2. Giallo
Giallo (Italian for yellow) is a sub genre which is mainly confined to Italian horror film circles, I cannot really think of any other country that embraced Giallo or could do Giallo as well as the Italians. The basic format comes down to sex and violence along with a strong flavouring of mystery. Usually a masked, black leather clad figure goes around murdering young women. There will be a protagonist in the Gialli who will take it upon themselves to ignore the police and start their own investigations into the killings. The police are pretty redundant in Gialli and there are usually red herrings galore in the films. There will also be some unbelievably hot Eurotrash starlets running around in their scanties, step forward Edwige Fenech. The Giallo is quite variable in its violence and nastiness - reaching its height in Thrilling in Venice and The New York Ripper, but most Gialli concoct a heady blend of sex, mystery and violence. Stand out Gialli include Torso by Sergio Martino, this film had a major impact upon American genre directors with regards to slasher movies. Massimo Dallamano created a creepy Giallo classic with naughty schoolgirl goings on in What Have You Done to Solange? And of course there were the many contributions to the genre by Dario Argento - the Master of the Giallo - Opera, The Bird With the Crystal Plumage, Tenebrae - take your pick.