THE DOUBLE (1971)
Limited Edition Blu-ray
Label: Radiance Films
Region Code: Region-Free
Duration: 90 Minutes 40 Seconds
Audio: Italian or English PCM 1.0 Mono with Optional English Subtitles
Video: 1080p HD Widescreen (1.85:1)
Director: Romolo Guerrieri
Cast: Jean Sorel, Lucia Bose, Ewa Aulin, Silvano Tranquilli, Marilù Tolo
The Double (1971), aka La controfigura, is directed by Romolo Guerrieri (The Sweet Body of Deborah), and stars smoldering giallo star Jean Sorel (Short Night of Glass Dolls) as Giovanni, an architect who is gunned down by a bearded stranger in a parking garage during the opening moments of the film. We then see his life flash before his eyes through a series of time-shifting flashbacks as we learn what led to this murderous moment.
We learn that he was on his honeymoon in Morocco with he younger wife, Lucia (Ewa Aulin, Death Smiles on a Murderer), and that he's not so much a successful architect, no that is more of a hobby, daydreaming about modern architecture design - he's just living off a trust fund, his wealth is derived from the family's struggling brick manufacturing business in Rome. His younger wife's flirtatious disposition is a threat to his already impotent masculinity, and she is not a fan of how conservative he is discovering him to be. things are further complicated by the unexpected arrival of his wife's stunning mother Nora (Lucia Bosé, Fellini Satyricon), whom Frank is instantly attracted to, fueling a misogynist lust. Adding insult to injury, both she and her daughter are attracted to a American drifter named Eddie (Sergio Doria, Cave of the Sharks) they meet on the beach. Frank almost immediately feels threatened by the presence of Eddie, and begins to fantasize about murdering him in various ways, including death by harpoon gun and assassination by rifle, which are presented in such a way that I was not immediately sure if this was happening or not, it keeps you disoriented.
While this is happening Frank's brother (Giacomo Rossi Stuart, Kill Baby, Kill) attempts to tap him to help save the family business, which is his financial life-line, but he's too distracted by matters of lust and fragile masculinity to pay much attention. Things get interesting when Eddie turns up dead inside Nora's empty apartment, when Frank discovers his body he assumes that she committed the murder and takes care to clean up the rime scene and disposes of the body - thank goodness for brick ovens at the family factory!
As the film continues it gets more artfully hallucinatory and surreal, Frank's fantasies of murder already had me questioning his sanity, and his ability to reliably narrate the truth via end-of-life flashbacks, and just when I thought I was putting the pieces together the rug was pulled out from under me several time, but it all come to solid close, with the identity of the killer and his offbeat motives revealed.
The film looks terrific, it was attractively lensed by Carlo Carlini (Autopsy), and is both visually pleasing and slightly disorienting, with a score fantastic by Armando Trovajoli (Uncle Was A Vampire) that is both eerie when needed, but also quite lush and evocative as well. I wouldn't come to this expecting Dario Argento-esque elaborate kills sequences, it's not that, it's more subdued, more of an giallo-esque examination of masculinity gone awry, so temper those expectations. Sorel has typically been quite a likable and attractive presence in films, but I have to say, I loved how terrible a human he is here. At first we get that steely-eyed Sorel charm, he an attractive guy for sure, but as the fractured storyline moves along he's revealed to be so deeply flawed and unlikable, I sort of love that about it.
Audio/Video: The Double (1971) makes it worldwide HD debut on Blu-ray from Radiance Films, marking it's first release outside of VHS, presented in 1080p HD framed in the original 1.85:1 widescreen, sourced from a new 4K restoration from the original negative. The image looks terrific, grain is nicely resolved, colors look terrific, and clarity and depth are appreciable. Audio comes by way of Italian or English dub via PCM 1.0 mono with optional English subtitles. Both of the dubbed tracks are clean and in great shape, the dubbing in both languages are solid, dialogue exchanges offer no issues, and the score by Armando Trovajoli (The Italian Connection) sound terrific.
Radiance extras include a terrific new Audio Commentary by Tim Lucas (2026) that does thorough work dissecting the film, comparing it to the source novel, addressing if it's a giallo and noting the cast and crew notables, in addition to addressing the narrative style. We also get a 14-min Archival interview with director Romolo Guerrieri and star Eva Aulin, which has been newly edited for this release. They separately look back at the making of the film, adapting the source material, the score, memories of the cast, and shooting the sex scenes. We also get a new 26-min Appreciation by author Stephen Thrower (2026) who talks about how the English title is a bit misleading, the symbolism of the film. There is also a 2-min Easter Egg hidden away on the menu, featuring a couple of extended sequences sourced from the Greek VHS release.
The single-disc release arrives in a clear, full-height Scanavo keepcase with a Reversible Wrap featuring artwork based on original poster. We also get the Removable Obi-Strip which leaves the wrap free extraneous text and markings, and inside there is a Limited Edition Booklet featuring new writing by Nathaniel Thompson of Mondo Digital who talks about the 'is this even a giallo?' debate, noting the themes and use of the duality motif, the unorthodox narrative style, noting homosexuality in this film and other gialli of the era. The booklet also contains cast and crew credits, notes about the transfer and Blu-ray production credits.
Special Features:
- 4K restoration from the original negative
- Audio Commentary by Tim Lucas (2026)
- Archival interview with director Romolo Guerrieri and star Eva Aulin, newly edited for this release (2026, 14:25)
- Appreciation by author Stephen Thrower (2026, 26:02)
- Easter egg (2 mins)
- Reversible sleeve featuring artwork based on original posters
- Limited Edition Booklet featuring new writing by Nathaniel Thompson
Screenshots from the Radiance Blu-ray:
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