From the surreal (and trippy) animated opening credits accompanied by a spectacular track by the mysterious talents of one Shawn Robinson (a tune which serves as the underlying theme throughout the bulk of the production), it is rather obvious this Italian/Spanish co-production is very different from other gialli of the time. Or any time, for that matter. Indeed, as the intriguing (if somewhat predictable) film ‒ also known as to English-speaking audiences as In the Eye of the Hurricane ‒ plays out, it seems to transgress from the routinely bloody and sex-laden Euro “whodunit” the giallo is now known for into something which I can only attempt to describe as “the grand uncle of the ’90s Cable TV erotic thriller.” But in a good way.
Analía Gadé is the tormented heroine here in this romantic mystery (spoiler: she rarely exposes much skin), whose existence becomes laced with life-threatening accidents after she leaves hubby Tony Kendall (just wait until you see him sporting that see-through mesh shirt!) for the dashing charms of Europe’s answer to Robert Wagner, monsieur Jean Sorel. Rosanna Yanni (the staturely stacked co-star of several Paul Naschy Euro horror films, including Count Dracula’s Great Love) and a sublimely excellent (to say nothing of pimpin’) Maurizio Bonuglia also highlight this unique take on the giallo thriller from director/co-writer José María Forqué, which also features a scene which surely must have inspired Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man.
Mondo Macabro rocks us with this Hurricane, which hits US home video for the first (legitimate) time with a beautiful 1080p transfer of this neglected gem. English and Italian audio options are included in LPCM 2.0, with optional English subtitles. Bonus materials begin with another informative (and, as always, entertaining) audio commentary from the one and only Troy Howarth. Next up is an episode of Eurotika! entitled “So Sweet, So Perverse”, which focusing on European sexpots of the era. Wrapping up this unusual flick from Mondo Macabro is an alternate scene (sans dialogue), a look at the English-language version of the opening and end title credit sequences, and, finally, trailers for the main feature and other Mondo Macabro releases.
Highly Recommended.
