The most fun I had in my year of horror movie immersion came when I went down the rabbit hole of Giallo Cinema.

Previously, I knew the term, and knew it was associated with the work of Italian director Dario Argento, but I didn’t know anything more than that. This project was my opportunity to remedy the blind spot.

Giallo is Italian for “yellow,” and it is the name given to a certain kind of hard-boiled murder mystery (in both book and movie form). The name derives from the bright yellow covers of pulp novels published in Italy starting in 1929. Think of the American “pulp fiction” novels that inspired the title of Quentin Tarantino’s movie.

Giallo films have certain characteristics that make them a sub-genre of horror. They often involve a black-gloved killer who preys on women while eluding the authorities and ultimately being unmasked by an amateur detective. The films feature bright colors, dramatic lighting, and operatic camera moves. The murders are generally brutally and imaginatively conceived, earning giallo movies the nickname “spaghetti slashers.”

One great feature of most giallo movies is a creative title that feels ripped from the pages of a tattered crime novel: The Murderer with the Silk Scarf, Death Walks on High Heels, The Case of the Scorpion’s Tail, The Red Headed Corpse, Your Vice Is a Locked Room and Only I Have the Key.

While giallo films have been produced for sixty years, with hundreds of titles from which to choose, the genre’s heyday took place between the late 60s and late 80s. I watched nine of the best-regarded films from that era, but I’m eager to gobble up some more.

Most of my choices were directed by Argento: in order, they are The Bird with the Crystal Plumage (1970), Deep Red (1975), Suspiria (1977), Tenebrae (1982), Phenomena (1985), and Opera (1987). The best-known is Suspiria, which introduces a supernatural element not common in giallo films. But my favorite is Deep Red, about a musician who (yes) tracks down a black-gloved serial killer.

Other giallo films I watched are 1971’s A Lizard in a Woman’s Skin (Lucio Fulci), 1964’s Blood and Black Lace (Mario Bava), 1971’s A Bay of Blood (Bava), and 1969’s Orgasmo (Umberto Lenzi). The best of those is Blood and Black Lace, which pairs its clever murder mystery with stunning cinematography.

The completist in me really wants to watch every giallo release. Wikipedia lists more than 225 titles from the genre so, at two per month, that would take me nine years. I watched ten of them over two weeks in September, so I guess I’m ahead of the game.

Next up: The Saw Series