The Trap (1985 film)

Last updated
The Trap
La gabbia (1985 Film).jpg
Italian theatrical release poster
Directed by Giuseppe Patroni Griffi
Screenplay by Lucio Fulci
Concha Hombria
Roberto Leoni
Alberto Silvestri
Story by Francesco Barilli
Produced by Juan L. Isasi
Ettore Spagnuolo
Starring Laura Antonelli
Tony Musante
Florinda Bolkan
Cinematography Juan Amorós
Hans Burman
Edited by Sergio Montanari
Music by Ennio Morricone
Release date
  • 11 September 1985 (1985-09-11)(Italy)
Running time
97 minutes
Country Italy/Spain
Language Italian

The Trap (Italian : La Gabbia), also known as Collector's Item, Dead Fright and The Cage, [1] is a 1985 erotic thriller directed by Giuseppe Patroni Griffi (his last theatrical film), and starring Tony Musante, Laura Antonelli, and Florinda Bolkan. [2] Famed Italian horror director Lucio Fulci contributed to the screenplay (this film was done during the time Fulci was recovering from hepatitis, so he was unable to direct it).

Contents

The film is based on a story called "L'Occhio" ("The Eye"), written by filmmaker Francesco Barilli. [3] Barilli intended to make the film himself, but had trouble securing backing and balked at the producers wanting Shelley Winters in the lead role. So he sold the idea to Griffi and let him produce and direct it, retitling it The Trap. Barilli said of the finished product "Lets' talk frankly here, that movie sucks...." and Fulci even used profanity alluding to his opinion of Griffi, who he felt stole his chance to direct the film. [4]

Plot

Michael Parker is a successful American businessman living in Italy with his girlfriend Hélène. However, when she leaves on vacation, Michael soon becomes involved in an affair with Marie, a woman he once had a one-night stand with. This affair proves more difficult for Michael, as Marie is not going to let him off the hook again so easily. To complicate matters worse, Marie's young daughter Jacqueline also finds herself attracted to Michael, resulting in an incestuous love triangle.

Cast

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lucio Fulci</span> Italian filmmaker (1927–1996)

Lucio Fulci was an Italian film director, screenwriter, and actor. Although he worked in a wide array of genres through a career spanning nearly five decades, including comedies and spaghetti Westerns, he garnered an international cult following for his giallo and horror films.

<i>Blastfighter</i> 1984 film

Blastfighter is a 1984 action film directed by Lamberto Bava starring Michael Sopkiw and George Eastman.

<i>Four of the Apocalypse</i> 1975 film directed by Lucio Fulci

Four of the Apocalypse is a 1975 Italian spaghetti Western film directed by Lucio Fulci and starring Fabio Testi, Tomas Milian, Lynne Frederick and Michael J. Pollard.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Giuseppe Patroni Griffi</span> Italian playwright, screenwriter, director, and author

Giuseppe Patroni Griffi was an Italian playwright, screenwriter, director and author.

Franco Ferrini is an Italian screenwriter. His works often fall into the genres of horror or thriller. He was one of the interviewees represented in the book Spaghetti Nightmares.

<i>Dont Torture a Duckling</i> 1972 Italian giallo film directed by Lucio Fulci

Don't Torture a Duckling is a 1972 Italian giallo film directed by Lucio Fulci, starring Florinda Bolkan, Tomas Milian and Barbara Bouchet. The plot follows a journalist investigating a series of child murders in an insular Italian village whose residents are riddled with superstition and mistrust. The film's score was composed by Riz Ortolani and features vocals by Ornella Vanoni.

<i>002 Operazione Luna</i> 1965 film directed by Lucio Fulci

002 operazione Luna is a 1965 science fiction comedy film directed by Lucio Fulci. The film stars Franco and Ciccio, Mónica Randall and Linda Sini. The film's Spanish print released in 1968 was titled Dos cosmonautas a la fuerza and ran only 76 minutes.

<i>Demonia</i> (film) 1989 film directed by Lucio Fulci

Demonia is a 1989 Italian horror film co-written and directed by Lucio Fulci.

<i>Aenigma</i> (film) 1987 Italian horror film by Lucio Fulci

Ænigma is a 1988 Italian horror film directed by Lucio Fulci and was produced by Boro Banjac, Walter Brandi and Ettore Spanuolo. The plot evolves around supernatural phenomenons in relation with violent deaths occurring in an American college.

