UC Santa Cruz

The Visceral Beauty of Obsession: Ennio Morricone, Dario Argento and Their Modern Vision of Mystery and Terror

by

John Bissett

This work examines the cultural significance of L'uccello dalle piume di cristallo (Dir. Dario Argento, 1970), its imprint on the Italian cinematic murder mystery genre known as giallo, and how this influence is represented in the score. By acknowledging the historical context of Dario Argento's film within both the cinematic and literary traditions of the giallo, analysis of the interaction between sound, image, and narrative yields insight as to how Ennio Morricone's score embodies the film's most noteworthy contributions to the genre. The film's success internationally was unprecedented within the genre, and inspired the most prolific era of giallo production in the early 1970s as well as the predominant narrative structure of the cinematic giallo. L'uccello dalle piume di cristallo features an amateur detective pursuing an anonymous psychotic killer whose murders become the emotional and technical centerpieces of the film. The amateur detective and the emphatic presentation of murder would be lasting tropes in giallo, highlighting the genre's central themes of mystery and terror in the setting of contemporary Rome. Morricone's score seizes upon these precise traits by juxtaposing simple melody with experimental atonal tension scoring emphasizing improvisation in conducting and performance. Analysis reveals how specific techniques in the implementation of these musical languages amplify themes of obsessive mystery and visceral manipulation, while choices in compositional style provide a similarly contemporary backdrop for the visual narrative. Morricone's score displays an acute awareness of the thematic and aesthetic relevance of the film, which is evident in the resounding influence of L'uccello dalle piume di cristallo in the style and narrative of a plethora of giallo produced in its wake.