Nigel P Young people are often portrayed so gleefully negatively in horror films, it is always a relief to find appealing 'teen leads'. As unlikely as it sounds, the two exploitative hippies featured here, Ingrid and Dick (Ornella Muti and Ray Lovelock) are a truly cute couple. Selling softcore pictures of Ingrid, the two gad about Italy spending their money on brief periods of excessive living before they are eventually asked to move on by the law.They become even more endearing when, now on the run, they accept an offer from the mysterious Barbara Slesar (Irene Papas) to stay the night at her opulent home – naively unsuspicious that anything could be amiss. It soon becomes apparent that the nervous, vulnerable Mrs Slesar could teach the young tearaways a thing or two about subterfuge.This is a giallo that stretches the rules. There's no black-clad killer, no huge revelation or great unmasking at the end, but it works very well and the finale packs a punch even though it isn't entirely unexpected. It seems things could either have gone one way or the other. They go the other! Ornella Muti is new to me, but has had (and continues to have) a prolific career. Precocious and wilful, it is Ingrid's credulousness (entirely in keeping with her free-living, unconstrained character) that lands herself and Dick in the climactic situation they find themselves in, but because she is so child-like and appealing, she never loses our goodwill.Variations of the very catchy theme music 'How Can You Live Your Life', sung by Lovelock, are threaded throughout - it should have been released commercially.'An Ideal Place to Kill' is also sometimes known as 'Oasis of Fear', 'Dirty Pictures' and 'Deadly Trap'.

wvisser-leusden The title 'Oasis of fear' may be a bit exaggerated to today's taste, for this film is more like any crime-release you may watch on television nowadays.And yes, some knowledge about society from 1971 comes in handy as well. With a prominent issue like the youth revolution, turning away from all stiff morals adapted by the elder generations. Seeking freedom, leisure and sex, released & relieved by the then new anti-conceptive. Starting for it right down in Copenhagen, because in those days Scandinavia was leading the way.Although this issue is demonstrated abundantly by the young couple, one cannot miss that 'Oasis of fear' is really carried by the then 45-year old Irene Pappas -- adding at least 20% to this film's worth.Another name worth mentioning is that of producer Carlo Ponti. I have seen better films from him, but I suppose it's his influence that makes 'Oasis of fear' worth watching up to this day.

Bezenby Man, there's something about seventies Umberto Lenzi films.This one, which he made either right before or right after Deep River Savages, concerns two smug hippies running (literally - they run everywhere!) around Italy being annoying, having a great sex life (annoying, I've got two small kids who are the best contraceptives ever), being free spirits (wish I had the time but I'm too busy earning money to buy nappies), and stealing stuff (also annoying). They end up being mistaken for another equally annoying couple and therefore do a runner or something...or maybe it was something to do with selling pervy pictures...Anyway - they end up at this house and that's where the mystery and intrigue start, I ain't one for spoiling a good Italian movie. Lenzi is very smart with this film...not even particularly bothered about whether or not the audience understands where the film is heading until about the one hour mark. If you don't have two small kids then you could possibly have enough time to actually sit down and watch this one - It's another beauty from the man whose mental health would give us 'Ghosthouse' and 'House of the Damn it Can't Even Remember the title of this one due to lack of sleep (two small kids)...Shameless, bless them, have given us a good copy...my only beef with Shameless is the photographic archiving of every dirty bit from the film on the back of the DVD - Cheers for making me feel like a dirty old man!

Prof-Hieronymos-Grost Posto ideale per uccidere, Un (1971) aka Oasis of fear aka Dirty pictures 7/10 A young free loving hippy couple Dick (Ray Lovelock) and Ingrid (Ornella Muti) buy a car load of porn in Copenhagen to help fund their holiday in Italy. Once in Italy they find plenty of takers for their product and soon find themselves very flush with cash which they spend like there's no tomorrow, soon they find they are broke again and Dick has the idea to take porno photos of themselves and flog them, but they approach the wrong person and are soon in the custody of the local police who confiscate the pics and give them 24 hours to leave the country. On their way home, their car runs out of petrol and so they knock into a nearby large house, where having received no reply decide to siphon off petrol from a car in the garage. They are confronted by Barbara, the apparently flustered lady of the house who threatens them with the police, but then on hearing their story changes her mind and invites them in for some food and to stay the night. It turns out she is the lonely wife of a NATO colonel and soon all three are involved in some flirtatious sex games, but who is taking advantage of who? Next morning we find out…… Another fine early Giallo from the diverse Lenzi, a rather bloodless and character driven film that doesn't really follow the Giallo tradition or for that matter let on where its going until the end, Lovelock and Muti are very good as the young sexually charged couple, who never hesitate to get naked, although Muti's nude scenes do seem to have been taken by a body double, Irene Papas as the very hospitable host takes most of the acting plaudits and portrays her characters vulnerability to perfection in a role that also requires her to show a sense of sexual frustration in a multi layered character and despite the fact not a lot happens in the first half of the film, there is a nice tension built up between the three leads. Lenzi also captures a fun frivolous swinging sixties full of flower power hippies, gypsies, sitars, swinging clubs which is defined by a very funky score with some horribly catchy songs by Bruno Lauzi. Although there is more than a slight overuse of the zoom lens throughout the film, Lenzi again proves to me he was a fine film maker. There's also a sting in the tale, in what is a rather muted and downbeat ending as Lenzi finally reveals his hand. Recommended