<i>Ragazzi del Juke-Box</i> 1959 film directed by Lucio Fulci

Ragazzi del Juke-Box is a 1959 Italian "musicarello" film directed by Lucio Fulci and starring Mario Carotenuto, Elke Sommer and Anthony Steffen. Lucio Fulci has a cameo in the film as a festival organizer.

<i>A Day in Court</i> 1953 film

A Day in Court is a 1954 Italian comedy film directed by Steno and starring Peppino De Filippo, Silvana Pampanini, Sophia Loren, and Alberto Sordi. The film is an anthology, consisting of a day's cases before Judge Salomone Lo Russo in a court in Rome.

<i>Voices from Beyond</i> Film directed by Lucio Fulci

Voices from Beyond is a 1994 Italian horror film by director Lucio Fulci. The original shooting title of the film was Urla dal profondo. The story centers around the murder of a wealthy man despised by most of his relatives, with his spirit returning from the afterlife to guide his daughter in uncovering the identity of his killer.

<i>A Bullet for Sandoval</i> 1969 film by Julio Buchs

A Bullet for Sandoval is a 1969 Spaghetti Western film. It is a co-production between Italy and Spain. The film was generally well received by critics. For years, it was thought that famed Italian horror film director Lucio Fulci directed this western, but that was later disputed by the film's lead star George Hilton.

<i>One on Top of the Other</i> 1969 film directed by Lucio Fulci

One on Top of the Other, also known as Perversion Story, is a 1969 giallo film directed by Lucio Fulci. Written by Fulci and Roberto Gianviti, the film stars Jean Sorel, Marisa Mell, Elsa Martinelli, Alberto de Mendoza and John Ireland. The first giallo directed by Fulci, its plot concerns George Dummurrier (Sorel), an unscrupulous San Franciscan doctor who is suspected of orchestrating the death of his asthmatic wife Susan (Mell) as part of an insurance scam, despite her seeming reemergence as Monica Weston, a high-class stripper.

<i>Man, Beast and Virtue</i> 1953 film by Stefano Vanzina

L'uomo, la bestia e la virtù, internationally released as Man, Beast and Virtue, is a 1953 Italian comedy film directed by Steno. It starred Italian comedian Totò and famed actor Orson Welles. The film was originally shot in Gevacolor, but only black-and-white prints exist today.

<i>The Swindlers</i> (1963 film) 1963 film directed by Lucio Fulci

The Swindlers, aka Los Mangantes, is a 1963 Italian comedy film written and directed by Lucio Fulci, starring Franco and Ciccio.

<i>My Sister in Law</i> Italian film directed by Lucio Fulci

My Sister in Law is an Italian commedia sexy all'italiana directed by Lucio Fulci and starring Edwige Fenech.

<i>The Letters Page</i> 1955 film

The Letters Page is a 1955 Italian comedy film directed by Steno, starring Alberto Sordi. Actually the film's full title is Piccola posta ovvero: cercasi vecchia con dote. Co-writer Lucio Fulci has a cameo appearance in the film. Cameraman Delli Colli's wife (Alexandra) years later wound up co-starring in one of Fulci's later slasher films, The New York Ripper (1982).

<i>Hector the Mighty</i> 1972 Italian film

Hector the Mighty is a 1972 Italian comedy film directed by Enzo G. Castellari. A parody of Homer's Iliad set in modern times, it is loosely based on the 1966 novel Le roi des Mirmidous by Henri Viard and Bernard Zacharias.

<i>The Red Monks</i> 1989 film

The Red Monks is a 1989 Italian horror film directed by Gianni Martucci, and produced by Pino Buricchi. The screenplay was co-written by Martucci and Buricchi, based on a story by Luciana Anna Spacca. Buricchi began promoting the fact that famed Italian horror director Lucio Fulci had handled the special effects, or that Fulci had even co-directed the film. Fulci claimed he never worked on the film, and director Gianni Martucci even said that Fulci was way too ill at the time to have worked on the project with him. The film was later released to home video however with credits that still claimed that Lucio Fulci had collaborated on the film.

References

  1. Williams, Kari (2015). "La Gabbia (1985) – Review Summary". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times . Archived from the original on 3 April 2015. Retrieved 28 March 2015.
  2. Howarth,Troy (2015). "Splintered Visions: Lucio Fulci and his Films". Midnight Marquee Press. Page 61
  3. Howarth,Troy (2015). "Splintered Visions: Lucio Fulci and his Films". Midnight Marquee Press. Page 61
  4. Howarth,Troy (2015). "Splintered Visions: Lucio Fulci and his Films". Midnight Marquee Press. Page 63