Carol (Florinda Bolkan) has been having a series of erotic nightmares involving her hippie neighbor, Julia (Anita Strindberg). Trips to her psychiatrist have Carol believe that her fascination with Julia stems from an urge she has to break free from the clutches of her high society family and freely take part in the liberated lifestyle Julia indulges in with a series of psychedelic, orgy like parties night after night. After having a dream in which she murders Julia in cold blood (in front of a hippie couple that gleefully watch), Carol awakens to discover Julia has just been found murdered in the exact same manner as in her dream. Did she do it or is someone be setting her up? Could it be Carol's husband Frank? Her step daughter? Carol's paranoia goes through the roof when the two hippies who were witnesses to the murder in her dream begin stalking her in real life, leading to a sensational chase scene in an abandoned church; complete with an old crypt, blood, and a swarm of bats!
Anybody with preconceived ideas of Lucio Fulci being just another hack splatter director should be pleasantly surprised after viewing A Lizard in a Woman's Skin. His direction on the film's most suspenseful sequences are incredibly well executed and the continuous onslaught of red herrings make the film an engagging thriller. Florinda Bolkan is great as Carol. There is no dialouge during the dream and chase sequences, forcing Bolkan to convey complete terror through her facial expressions and body language, and you really feel for her! Composer Ennio Morricone does the incredible score for the film that is oh so hauntingly sexy, you'll be shaking it off for days before wanting to re-hear it immediately. Carlo Rambaldi, the man responsible for creating E.T., does special effects in the film. In a famous scene, Carol discovers a series of vivisected dogs in a hospital room. As the story goes, the effect was so realistic that Fulci and Rambaldi were brought up on charges of animal cruelty, forcing Rambaldi to display the props in court to prove no real animals were harmed. 
Media Blasters, under their Shriek Show label, originally released Lizard in a 2-disc special edition featuring a stunning looking version of the shorter American cut (released under the title Schizoid by AIP) on one disc and the uncut Italian version from an inferior print on the other disc. After some backlash from fans, Media Blasters revisited the title by combining the best of both elements to make this the definitive version of this Fulci classic! Featuring a widescreen transfer with anamorphic enhancement, the film looks fantastic! Colors literally jump off the screen and the image looks pretty amazing for a 40 year old film. The scenes from the inferior looking Italian print display a slight dip in quality (faded colors and scratches) but are never distracting overall. Extras on this remastered edition include two interviews with Professor Paolo Albiero (in Italian with English subtitles); one discussing Fulci's career, the other discussing censorship issues upon Lizard's release. These are informative and intriguing enough to keep your interest but most likely won't result in revisitation in the future. Also included are the original Italian opening credits, the films American trailer, and a trailer reel of future Fulci films, including Zombie, Demonia, Murderock, Touch of Death, and The Sweet House of Horrors. Overall, this is a quintessential giallo that is a must own for all fans of Lucio Fulci or just Euro Horror devotees in general! Let it under your skin...you'll be thankful.
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