The Strangler

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The Strangler

Released Nov 15, 2023

1h 36m

Crime

Drama

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100%

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15 Reviews

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Fewer than 50 Ratings

The film centers on Emile (Jacques Perrin, The Young Girls of Rochefort), a handsome young man targeting women he believes are too depressed to go on living. As multiple women fall to Emile's suffocating white scarf, inspector Simon Dangret, the detective assigned to track down the killer, resorts to seriously unorthodox and even unethical methods to get his man with the assistance of Anna, a beautiful woman who believes herself to be a potential victim.

Meagan Navarro

Bloody Disgusting

The Strangler is an arthouse horror of the highest order; the proto-giallo favors ambiance over bloodletting. Vecchiali’s sense of style, humor, and sympathy for his killer sets it apart.

Rated: 3/5

Nov 17, 2023

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Glenn Kenny

RogerEbert.com

The sensibility behind “The Strangler” is sufficiently unusual and stalwart.

Rated: 3/4

Nov 17, 2023

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Richard Whittaker

Austin Chronicle

Paul Vecchiali's newly restored 1970 crime flick is, instead, a meditation that crawled onto the Left Bank of post-war French philosophical ruminations.

Rated: 3/5

Nov 16, 2023

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David Bax

Battleship Pretension

...for as much as it belongs to any number of genres, from giallo to musical and many in between, it is also a unique work.

Jun 20, 2025

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Kathy Fennessy

Seattle Film Blog

Vecchiali's film is more of a character piece--and not a full-fledged giallo as some have claimed--and the central character is more obviously villainous, yet somehow not a complete monster.

Rated: 3.5/4

Jan 27, 2024

Full Review

Diane Carson

KDHX (St. Louis)

Relatively unknown here, writer/director Vecchiali offers a captivating, disturbing entry in the serial-killer/police procedural genre, one that illuminates those less complex, less intriguing typical entries contrasted with his study.

Dec 13, 2023

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michael k

I got so bored I quit halfway through. Didn't engage me at all pretentious.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

01/02/25

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B P

Moody, Arthouse 1970 Giallo

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

11/18/23

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Paul Vecchiali

Director

Jacques Perrin

Emile

Paul Barge

Le chacal

Eva Simonet

Anna Carré

Nicole Courcel

Claire, la prostituée

Jacqueline Danno

Monique

The Strangler: 2K Restoration Trailer

1:35

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Synopsis

The film centers on Emile (Jacques Perrin, The Young Girls of Rochefort), a handsome young man targeting women he believes are too depressed to go on living. As multiple women fall to Emile's suffocating white scarf, inspector Simon Dangret, the detective assigned to track down the killer, resorts to seriously unorthodox and even unethical methods to get his man with the assistance of Anna, a beautiful woman who believes herself to be a potential victim.

Director: Paul Vecchiali
Producer: Jacques Perrin
Screenwriter: Paul Vecchiali
Distributor: Altered Innocence
Production Co: Unité Trois, Reggane Films, Marianne Productions
Genre: Crime, Drama
Original Language: French
Release Date (Theaters): Nov 15, 2023, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 18, 2024
Runtime: 1h 36m

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