Let it be known that Pupi Avati's The House with Laughing Windows was one of the only films that I have seen that contained a plot twist that I legitimately didn't see coming. Even more impressively, I didn't feel cheated or insulted by the twist. Of course, I don't want to spoil the film for anyone who hasn't seen it yet. But suffice to say that it comes out of nowhere and makes you completely re-evaluate the film. It begins with Stefano, a professional art restorer, arriving in a rural Italian village to restore a fresco of Saint Sebastian's death in a decrepit church. As he restores the massive painting, he is shocked by the unusual brutality and violence portrayed. He gradually learns that the artist had been insane and had enlisted the aid of his two sisters to kidnap, torture, and murder villagers for inspiration. So imagine his horror when during his stay villagers start to disappear again...The House with Laughing Windows focuses less on graphic violence and more on creating a suffocating atmosphere. It reminds me of Robin Hardy's The Wicker Man (1973) where every villager seems to be in on a secret, sinister plot. The few scenes that actually do feature violence are legitimately disturbing, especially the flashbacks concerning the sisters. And then, of course, there is the twist ending. But I'll leave that for you all to discover.
7/10
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