Myriam Nys The mayor of a small, impoverished town in Italy hires a painter in order to restore an altar fresco in the local church. The fresco, which was made by a local artist, shows Saint Sebastian being transfixed with daggers by screeching harpy-like torturers. The hapless painter gets embroiled in a story of evil and madness... Let's begin with the bad. "Laughing windows", as a whole, suffers from some kind of amateurishness, which may be the result of factors such as artistic immaturity, inexperience, rushed working conditions and/or a shoestring budget. Or perhaps it's just a case of too little talent and too little care - who knows ? Much of the acting, to put it politely, is not of Oscar quality, while the narrative all too often depends on characters saying or doing things no real-life human of the saner variety would say or do. As a result the movie is littered with WTF moments both large and small : think, for instance, of a man showing up in the large, ramshackle house of a woman he's never met, and making himself comfortable as a non-paying guest or lodger... And yes, it's one of those horror movies where characters decide to remain close to dangerous people and dangerous situations, rather than run away screaming. ("Yes I know the supermarket is on fire and yes I see burning people rolling about in agony, but I really want to finish my shopping. Would you like to eat fish fingers for supper ? Or perhaps a nice pizza ?") Having said this, "Laughing windows" also has its strong points, such as an interesting central premise. The sets and scenery are well-chosen, there is an exquisite colour palette and some of the visual images, such as the Saint Sebastian fresco or the house with the laughing windows itself, are very striking. Last but not least the generous innocence of nature is nicely juxtaposed with a nasty, brooding sense of menace.

Nigel P In a sea of disconcerting images, the most unpleasant must be the fridge full of snails, bathed in their own excrement. It is something that happens without fanfare and is treated without hysteria, either by lovely new teacher Francesca (Francesca Marciano) or hero Stefano (Lino Capolicchio). There are quite a few disconcerting images like this, some occasional gore and an overriding atmosphere of perversion and unknown horror.The story involves Stefano's deployment to an isolated village (always the best kind) to restore a decaying mural in the local church. He takes up residency in the house owned by the original, deceased artist's two sisters. Whilst carrying out the restoration, his casual investigations reveal that the original artist was an insane murderer, who used his nefarious activities as 'inspiration' for his art.Amidst the chilling night-time whispers of 'purify' and the eerie dilapidation of the titular house, Stefano's affair with doe-eyed (yet hirsute) Francesca is a welcome touch of tenderness. You just know that something unspeakable is going to happen to her.It's a heady concoction of sinister characters and unnerving set-pieces. The surprise revelation at the end of the film is very satisfying and in part, pretty gruesome. Although the film may never quite live up to its glorious title, it provides an entertaining addition to the Italian 'giallo' cinema.

BA_Harrison Art restorer Stefano (Lino Capolicchio) is hired to repair a damaged fresco in a remote village church painted by renowned local artist Buono Legnani, who was reputed to be mad, and who only depicted death and suffering in his work. As he carefully reveals previously unseen sections of the painting, Stefano also gradually uncovers a terrible secret that has blighted the town for decades.This giallo, from director Pupi Avati, seems to get an awful lot of love from Euro-horror fans, who praise it for its unsettling atmosphere, slow-burn approach, and cool visual style. If, like me, you're a fan of the genre, but tend to prefer them on the sleazier side, with lots of nudity and gore, be prepared to be disappointed and read between the lines when checking out the mostly positive reviews here on IMDb.For 'deliberate pacing', read 'slow and lifeless'. For 'brooding atmospherics', read 'dull story'. For 'classy' or 'stylish', read 'boring'. For 'unsettling', read 'it'll have you fidgeting in your seat'.And when people say that the twisted ending is 'a shocking revelation that will unhinge your mind', or some such claptrap, just be prepared to be massively underwhelmed: I found the surprise revelation at the end of the film ridiculous in the extreme but not in the least bit unnerving (far more disturbing for me was the discovery that gorgeous, young, snail-loving school-teacher Francesca, played by Francesca Marciano, wears over-sized granny pants!).

kurciasbezdalas Actually I don't even know what to think of this film. It was very creepy and it's possible that I may have some nightmares tonight about it. Actually many years ago I had a nightmare very similar to this film, there were a very similar houses like in this movie, maybe that's the reason why this one appeared so creepy to me. It isn't one of those horror films where one murder goes right after another. There wasn't much violent scenes, only some short but very realistic murder scenes. There is a lot of suspense in this movie. The acting was very good. Probably my favorite character was that crazy kid, he acted really creepy sometimes. It's a little weird film, but you should give it a chance, because horror films of this kind are pretty rare.