What Have You Done To Solange? (1972)

Media Reviewed: US DVD (Shriek Show)

Director: Massimo Dallamano
Starring: Fabio Testi, Christina Galbo, Karin Baal, Joachim Fuchsberger

What Have You Done To Solange? is the first of Massimo Dallamano's gialli about a series of murders involving schoolgirls. Gialli were the mystery thrillers largely made in Italy in the 1970s named after the yellow-covered novels that inspired them (giallo being the Italian word for 'yellow'). These films were popularised in the late sixties by directors Mario Bava and Dario Argento and became commonplace in Italian cinema throughout the seventies.

The film begins with the scene of our protagonist, Enrico (Fabio Testi) and the schoolgirl with whom he is having an affair, frolicking by a riverbank on the Thames. The girl spots what appears to be a girl running away from someone and later sees the flash of a blade in the corner of her eye, but Enrico is convinced it is her excuse in avoiding putting out. Enrico later finds out that a girl was indeed murdered there, and returns to the riverbank to investigate. The victim was one of his pupils, and Enrico becomes entangled in a series of schoolgirl murders as he continues his investigation, uncovering his pupil's sordid pasts in the process.

What Have You Done To Solange? is an excellent example of a good giallo - it contains the black-gloved killer associated with many of these type of films, as well as the violence and sexual overtones. The films does not show a lot of onscreen violence, but the nature in which the killer kills their victims is disturbing, although relevant to their motives. Also the fact that the crimes are committed on schoolgirls adds to this.

The film has some very stylish moments, using some excellent camerawork, including an extremely effective point-of-view shot in which the killer flees the scene of the crime after being spotted by a witness.

Another outstanding element of the film is its score, composed by Ennio Morricone, in particular the discordant basses during the film's more suspenseful moments. Morricone composed a number of scores for gialli, including Dario Argento's first two films, The Bird With the Crystal Plumage and Cat O' Nine Tails.

The film is noted for its more sleazy moments, including a shower scene in which a man leers at the showering girls through a hole in the wall. The film doesn't flinch in its depiction of nudity and its taboo subject matter, but the director makes evident his views on children growing up too quickly and becoming involved in sex and drugs. The movie is a lot about the loss of innocence and what it means to be a child and this theme is also used in Dallamano's 1974 follow-up What Have They Done To Your Daughters? to good effect.

Overall, What Have You Done To Solange? is a superior giallo and is essential viewing for those interested in the genre. It doesn't quite reach the heights of Argento's best work, but not many films of this type do.