Who Saw Her Die? (1972) – Film Review

Director: Aldo Lado
Cast: George Lazenby, Anita Strindberg, Adolfo Celi
Certificate: 15

By Sarah Morgan

Mention George Lazenby and what immediately springs to mind?

His early years as a model and role in an advert for Fry’s chocolate bars, or perhaps his marriage to tennis star Pam Shriver? Of course not. Even if you’re aware of all that, it will be James Bond who dominates your thinking.

He is forever written into 007 folklore, not just as the man who took on the role after Sean Connery initially walked away, but because he too abruptly left the franchise, albeit after just one film, the marvellous On Her Majesty’s Secret Service.

“Dark underbelly”

Many claim it was the biggest mistake Lazenby ever made, but there’s no going back from such a thing, so perhaps it’s time now, just a few months on from the announcement of his retirement, to take a look at the rest of his CV.

It’s fair to say that there are few standout moments, but one movie that deserves to be reassessed is the 1972 Italian production Who Saw Her Die?. Made a year before Nicolas Roeg’s Don’t Look Now, it too uses a rundown and bleak-looking Venice as its backdrop, with the death of a child central to the story.

Lazenby plays Franco, a sculptor living in the city and enjoying spending quality time with his daughter Roberta, who lives most of the time with her mother, Franco’s estranged wife Elizabeth, in London.

Father and child clearly have a strong bond, which is shattered when Roberta goes missing; her body is eventually found floating in a canal. Franco then obsessively hunts for the killer, submerging himself in Venice’s dark underbelly and finding links to another girl’s murder many years before.

“Shocked”

If you’ve only ever previously seen Lazenby as Bond, then you’ll be shocked by his appearance here. He reportedly lost weight to play Franco, which gives him a lean, almost unhealthy look. That works perfectly when the character is grieving, but not so much in the earlier, happy scenes.

Nevertheless, those who claim he couldn’t act should check out his performance – it’s one of the best of his career, despite the fact his voice has been inexplicably dubbed by American actor Michael Forest.

Who Saw Her Die? has been classified as a giallo, an Italian genre that mixes murder mysteries with elements of horror, but unlike other entries, and the aforementioned Don’t Look Now, it lacks a supernatural element. Instead, the horror is all too real.

Anita Strindberg and Nicoletta Elmi also appear, while there’s another Bond link – Adolfo Celli, who played the villainous Largo in Thunderball – is among the supporting cast.

However, this is Lazenby’s movie. What a pity then that there is no interview with him among the special features, although director Aldo Lado, producer Enzo Doria and writer Francesco Barilli are on hand with their memories of the production.