Directed by Domiziano Cristopharo (House of Flesh Mannequins) in collaboration with Daniele Trani (DOP of Oltre il Guado), Nightmare Symphony is a giallo horror genre film that pays homage to the cinema of Lucio Fulci and, in particular, his A cat in the brain (aka Nightmare Concert).
Drawing on the collaboration of Antonio Tentori and Fabio Frizzi, the screenwriter and composer, respectively, of A cat in the brain (1990), Nightmare Symphony stars Frank LaLoggia, an American screenwriter, director and producer known for directing the cult Scarlatti - Lady in White (1988). The latter is the protagonist of Nightmare Symphony Who, like Lucio Fulci in his hated and beloved The cat in the brain, plays himself i.e., a director who falls victim to hallucinations, haunted by the nightmares triggered by his own film.
Frank Laloggia's acting performance is remarkable, as is also that of Antonella Salvucci, who contrasts her physicality with an absolutely convincing dual role.
Nightmare Symphony is a kind of nostalgic journey back in time, characterized by a story in which there is a strong sense of suspension from the real world. Indeed, in the film, cinematic fiction and reality alternate to the point of blurring, generating a suspenseful atmosphere in which the atmosphere is charged with a growing sinister fascination.
In this surreal and evocative dimension in which visionary moments give way to purely horror ones, an edgy soundtrack (by Antony Coia) presses in to match the vintage soul of this nostalgic cinematic work with its evocative and hallucinatory ending.
The story gives space to several murders carried out by a killer whose face is covered by a peacock mask and who slits, suffocates, disfigures with a razor, removes facial skin or stabs his victims in an escalation of violence in which the valuable practical effects (Jacopo Tomassini) do not go unnoticed. A character, the latter, belonging to Frank LaLoggia's film but who seems to trespass into the director's everyday life, bringing to Nightmare Symphony A touch of surrealism and mystery.
Delusional and surreal, Nightmare Symphony achieves a perfect state of cinematic completeness and beauty in which lurks an authentic and boundless love for giallo and horror in respect of the most important Italian cinematography of the past. Domiziano Cristopharo is skillful in bringing to life Antonio Tentori's well-edited screenplay, bewitching the viewer with an astonishing mise-en-scene in which his distinct style prevails.
The result is a thrilling ode to Fulciano cinema. It is definitely a film that ranks among the best Italian productions in horror cinema.
Plot: Frank LaLoggia is called upon by an unscrupulous producer to complete an old "cursed" film of his. An unemployed former actor (Halil Budakova) will try to get a part in the project, but the horrors of the screen will mix with those of a chilling reality.
In the cast: Frank LaLoggia and Antonio Tentori as themselves; Antonella Salvucci (The Torturer, Bloody Sin), Poison Rouge (American Guinea Pig: Sacrifice), Pietro Cinieri (The Curse of the Crying Child), Irene Baruffetti (Mad Macbeth), Federico Di Pasquale, Blid Budakova, Edi Hasan Lushi, Halil Budakova, Merita Budakova (the latter three actors are part of the cast of "Mad Macbeth" and "Virus: Extreme Contamination."
The soundtrack is by Antony Coia (House of Flesh Mannequins, Xpiation). In addition to the main theme by Fabio Frizzi (the original from Fulci's "The Cat in the Brain"), the film also features tracks by Alexander Cimini and Flowers of Flesh and Blood.
Photography is by Daniele Trani.