a successful short, The Puzzle. There's more on that after the jump.

"You Cannot Run from Fate," reads the tagline on the new one sheet for White Rose and from the look of things so far it doesn't seem like I'd want to. The film was written, directed and produced by Melini over the course of about a year and stars Carlos Bahos, Natasha Machuca and Leocricia Sabán. When Mark (Bahos) and his girlfriend (Sabán) get into a heated argument he takes off in his car not realizing that he will soon make a mistake that will change his life forever. The former Assistant Director for giallo legend, Dario Argento, shot the 16 minute film in Spain on a budget of only 2000 Euros (about $2,700).

Hit the jump for The Sweet Hand of the White Rose trailer, the full length short film The Puzzle, and my review.



Italian screenwriter and director, Davide Melini, has made an admirable contribution to giallo film in a new short film, only 5 minutes long. That's almost no surprise considering he worked as an Assistant Director on Dario Argento's The Mother of Tears. He also comes from a family of acting and filmmaking professionals, steeped in Italian cinema. His new short, The Puzzle, made the festival rounds and was included in 14 final spots, including a 3rd place win at the Rome International Film Festival. Melini is currently wrapping up a new short, The Sweet Hand of the White Rose. If that title isn't giallo I don't know what is.

In The Puzzle, A woman refuses to give money to her son and afterward decides to relax with her favorite pastime–making puzzles. However, this simple table game hides strange features that turn her peaceful night into a nightmare.

Melini achieves some of the intensity and the trademarks of giallo with dramatic lighting, a creepy score, and floating camerawork which lends a dreamy quality. We even see the iconic gloved hand. There is some nice symbolic imagery, like a shot of a stove top range, which at first almost resembles a red rope. Melini opts for fast cuts and a more frantic pace to illustrate this dark tale which could be a result of the film's length (it only took one night to shoot), but feels appropriate and intentional.

Since the film is short, I don't want to divulge all the details, but there are some striking moments and Melini does an excellent job building tension. In only 5 minutes, Melini has created something far more interesting than many big budget pictures. I'm hopeful he can achieve the same in a full length feature. Check out the short below and let me know what you think. Visit Melini's website for more information.