Scorpion's Tail

1971

1h 30m

Mystery & Thriller

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Reviews

71%

Audience Score

1,000+ Ratings

An insurance investigator is called upon to sniff out any irregularities surrounding a wealthy businessman's sudden death.

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Dennis Harvey

48 Hills

One of Martino's more restrained exercises...

Oct 9, 2023

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Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

A murder-mystery packed with all manner of bait and switch.

Rated: 3/4

Sep 3, 2021

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Rob Aldam

Backseat Mafia

Greece provides a beautiful backdrop for the reign of terror.

Oct 31, 2018

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Fernando F. Croce

CinePassion

Jazzy welter of Hitchcockisms

Nov 16, 2009

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Audience Member

Sergio Martino directed one of the better giallo's with this violent but fun murder mystery.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/27/23

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Audience Member

I love this Giallo it's got a decent mystery plot and a badass Bruno Nicolai score.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/23/23

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Audience Member

I don't see why this movie is so well liked. I am a huge fan of giallo films, but to me, this was a sloppy movie. The script was horrible, the delivery of the lines (if you watch it overdubbed in English was kind of funny), and when the case is "solved," they leave a big hole at the end. People are acting like everything is all worked out and I am yelling at the TV that it isn't and just go back to some key scenes. Then it ends. Sorry, I've seen match better from Sergio Martino.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

01/25/23

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Audience Member

The most memorable thing about fairly run-of-the-mill giallo The Case of the Scorpion's Tail is the trailer, which shamelessly compares itself to other 'masterpieces on violence' such as The Golem, Battleship Potemkin and M. The film itself is fairly conventional. Director Sergio Martino admits that he padded out the first half after the film's running time came up short, and it shows: it's not until the halfway point that the film gets much in the way of energy. The Scope location photography in London and Greece is attractive and there's some amusement to be had from the terrible model work in a plane explosion or a sunglass wearing villain called Omar who looks like a hung over Charlton Heston in Touch of Evil after being dragged through a thorn bush, but overall the film is nothing to write home about.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/05/23

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Audience Member

It was very Interesting, i like Giallo movies but only the ones that would interest me, some are very gory yet others can be very good murder Mystery movies. Deep Red is no doubt the greatest one of them all. Sergio Martino is a very giffted director with some amazing direction. But i felt the story can be...well easy to figuer out sometimes.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

01/26/23

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Audience Member

A very good Italian pulp fiction murder mystery. The outcome is perhaps obvious, but the filmaking, the fine locations, the beautiful actresses and the violent scenes make it a great example. If you like these kinds of things, and can tollerate subtitles, see it.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/09/23

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Sergio Martino

Director

George Hilton

Peter Lynch

Anita Strindberg

Cléo Dupont

Alberto de Mendoza

John Stanley

Ida Galli

Lisa Baumer

Janine Reynaud

Lara Florakis

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Synopsis

An insurance investigator is called upon to sniff out any irregularities surrounding a wealthy businessman's sudden death.

Director: Sergio Martino
Producer: Luciano Martino
Screenwriter: Ernesto Gastaldi, Eduardo Manzanos
Genre: Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: Italian
Release Date (Streaming): Oct 6, 2020
Runtime: 1h 30m

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