The Bloodstained Butterfly


The Bloodstained Butterfly is a 1971 giallo film directed by Duccio Tessari. It was distributed in West Germany as Das Geheimnis der Schwarzen Rose which was the name of the Edgar Wallace story on which the film was based. It starred Helmut Berger and Ida Galli.

Plot

When an attractive college student is stabbed to death in the park during a rainstorm, the police arrest TV sports announcer Alessandro Marchi as the killer. His attorney presents a weak defense and Marchi is incarcerated, not realizing his lawyer is having an affair with his wife, and the two are glad to get rid of him. But the murders continue, so the police begin to think they've jailed the wrong man.

Cast

gave the film a positive review, writing "this beautifully assembled giallo is among the best of its time" and that it features a "genuinely intelligent script, a rarity in a subgenre generally known for flamboyant visuals at the expense of narrative cohesion."