''The Dead Are Alive'' ( it, L'etrusco uccide ancora / ''The Etruscan Kills Again'') is a 1972

giallo In Italian cinema, ''Giallo'' (; plural ''gialli'', from ''giallo'', Italian for yellow) is a genre of mystery fiction and thrillers that often contains slasher, crime fiction, psychological thriller, psychological horror, sexploitation, and, ...

film by Italian director

Armando Crispino Armando Crispino (18 October 1924 – 6 October 2003) was an Italian film director and screenwriter. He was born in Biella, Piedmont. He directed nine films between 1966 and 1975. He also wrote for nine films between 1965 and 1975. He also ...

, with music by

Riz Ortolani Riziero Ortolani (; 25 March 192623 January 2014) was an Italian composer, conductor, and orchestrator, predominantly of film scores. He scored over 200 films and television programs between 1955 and 2014, with a career spanning over fifty yea ...

, and starring Alex Cord,

Samantha Eggar Victoria Louise Samantha Marie Elizabeth Therese Eggar (born 5 March 1939) is a retired British-American actress. After beginning her career in Shakespearean theatre she rose to fame for her performance in William Wyler's thriller '' The Collec ...

and

John Marley John Marley (born Mortimer Marlieb, October 17, 1907 – May 22, 1984) was an American actor who was known for his role as Phil Cavalleri in ''Love Story'' and as Jack Woltz—the defiant film mogul who awakens to find the severed head o ...

. It was released in Germany as ''Das Geheimnis des Gelben Grabes'' (''Mystery of the Yellow Grave''), in France as ''Overtime'', and in Spain as ''El dios de la muerte asesina otra vez'' (''The Death God Kills Again''). The film was produced by

Artur Brauner Artur "Atze" Brauner (born Abraham Brauner; 1 August 1918 – 7 July 2019) was a German film producer and entrepreneur of Polish origin. He produced more than 300 films from 1946. Life and career He was born the oldest son of a Jewish family ...

and the story was based on a giallo novel written by

Bryan Edgar Wallace Bryan Edgar Wallace (1904–1971) was a British writer. The son of the writer Edgar Wallace, Bryan was also a writer of crime and mystery novels which were very similar in style to those of his father. He was named after the American politician W ...

Cast

Alex Cord Alexander Viespi Jr. (May 3, 1933 – August 9, 2021), known professionally as Alex Cord, was an American actor, best known for his portrayal of Michael Coldsmith Briggs III, better known as Archangel, in 55 episodes of the television series '' ...

as Prof. Jason Porter *

as Myra Shelton *

as Nikos Samarakis * Enzo Tarascio as Inspector Giuranna * Carlo De Mejo as Igor Samarakis *

Horst Frank Horst Frank (28 May 1929 – 25 May 1999) was a German film actor. He appeared in more than 100 films between 1955 and 1999. He was born in Lübeck, Germany and died in Heidelberg, Germany. Selected filmography * ''Der Stern von Afrika'' (19 ...

as Stephen *

Enzo Cerusico Enzo Cerusico (22 October 1937 – 26 November 1991) was an Italian film actor. He appeared in more than 50 films between 1951 and 1984. Career in the United States Cerusico's first role on American television was in a 1966 episode of ''I ...

as Alberto *

Daniela Surina Daniela Surina (born 20 September 1942) is an Italian singer, actress and television personality. Life and career Born in Trieste, Surina started her professional career in 1965, making her film debut in the comedy film '' Soldati e caporali' ...

as Irene * Vladan Milasinovic as Otello * Christiane Von Blank as VeliaLuther-Smith,Adrian (1999). ''Blood and Black Lace: The Definitive Guide to Italian Sex and Horror Movies''. Stray Cat Publishing Ltd. p. 44 * Mario Maranzana as Vitanza * Pier Luigi D'Orazio as Minelli * Wendy D'Olive as Giselle * Ivan Pavicevac as Policeman * Nadja Tiller as Leni Schongauer Samarakis

Plot

Two young people looking for a place to make love are brutally murdered in an Etruscan tomb which had recently been violated by a group of archaeologists, led by Prof. Porter (Alex Cord). The corpses are positioned so as to indicate they were murdered as sacrifices to the Etruscan Death-god Tuchucha. Several other murders occur, focusing on members of the archeology team and friends of Prof. Porter's. The victims have their heads bashed.

References

External links

* 1972 films West German films Yugoslav horror films Films directed by Armando Crispino 1972 horror films Films scored by Riz Ortolani 1970s Italian-language films 1970s English-language films English-language Italian films English-language German films English-language Yugoslav films 1970s Italian films Italian horror films German horror films 1970s German films {{1970s-horror-film-stub